Canon 6D Wifi Linking with iPhone 5

[Rienzphotoz]

Unless I want to be a spyier, WHY do I want to operate the camera through a cell phone

To understand and use any feature of a camera (including WiFi linking 6D with a smartphone), one needs imagination ... the first prerequisite of any photographer.

[verysimplejason]

Unless I want to be a spyier, WHY do I want to operate the camera through a cell phone

Gotta agree that there are lots of uses for it (funny too because this was a feature I was kind ehhh whatever on when the specs were announced). 

I enjoy night photography!  So, the ability to control long exposures from my phone would rock! 

Also, I was thinking of ways to use it at weddings too, for ceremonies and receptions!  (I do rather like the idea of that!  Especially for the ones where I don't have a second shooter!).  Really there are quite a few possibilities for this feature!

A possible wedding usage is to set up the camera in a spot where a photographer would not be permitted to stand, getting a perspective that would otherwise be impossible.  At some churches this is the entire altar area.  Of course it would require getting permission first.  And it would require using the quiet shutter mode.

It may not be practical as a "second shooter replacement" during critical times, such as when the bride is walking up the aisle, because a solo photographer will need to be shooting with their camera and at the same time be shooting with the phone ... not an easy task.

+1 on the different perspectives... E.g., how about a shot from underneath the hands of the couple during the ring ceremony to capture the emotions of the couple as those rings are being slid?  I agree it's doable also from above but sometimes, a different perspective can make your shots more dramatic.  A well placed 6D controlled by IPhone can definitely do that...  Some priests won't allow photographers generally in the altar area during the ceremony.

[Rienzphotoz]

Hey guys, yesterday I put together a quick video on how to wirelessly tether your Canon 6D to your iphone (should be the same set up for iPad and similar for Android devices).

I had a few issues getting it set up and getting some of the features to work initially, but once I followed these steps it is painless.

Wireless wifi shooting is super cool and I demo some of the features in the second half.

In review Mode you can-

- Review Images
- Rate Images
- Delete Images
- Email 2.5 MP size images
- Import 2.5MP images to your device (cant seem to get this to work)
- Supposed to be able to video video, but Im only seeing thumbnails now, Im probably doing something wrong.

(You can do all of the above while your camera is in your bag!)

In the Shooting Mode you can:

- Preview Exposure
- Change Exposure Settings (Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO)
- Preview shooting info
- Focus
- Change Focus location

No video triggering or wireless video shooting...yet.

The app is pretty stripped down but shows some absolutely tremendous potential. I just LOVE this feature.

Ill be posting more reviews & images on my blog this week.

M

OH MY GOD! ... THE MICHAEL of "MichaelTheMentor" is on Canonrumors? ... that is AWESOME ... dude, just a few seconds ago, I bought your Canon 600 EX-RT Speedlite Crash Course from your website, and while I was waiting for it to download I decided to check out what's going on at Canon Rumors to my surprise, your post is here  ... talk about coinsidence. Living in the Middle East it is difficult to get good quality training in English, so the only option for people like me is websites that offer good training, yours is one of the 3 that I really like. Coming back to the  the video you posted here, it is ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT. Nice to see you on Canonrumors and hope to see more of you here.

[MichaelTheMaven]

Hi Rienzphotoz- Thank you so much for your post and support, I really appreciate it!  I'm so busy with production that I cannot always come into Canon Rumors Forums as much as I would like, but I feel like Im most compatible with users here in terms of levels of interest, questions and knowledge. Ive learned quite a bit from just reading posts. Its one of the only ones I come to for that very reason, but I also like to share what Im learning as well. Nice to meet you! M

[Woody]

Unless I want to be a spyier, WHY do I want to operate the camera through a cell phone

To understand and use any feature of a camera (including WiFi linking 6D with a smartphone), one needs imagination ... the first prerequisite of any photographer.

Well said. Maybe some folks are just gearheads who love to brag about the capabilities of their gear, leaving themselves little time to engage in real photography.

[tron]

A chinese wireless adaptor costs a few dollars. I cannot imagine that the solo photographer will be able to change 6D's settings and shoot with his camera at the same time anyway. So a remote shutter release is usually enough. Plus, I do not think that composition can be changed remotely by the camera itself!

[CarpetFeet]

Does anyone here know if it will be possible to access the same features on the 5DIII if fitted with an appropriate wifi adaptor?

[Marsu42]

The app is pretty stripped down but shows some absolutely tremendous potential.

The tremendous potential would be harvested if Canon would release an sdk for the wifi control so any 3rd party software could control the camera beyond basic p&s - but knowing Canon they are too conservative for that or will only enable it for the 1dx2... let the reverse engineering begin!

Unless I want to be a spyier, WHY do I want to operate the camera through a cell phone

Wildlife shooting comes to mind (and Canon also suggested this) - put some baid in front of the camera and keep a safe distance either from shy or deadly animals... or for an event put the camera somewhere high and get shots no one else can. Of course in all these cases you have to know where your subject(s) will be when positioning the camera or put the camera on some other remote-control gear.

[Dylan777]

Unless I want to be a spyier, WHY do I want to operate the camera through a cell phone

Gotta agree that there are lots of uses for it (funny too because this was a feature I was kind ehhh whatever on when the specs were announced). 

I enjoy night photography!  So, the ability to control long exposures from my phone would rock! 

Also, I was thinking of ways to use it at weddings too, for ceremonies and receptions!  (I do rather like the idea of that!  Especially for the ones where I don't have a second shooter!).  Really there are quite a few possibilities for this feature!

I might be different from you guys.

I rather see 6D offers better AF system, Continuous Autofocus tracking Video likes T4i, faster frame rate, better ergonomics etc....things that can help to improve your IQ.

I wouldn't cry over spilt milk, the camera is out already. And I'm sure the 6D's IQ stays very much slightly the same without your requested features.

What I do seem to notice is that the people who own the camera seem to be enjoying it very much and the ones who don't are criticizing it the most. I already have a 5D Mark III, but I'm really curious about the WiFi feature of the 6D because 1) I hate having to use the adapter to connect my camera to my iPad 3 to review images with clients 2) wireless remote shooting with a screen attached, especially with the size of a tablet screen, is a huge advantage for studio and landscape applications, it will help you focus less on technical issues and more on creativity 3) For an event photographer who needs to get an image over to the projector guy's laptop without having to take your card out sometimes. Heck, you can even take photos of important people at some events and you can send the photo right away without having to go through the hassles of cables and adapters. Throw a watermark on it with your ios or droid app and voila, instant business card with THEIR faces on it.

From a photography perspective you might think of some limitations for the use but you can get really creative on the business end of photography with the WiFi feature. I'm definitely picking this up as a 2nd body. Odds are, I'll be able to shoot jpeg into my 5D Mark III's SD card, throw it into the 6D, and import photos via wifi taken by my main body as well. I think Canon marketing planned this out quite well. (as much as I hate not having wifi built in to the 5D mark III despite understanding the materials used on the top part to weather seal it further will inhibit the signal)

I wouldn't give advices or comments on the products that I haven’t touched. I tried 6D at local camera shop for 2days. There is nothing special about 6D. It feels like FF sensor in Rebel chassis.  With just 1 single-cross AF(center), this is truly a weak point of 6D. Bottom line is, if the camera can’t give me precise focus, WiFi and GPS are wosrthless . As a 5D III owner, I do plan to get 2nd body. 6D is not on my list - 1D X or another 5D III.   

[Dylan777]

Unless I want to be a spyier, WHY do I want to operate the camera through a cell phone

To understand and use any feature of a camera (including WiFi linking 6D with a smartphone), one needs imagination ... the first prerequisite of any photographer.

As a wedding photographer, how do you compose your shots when your camera is already on the tripod and you operate through a phone from distance?

[Marsu42]

What I do seem to notice is that the people who own the camera seem to be enjoying it very much and the ones who don't are criticizing it the most.

That's normal and neither good or bad - all products in this premium category are excellent (unless you're missing a specific feature) and thus it's human that people like their recent purchase, esp. after spending a lot of $$$. Actually, believe it or not, I like my 60d, too and do think you can decent pictures out of it :-) ... the rare other possibility is people bashing their purchase because of too much dissatisfaction (like broken af assist on 5d3).

On the other hand, people who don't own or just quickly tried an item are bound to be focused on the specs and the "bang for the buck" which imho is perfectly normal, too. Pixel peepers or spec evangelists just should keep in mind that that's only a (smaller) part of photography, and fortunately most do - but if someone did research and assembled 1st hand experiences or reviews that can result in a very reasonable opinion, too.

Personally I like to hear both sides to make an educated decision, esp. since reading "I've got this product xyz for abc time, and it's great" doesn't mean anything for *me* and my budget vs. features tradeoff.

[jcollett]

Well, some have complained about the 6D not having an articulated screen.  By having WiFi and the app on a smartphone, the user now has an even better solution; a screen that is not even attached to the camera!  Wanna shoot from 2 inches off the ground but do not want or cannot get to the ground?  This feature will allow the user to see in these angles.  The camera has been designed to be shot with one hand, so the other can hold the monitor (smartphone).  How about shooting over the top of the heads in a large crowd?  Now, the user can do so without a pure guess if they will get the shot framed.

I personally cannot wait to see what this creative community will do with this technology.

[Marsu42]

Well, some have complained about the 6D not having an articulated screen.  By having WiFi and the app on a smartphone, the user now has an even better solution; a screen that is not even attached to the camera!

No way - I can turn the screen on my 60d in an instant w/o getting a phone out, the swivel screen doesn't need a wifi link and thus doesn't draw battery power, it updates faster, it has all the settings (and Magic Lantern) and I don't need a second hand to hold the phone.

I know Canon marketing says the mobile option is better, but it's only an addition and they're replacing a nice hardware feature (that costs them $$$) with basic p&s software (free).

[Rienzphotoz]

Unless I want to be a spyier, WHY do I want to operate the camera through a cell phone

To understand and use any feature of a camera (including WiFi linking 6D with a smartphone), one needs imagination ... the first prerequisite of any photographer.

As a wedding photographer, how do you compose your shots when your camera is already on the tripod and you operate through a phone from distance?

I am not a professional wedding photographer but I did take photos at my niece's wedding earlier this year and the following is what I had done:
I used 2 cameras, a 5D MK III handheld and a 60D on a tripod. At our Church the parish priest does not allow photographers to come behind him (while the couple are facing him) during Mass, offertory and other Catholic rituals (which goes on for about 90 minutes). So I got the priest's approval to set a tripod (with my 60D) discreetly placed behind him. I used a 10 inch Asus Iconia tablet connected to my 60D with a 20 foot USB cable (running under the church carpet) and remotely triggered the camera with an android program called "RYC USB Pro". I chose a wide angle lens so I could change the AF to capture the couples expressions and sometimes the audience expressions. I took over two dozen memorable photos the professional photographer (who was hired to do the wedding photography) could not capture because the priest would not allow him to be at certain places. I would have preferred if it was totally wireless, like the WiFi feature on 6D, so I didn't have to worry about someone tripping on exposed parts of the USB cable.

Granted that the WiFi feature may not always be ideal for every single situation but everything has a time and place. But a little imagination wouldn't hurt. Sometimes I wonder what Adam Ansel and other great photographers before him would have thought of all the immature cribbing that goes on these days about every little feature on a camera that someone does not use or like. I plan to sell my 60D and get the 6D in about 2 or 3 months time because of the WiFi feature and of course the full frame advantage ... I can already imagine myself using my iPhone strapped to my hand (facing towards me) while I am taking photos above a crowd or placing the 6D near a bird nest and remotely triggering the camera from a distance ... so many possibilities, only if we are willing to use some IMAGINATION! IMAGINATION! IMAGINATION!

[Rienzphotoz]

Hi Rienzphotoz- Thank you so much for your post and support, I really appreciate it!  I'm so busy with production that I cannot always come into Canon Rumors Forums as much as I would like, but I feel like Im most compatible with users here in terms of levels of interest, questions and knowledge. Ive learned quite a bit from just reading posts. Its one of the only ones I come to for that very reason, but I also like to share what Im learning as well. Nice to meet you! M

You are most welcome and it is my pleasure to meet you on this forum ... now I'm gonna go watch your 600 EX-RT crash course ... when I'm done watching I will post my feedback on your website.