Reading mode: Light Dark

Can this be done....

Go to last post
R

randy johnson1

Active member
Messages
53
Reaction score
0
Location
Independence, MO, US
I need your help. I am considering buying an E-3 body for a part-time business I will be starting in May at our local "Outdoor Fishing/Hunting" store.

I will be taking pictures of folks climbing a rock wall and having them ready for purchase when they're done. Two people can climb at a time...and it takes on average 4-5 minutes to climb....IF they go to the top.

My printer will be set up within about 20-30 feet from where the pictures will be taken.

I need the pictures sent directly to the printer from the camera via hardwire or wireless for printing if possible.

Is this possible? Because of the quick turnaround involved..there will only be two pictures on a card at a time...and although I am physically close to the printer...I really really don't want to be opening and closing the memory card door 300+ times over the course of the weekend....and taking the card in and out 300 times....I see very bad things happening if I have to do that.

Any suggestions on how to solve this problem?

Thanks again......for any input.
 
I think you can get a CF card with wireless built in and it is rumoured that the E3 memory door was made plastic to allow the wireless signal to get out.

Then you just need a wireless hub on the printer with the right setup and you should be good to go.

I could only find the Eye Fi SD card when I searched as all the wireless CF cards had massive anntennae. The Eye fi SD may work in the eye fi CD to CF adapter.

Surely if they can make a wireless SD card with no antenna then they can make a CF card wireless with no antenna?

--

'The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls' (Paul Simon, The Sound of Silence)

E I, E 5IO, E 5OO, II-22, I4-54, 5O f2.0 macro, 40-15O f4.5, 5O-2OO Ec-I4
 
The E-series cameras support DPOF printing via USB (no computer needed).
Cf. p. 101 of the E3-manual (which is available online).

Another possibility would be using Oly Studio to remotely control the camera via USB (computer needed, of course).

Best,

Claus.

--

... when the photograph annihilates itself as medium to be no longer a sign but the thing itself...

 
randy johnson1 said:
What would I need if I wanted to use hardwire?
Click to expand...
Attach the camera and the printer by a USB cable, and use "direct printing" from the camera. E3 supports PictBridge. Might eat up batteries though...

Boris
 
I can't help you with the logistics, and don't want to interfere with your economic analysis of this venture,
BUT :
  • are you sure enough that most people will want to buy the picture ?
  • printing good quality can be expensive
  • might you not consider putting a monitor somewhere in the chain, where people can see their pic and decide to have it printed or not ?
(Like they do at the exit of themepark rides, only at a slower pace).

Maybe sending pics to a monitor for display (and correction ?) an printing from there is also more battery-friendly than printing straight from the camera.

Roel
 
Roel,

I appreciate your thought on this.....and that question was THE number one question that I attempted to get an answer for.

The general consenus from other Event photographers is that they sell more when they have the pictures "there and ready" to be bought. Since this type of photography is numbers driven and is a "impulse purchase"....I have been told that it pays to print them all.

I agree with you though...the first impulse is to display the pictures...and print only when the customer pays....thus saving consumables etc, but from what I've been told and read the actual numbers don't lie. We'll cross our fingers and see if we can prove it's true.
 
It's true : you see both approaches.

1. Themepark rides : pictures displayed on monitor and printed only for buyers (but who wants to wait before getting in another ride...)

2. At our local Zoo, some photographer takes your (or your kid's) picture together with a man in a Koala suit. They print them all by the time you leave. Sometimes they even make little gadgets (like a keychain with the picture). I guess in those circumstances it pays to print, because people are in a hurry leaving...

The cost of printing was not my only concern, but also the question whether it wouldn't be good for the workflow (battery, CPU power, possibility to make slight adjustments in crop, tone, ...) to put a dedicated computer somewhere in the chain. This could also be helpful to show interested customers who already jump for the first picture, maybe a second/third etc picture you took of them (and sell more...)

Roel
 
Roel,

Excellent suggestions! Thank you. Really...my main concern is getting the pictures direct from the camera to either the laptop or printer.

I was under the assumption that WI-FI could be utilized...but I have not been able to verify if in fact..the E-3 body is built so as to allow the use of WI-FI memory cards.
 
randy johnson1 said:
thanks.....so now I guess I need to investigate how long of lengths
those USB cables come in.
Click to expand...
"Active" USB cables are 15 feet each, and can be daisy-chained up to 5 in a row, but you'll need external power.

Boris
 
RoelHendrickx said:
randy johnson1 said:
Roel,
Click to expand...
RoelHendrickx said:
I was under the assumption that WI-FI could be utilized...but I have
not been able to verify if in fact..the E-3 body is built so as to
allow the use of WI-FI memory cards.
Click to expand...
Yep, the non-metal card door...
Click to expand...
I doubt the WI-FI would work. Your hands would block the radio waves, so you'd need an external antenna. Regardless of which, the E-3 does not have any network support, except USB, so what would the WI-FI do? Other than that, I don't think the plastic door decision was based on WI-FI ideas.
--
http://www.olyflyer.blogspot.com/
 
Rather than go with an apparently unproven third party solution, why not go with the D300 + wt4? It's a little more money, but also would come with better support including the ability to browse thumbnails on the cam.

Jeff
randy johnson1 said:
I need your help. I am considering buying an E-3 body for a
part-time business I will be starting in May at our local "Outdoor
Fishing/Hunting" store.

I will be taking pictures of folks climbing a rock wall and having
them ready for purchase when they're done. Two people can climb at a
time...and it takes on average 4-5 minutes to climb....IF they go to
the top.

My printer will be set up within about 20-30 feet from where the
pictures will be taken.

I need the pictures sent directly to the printer from the camera via
hardwire or wireless for printing if possible.

Is this possible? Because of the quick turnaround involved..there
will only be two pictures on a card at a time...and although I am
physically close to the printer...I really really don't want to be
opening and closing the memory card door 300+ times over the course
of the weekend....and taking the card in and out 300 times....I see
very bad things happening if I have to do that.

Any suggestions on how to solve this problem?

Thanks again......for any input.
Click to expand...
--
Jeff
 
Jeff said:
Rather than go with an apparently unproven third party solution, why
not go with the D300 + wt4? It's a little more money, but also would
come with better support including the ability to browse thumbnails
on the cam.
Click to expand...
You didn't really explained why the D300 would be better and why it would be more expensive. At least here in Sweden the D300 body is cheaper then the E-3 body. Than, the E-3 with the proper lenses is weather sealed as well, which is not exactly a disadvantage in that situation.

Wow, can you browse thumbnails in the camera? Is that new in the N-world? AFAIK all E-system cameras can do that, maybe with the exception of the E-1, but the E3xx, 4x, 5xx and the E-3 definitely can do that. So, instead of just saying why not use a D300, explain where the advantage would be and what is a wt4. Remember, OP asks about an Olympus solution, but generally, I think any camera of any brand could do the job, so why Nikon? What is better support IYO?
--
http://www.olyflyer.blogspot.com/
 
olyflyer said:
You didn't really explained why the D300 would be better
Click to expand...
I think he means that Nikon makes a dedicated WiFi transmitter that will do the job (much) better than an unproven WiFi SD card. Actually, I would agree.

Even with wired connection, an E-3 wouldn't be able to work in fully-automated mode (meaning, you keep pressing the shutter, and the printer keeps spitting out the pics).

The fully-automated option may be possible to set up with the Nikon WiFi transmitter and some scripts, if you know what you're doing.

Of course, leaving a printer unattended is a bit risky.

Boris
 
Boris,

I really want to stay with OLY and go with the E3 setup.

With that said...obviously I will have to go with the wired setup. How quickly would the images be transferred to the Laptop for printing do ya think?
 
If you shoot with the camera tethered and use Adobe Lightroom. you can easily do what you are looking for. Simply set Lightroom to view a "watched" folder that the camera is set to deliver the images to via Olympus Studio. You can then select any image and print directly from Lightroom.

I do it all the time!
--
Regards, Kevin.
Member PPA, WPPI, NAPP
 
Kevin,

Ok..be gentle with me...I am old and somewhat thickskulled!

If you could....step me through the workflow....specifically where OLY studio would come into play. Give me the steps you execute from shutter release to handing the picture to the customer. Thanks.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

S
HPZ3200 86:01 and 87:11 codes
Replies
0
Views
2K
sharadn
S
J
GFX100RF - a future classic
Replies
7
Views
13K
jhunna
J
stevenj2
Unplanned use of Zf micro SD issue
Replies
4
Views
3K
Pierre Lagarde
Pierre Lagarde
Gryphon69
Epson P5370 Issue - Question for P5370 Users
2 3
Replies
41
Views
29K
Remko II
R
K
Lumix DCM - FZ-300.........Focusing problem
Replies
4
Views
2K
Owlsfan
O

Keyboard shortcuts

f
Forum
m
My threads
Mobile site
About
Editorial content
Cameras & Lenses
Community
All content, design, and layout are Copyright © 1998–2025 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction in whole or part in any form or medium without specific written permission is prohibited.
When you use DPReview links to buy products, the site may earn a commission.
©GPS Media - Guides, Products, Services.
Back
Top