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Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?

Started May 29, 2020 | Discussions
Albert_L Forum Member • Posts: 84
Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

Thanks in advanced.

 Albert_L's gear list:Albert_L's gear list
Canon EOS M100 Canon EF-M 22mm f/2 STM Canon EF 50mm F1.8 STM Canon EF-M 15-45mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM 7artisans 12mm F2.8 +2 more
Canon EOS M100 Canon EOS M50 (EOS Kiss M)
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sfa1966
sfa1966 Veteran Member • Posts: 3,483
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Albert_L wrote:

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

Yes, but through your normal webcam (or whatever mic you have in, or linked to, your PC/laptop).

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

No. It's unlimited.

Thanks in advanced.

-- hide signature --

Cheers,
sfa

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OP Albert_L Forum Member • Posts: 84
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Thanks!

 Albert_L's gear list:Albert_L's gear list
Canon EOS M100 Canon EF-M 22mm f/2 STM Canon EF 50mm F1.8 STM Canon EF-M 15-45mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM 7artisans 12mm F2.8 +2 more
RedFox88 Forum Pro • Posts: 30,738
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Albert_L wrote:

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

No, it states that in canon’s press release

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

Thanks in advanced.

mdmarqphoto Senior Member • Posts: 1,455
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Albert_L wrote:

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

Just to be clear, the webcam utility uses USB, not HDMI.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

Thanks in advanced.

 mdmarqphoto's gear list:mdmarqphoto's gear list
Canon PowerShot S5 IS Casio Exilim EX-ZR800 Canon EOS M Canon EOS 90D Canon EF 85mm F1.8 USM +7 more
OP Albert_L Forum Member • Posts: 84
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

mdmarqphoto wrote:

Albert_L wrote:

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

Just to be clear, the webcam utility uses USB, not HDMI.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

Thanks in advanced.

Yes, understood on the USB part.

Thanks!

 Albert_L's gear list:Albert_L's gear list
Canon EOS M100 Canon EF-M 22mm f/2 STM Canon EF 50mm F1.8 STM Canon EF-M 15-45mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM 7artisans 12mm F2.8 +2 more
mangurian Senior Member • Posts: 1,187
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

I uysed it with my M50.  Amazing.  I didn't know I looked that old !

Great picture.

davidgp
davidgp Contributing Member • Posts: 613
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Albert_L wrote:

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

Thanks in advanced.

I used it with my M6ii and Zoom.  It has not worked with a couple of other apps I tried.

The battery lasts about 2.5 hours.  I do 3-hour meetings at times, so this is inconvenient.

-David

 davidgp's gear list:davidgp's gear list
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OP Albert_L Forum Member • Posts: 84
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

davidgp wrote:

Albert_L wrote:

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

Thanks in advanced.

I used it with my M6ii and Zoom. It has not worked with a couple of other apps I tried.

The battery lasts about 2.5 hours. I do 3-hour meetings at times, so this is inconvenient.

-David

You can use one of these 'dummy' battery with adapter, no more battery limit. The link just shows the first one that came up, do search for more.

2 types available, one direct to power adapter, the other connect to the power bank (for outdoor too).

https://www.amazon.com/Glorich-ACK-E12-Replacement-Adapter-Mirrorless/dp/B00VNSD7LW/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=eos+m+dummy+battery&qid=1590903260&sr=8-1

 Albert_L's gear list:Albert_L's gear list
Canon EOS M100 Canon EF-M 22mm f/2 STM Canon EF 50mm F1.8 STM Canon EF-M 15-45mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM 7artisans 12mm F2.8 +2 more
mangurian Senior Member • Posts: 1,187
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

You can use one of these 'dummy' battery with adapter, no more battery limit. The link just shows the first one that came up, do search for more.

2 types available, one direct to power adapter, the other connect to the power bank (for outdoor too).

https://www.amazon.com/Glorich-ACK-E12-Replacement-Adapter-Mirrorless/dp/B00VNSD7LW/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=eos+m+dummy+battery&qid=1590903260&sr=8-1

I would like the USB and power bank, but I don't know how many amps the power bank has to supply to run my EOS M50.  I think it might be more than the 2-2.5 amps my power bank supplies.

Alexsfo Senior Member • Posts: 2,362
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

tried with M6ii, getting Err 70 every 10 mins which requires reinstalling the battery to clear.

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PerfectMark Regular Member • Posts: 281
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

You can use the mic on the camera if you plug an 3.5mm audio cable from the headphone jack on the camera to the line-in or mic jack on your PC.

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PaddyC Regular Member • Posts: 374
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Got it up and running on my mid-2010 Mac Pro (Mojave). Using my M50. Really easy.

Not so good that it doesn't work with the native apps. I wonder if that's something they are working on or if there is some software/security issue that is preventing that? It seems odd as the camera essential becomes a web cam so what's the difference?

Would be great if they can get that sorted.

Used the 32 1.4 with a Tiffen Pro Mist 1/4 filter and manual settings the other day. I've got a small Moman LED panel coming from Amazon to boost the lighting if needed. The 22 2 is also a good choice.

Have to give credit to Canon for doing this in these times. I rag a lot on companies but sometimes they step up and good to acknowledge that when they do.

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TBIRallySport Junior Member • Posts: 29
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

PaddyC wrote:

Got it up and running on my mid-2010 Mac Pro (Mojave). Using my M50. Really easy.

Not so good that it doesn't work with the native apps. I wonder if that's something they are working on or if there is some software/security issue that is preventing that? It seems odd as the camera essential becomes a web cam so what's the difference?

Would be great if they can get that sorted.

I’m guessing it’s some sort of security thing built into macOS (some aspect of SIP, maybe?), because it’s like that in Mojave and Catalina, but in High Sierra (the version before Mojave), it’s the other way around: it works with native apps but not with Chrome.

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icepick New Member • Posts: 21
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Do you guys have any more experiences with it? My main question (for the m50, m200 series especially):

  • Can I just leave it „on“ all the time (with a dummy battery), and so does it shut off automatically, when it‘s not used as a webcam?
  • Question would then also be if it powers on automatically as soon as an app on my computer tries to access the cam
  • Basically I want it to act like a „regular“ webcam

Thanks!

Florian

noisebeam Senior Member • Posts: 2,963
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

PerfectMark wrote:

You can use the mic on the camera if you plug an 3.5mm audio cable from the headphone jack on the camera to the line-in or mic jack on your PC.

Great idea, I hadn't thought of this and will try.

My wife uses Canon SL2 as web cam for yoga classes, but sound remains an issue so I will try if this is better than the poor laptop mic.  I suspect I could also add an external mic to the Canon which would pass that signal to the headphone jack - that would be even better.

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istscott
istscott Regular Member • Posts: 467
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?
1

Albert_L wrote:

I'm using M100, so I can't test to find out.
On my M100, hdmi does not transmit sound, except when playing back a video recording.

My question to M200, M50, M6ii owners , if you have used the webcam utility..
1. Is sound transmitted ? (I'm sure it will right ? as a webcam, just confirming).

2. Is there a 30 min auto off limit ?

Thanks in advanced.

No sound passthrough with the USB webcam utility.

I've used it with the original M50 and M6 Mark II.

The camera stays on indefinitely as long as you have a proper DC coupler and AC adapter.

The camera's LCD screen also stays on indefinitely in that mode, which is different than when outputting clean HDMI on the M6 Mark II, M50 Mark II, and M200. After a maximum of 30 minutes of button/screen inactivity the camera's LCD will turn off.

There is a setting in those cameras to control the screen's timeout and it has a maximum of 30 minutes. You can, of course, keep the camera running and outputting HDMI with proper settings. But you just won't have that LCD screen preview the entire time. When the screen turns off due to inactivity it can be re-activated by a button press.

The M6 Mark II does pass its audio recorded through HDMI. I use it with an Atomos Ninja V recorder and use the camera as an audio source. The challenge might be finding an HDMI capture device that can take the audio and properly pass it into the computer.  No idea what USB/PCI-e capture devices do it. That's probably the best solution if you can find a proper capture device as long as you don't want the constant camera LCD preview running.

Myron Graessle New Member • Posts: 6
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?

icepick wrote:

Do you guys have any more experiences with it? My main question (for the m50, m200 series especially):

  • Can I just leave it „on“ all the time (with a dummy battery), and so does it shut off automatically, when it‘s not used as a webcam?
  • Question would then also be if it powers on automatically as soon as an app on my computer tries to access the cam
  • Basically I want it to act like a „regular“ webcam

Thanks!

Florian

I leave my m50 powered on with the AC / dummy battery setup. With the Eco setting, it shuts off if I don’t use it for a few minutes. To turn it back on, I push the shutter to wake it back up.

Shooters on My Squad Regular Member • Posts: 379
Re: Anyone tried the Webcam utility ?

I vastly prefer a generic 1080p HDMI to USB-A or USB-C adapter from Amazon which is pretty cheap and works universally across all operating systems without additional drivers.

This way the camera works like a generic USB camera and has higher software compatibility in general.

The additional benefit is that you can connect cameras from different manufacturers and they will perform similarly, no matter if there’s some proprietary software available.

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