Distant dslr

Hi, I want to put my camera (nikon d7500) by a branch, and then control it from a distance, so that wildlife can stand on it. I have tried remotely with qDslr on my computer, but it was quite laggy and the resolution weren't the best, so it was hard to check focus. Then i tried digitalcamcontrol, and the resolution were great, but it was still a bit laggy. Does anyone know a better solution to this? And if i am going for a solution like digitalcamcontrol, then i need a very long usb cable (about 50m) anyone have a solution to that?

Thanks in advance

Automaticbirdphotography wrote:

Hi, I want to put my camera (nikon d7500) by a branch, and then control it from a distance, so that wildlife can stand on it. I have tried remotely with qDslr on my computer, but it was quite laggy and the resolution weren't the best, so it was hard to check focus. Then i tried digitalcamcontrol, and the resolution were great, but it was still a bit laggy. Does anyone know a better solution to this?

The lowest lag would be using a CHDK-compatible Canon, for example, most PowerShots and the EOS M3 and M10. You can program them to have about 1/1000s latency on triggering. If you meant lag on the video feed, well, you're probably stuck with whatever unless you plug it into HDMI for the live view.

And if i am going for a solution like digitalcamcontrol, then i need a very long usb cable (about 50m) anyone have a solution to that?

There are USB repeaters. Here's an expensive wireless one . FlexIHub outlines several methods. Obvious answers include using a Raspberry Pi to host it and then talking via wifi or wired Ethernet. There are active USB wired repeaters for less than $20 (e.g., this ), but 50m is probably too long for that.

USB protocols were never intended to go that distance, so timing problems are likely unless you convert to/from a transport medium intended for longer ranges, such as wifi and Ethernet Cat6 cable.

Thanks in advance

The real weak link here is the camera's suitability for this task. You might easily spend more getting this to work than simply buying a camera more directly suited to the task....

There's a limit to the length of a USB cord, and it's not very long.  There's also a limit to those wired repeaters.  I think it's maybe 2 cords max.  Also, they are powered by the USB controller, and there's a limit to the power.

Wireless sounds more feasible to me.

The gold standard for this would likely be a pair of pocket wizards.  Should give at least 1/2 mile range.  Not cheap, but perhaps one of the Chinese brands is comparable.   They are sold as flash triggers but they can be connected such that they trigger a camera.

Maybe is possible use Focus Trap? Don't know if D7500 have this option.

Trap Focus

And one option more is use some triggers, f.ex. Pluto.

Pluto