M100 shutter options

Is a wireless option possible for the M100? I didn't find anything in a search. And I've found that using a smartphone is problematic; apparently the camera drops the connection at random.

I needed an EF-M camera (for a Celestron RASA 8), and got a great price on the kit some time ago.

I'm also considering the M100 as a replacement for my Sigma DP3M, which is getting cranky in it's old age. With the Sigma 56 mm lens, and Topaz Sharpen AI, the results are almost as sharp as the DP3M.

But with the rounded body edges, and the excessive pressure needed by the shutter button, I have trouble with camera shake. (And don't suggest rear screen shutter.)

David

Try Canon Camera Connect

Advi wrote:

Try Canon Camera Connect

I did. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

I think that's the definition of magic.

David

DaveGuitar wrote:

I’ve owned the Canon M100 for a little over two years and have loved it. I just upgraded to the canon M 200 and I have to say it is worth the upgrade in almost every way. But especially in your case the Canon app just works so much better, on the M 100 it would frequently just not connect and drop connection it was terrible. Canon EOS M200 is much more stable and such a better camera. If you could swing it I’d recommend it.

dave

That's a possibility. I might wait for a sale.

In the meantime maybe I'll look into some sort of grip. I have a new interest - natural light shots of my 1 YO granddaughter - which brought this problem to the forefront. I'm just unable to get a decent shot due to camera shake.

David

I used an m100 placed outside the house on a tripod, controlled from my iphone while i sat on the sofa with a coffee, and i found early on that "drop out" was caused from a "time out". When i prodded the screen (eg to refocus) every couple minutes I was able to take pictures for hours till the battery ran out

regards

Jim

jim mij wrote:

I used an m100 placed outside the house on a tripod, controlled from my iphone while i sat on the sofa with a coffee, and i found early on that "drop out" was caused from a "time out". When i prodded the screen (eg to refocus) every couple minutes I was able to take pictures for hours till the battery ran out

regards

Jim

That's a plausible explanation - I wasn't paying attention to any time delay. I would set up with a tripod, connect, and take several shots successfully. Then I would re-position the tripod, and the camera, and the connection had been dropped when I tried more shots. The same with the M100 on my RASA.

But now that I'm exploring options, I think that when I'm chasing my granddaughter around the house, I shouldn't be thinking 'wireless', but a camera grip that allows a steadier hold. For outdoor shots of stationary objects, I hold the cam at arm's length, and the tension of the strap around my neck helps with stability. Something like that.

David

DavidWright2010 wrote:

jim mij wrote:

I used an m100 placed outside the house on a tripod, controlled from my iphone while i sat on the sofa with a coffee, and i found early on that "drop out" was caused from a "time out". When i prodded the screen (eg to refocus) every couple minutes I was able to take pictures for hours till the battery ran out

regards

Jim

That's a plausible explanation - I wasn't paying attention to any time delay. I would set up with a tripod, connect, and take several shots successfully. Then I would re-position the tripod, and the camera, and the connection had been dropped when I tried more shots. The same with the M100 on my RASA.

Spanner menu 2 Power Saving lets you set the Display Off timeout to anything up to 30 minutes and also lets you disable the Auto Power Down.

But now that I'm exploring options, I think that when I'm chasing my granddaughter around the house, I shouldn't be thinking 'wireless', but a camera grip that allows a steadier hold. For outdoor shots of stationary objects, I hold the cam at arm's length, and the tension of the strap around my neck helps with stability. Something like that.

Try flipping the screen up 90° and using the camera at waist level like an old style Rolleiflex or Hasselblad, left hand under the camera, elbows tucked into your sides. It's a more flattering height to picture most people from too. Just a lot more awkward for portrait orientation.

Sittatunga wrote:

DavidWright2010 wrote:

jim mij wrote:

I used an m100 placed outside the house on a tripod, controlled from my iphone while i sat on the sofa with a coffee, and i found early on that "drop out" was caused from a "time out". When i prodded the screen (eg to refocus) every couple minutes I was able to take pictures for hours till the battery ran out

regards

Jim

That's a plausible explanation - I wasn't paying attention to any time delay. I would set up with a tripod, connect, and take several shots successfully. Then I would re-position the tripod, and the camera, and the connection had been dropped when I tried more shots. The same with the M100 on my RASA.

Spanner menu 2 Power Saving lets you set the Display Off timeout to anything up to 30 minutes and also lets you disable the Auto Power Down.

But now that I'm exploring options, I think that when I'm chasing my granddaughter around the house, I shouldn't be thinking 'wireless', but a camera grip that allows a steadier hold. For outdoor shots of stationary objects, I hold the cam at arm's length, and the tension of the strap around my neck helps with stability. Something like that.

Try flipping the screen up 90° and using the camera at waist level like an old style Rolleiflex or Hasselblad, left hand under the camera, elbows tucked into your sides. It's a more flattering height to picture most people from too. Just a lot more awkward for portrait orientation.

Thanks. I will try that.

Sittatunga wrote:

DavidWright2010 wrote:

jim mij wrote:

I used an m100 placed outside the house on a tripod, controlled from my iphone while i sat on the sofa with a coffee, and i found early on that "drop out" was caused from a "time out". When i prodded the screen (eg to refocus) every couple minutes I was able to take pictures for hours till the battery ran out

regards

Jim

That's a plausible explanation - I wasn't paying attention to any time delay. I would set up with a tripod, connect, and take several shots successfully. Then I would re-position the tripod, and the camera, and the connection had been dropped when I tried more shots. The same with the M100 on my RASA.

Spanner menu 2 Power Saving lets you set the Display Off timeout to anything up to 30 minutes and also lets you disable the Auto Power Down.

But now that I'm exploring options, I think that when I'm chasing my granddaughter around the house, I shouldn't be thinking 'wireless', but a camera grip that allows a steadier hold. For outdoor shots of stationary objects, I hold the cam at arm's length, and the tension of the strap around my neck helps with stability. Something like that.

Try flipping the screen up 90° and using the camera at waist level like an old style Rolleiflex or Hasselblad, left hand under the camera, elbows tucked into your sides. It's a more flattering height to picture most people from too. Just a lot more awkward for portrait orientation.

Why didn't I know this before? (Don't answer...) Holding it that way, I can get some sharp images at 1/80 sec, and pretty reproducibly sharp under 1/200 sec.

Granddaughter not available, but this nussknacker wasn't busy...

I can live with landscape orientation only.

So, thanks.

David

DavidWright2010 wrote:

Is a wireless option possible for the M100? I didn't find anything in a search. And I've found that using a smartphone is problematic; apparently the camera drops the connection at random.

I realize you have an M100 but some of my information relates to the M200 as well.  I'm not entirely sure about the M100 specs because it's no longer manufactured. But the M200 (which is the current version) has Wireless connection with the optional Wireless Remote Control BR-E1 and this pairs to the camera via Bluetooth. Since both cameras share virtually all the same traits, I'm assuming the same applies to the M100.  Thus you can then shoot remotely from as far away as 5 meters (16.4 feet away) from the camera. When the camera is set for remote control shooting, the Auto Power Off Time can also be extended.
.
In addition, the M200 notes on the User Manual that "The Bluetooth Remote Controller enables remote control of the camera from a smartphone paired via Bluetooth (Not available when connected via Wi-Fi)."
.
I seem to remember that the M100 had a wireless capacity but that there were some complaints about the pairing and signal not maintaining a connection.

I needed an EF-M camera (for a Celestron RASA 8), and got a great price on the kit some time ago.

Any M-Camera will work fine but both the M100 and M200 have the smallest profile for allowing light to pass around the camera and into the Astrograph OTA.

I'm also considering the M100 as a replacement for my Sigma DP3M, which is getting cranky in it's old age. With the Sigma 56 mm lens, and Topaz Sharpen AI, the results are almost as sharp as the DP3M.

But with the rounded body edges, and the excessive pressure needed by the shutter button, I have trouble with camera shake. (And don't suggest rear screen shutter.)

Well, the Touch Screen shutter activation is how I use the EOS M cameras when they're connected to a long lens for astro or when attached to a Celestron scope...  You can activate the self timer with just the lightest of touches, eliminating the type of vibration that button-pressing produces.  If you have trouble with Camera Shake, then you need to be using either the Remote control OR the Touch Screen for shutter release.
.

EOS M6 mounted to a Celestron C90 Maksutov.

EOS M6 mounted to a Celestron C90 Maksutov.

Using an extender was pushing my luck, although it worked.

EOS M6 + EF 100-400mmL II - on a CGX mount. The touch shutter is easier than the manual shutter release button with this setup.

.

The Celestron RASA Astrograph telescopes were designed with both the Canon EOS M100 and Canon EOS M200 in mind, which is why they're shown attached to the OTA on the Celestron brochures.  They have a light payload weight so they're ideal for mounting to the front window. For people who aren't already committed, the EOS M200 is the most recent (and currently available) model.
.
When using my own EOS M cameras attached to Celestron spotting scopes, I usually just turn on the touch-screen and activate the 2 or 10 second shutter delay. Touch the screen gently and... Presto! No more vibrations as you take your pictures. Usually the 2 second delay is fine, especially with a suitable EQ mount for your Celestron device.  I tend to turn this feature off when not using the M-series cameras for Astro.
.

M200 on a Celestron RASA 8"

.
The M100 and M200 cameras are virtually identical.  The M200 has DiGiC 8 compared to DiGiC 7 on the M100 but aside from this they have pretty much matching specs.  Only the increase in the AF areas is notable on the M200.  So you've got essentially the same camera with the same resolution and same size and function.

Marco Nero wrote:

DavidWright2010 wrote:

Is a wireless option possible for the M100? I didn't find anything in a search. And I've found that using a smartphone is problematic; apparently the camera drops the connection at random.

I realize you have an M100 but some of my information relates to the M200 as well. I'm not entirely sure about the M100 specs because it's no longer manufactured. But the M200 (which is the current version) has Wireless connection with the optional Wireless Remote Control BR-E1 and this pairs to the camera via Bluetooth. Since both cameras share virtually all the same traits, I'm assuming the same applies to the M100. Thus you can then shoot remotely from as far away as 5 meters (16.4 feet away) from the camera. When the camera is set for remote control shooting, the Auto Power Off Time can also be extended.
.
In addition, the M200 notes on the User Manual that "The Bluetooth Remote Controller enables remote control of the camera from a smartphone paired via Bluetooth (Not available when connected via Wi-Fi)."
.
I seem to remember that the M100 had a wireless capacity but that there were some complaints about the pairing and signal not maintaining a connection.

I needed an EF-M camera (for a Celestron RASA 8), and got a great price on the kit some time ago.

Any M-Camera will work fine but both the M100 and M200 have the smallest profile for allowing light to pass around the camera and into the Astrograph OTA.

I'm also considering the M100 as a replacement for my Sigma DP3M, which is getting cranky in it's old age. With the Sigma 56 mm lens, and Topaz Sharpen AI, the results are almost as sharp as the DP3M.

But with the rounded body edges, and the excessive pressure needed by the shutter button, I have trouble with camera shake. (And don't suggest rear screen shutter.)

Well, the Touch Screen shutter activation is how I use the EOS M cameras when they're connected to a long lens for astro or when attached to a Celestron scope... You can activate the self timer with just the lightest of touches, eliminating the type of vibration that button-pressing produces. If you have trouble with Camera Shake, then you need to be using either the Remote control OR the Touch Screen for shutter release.
.

EOS M6 mounted to a Celestron C90 Maksutov.

EOS M6 mounted to a Celestron C90 Maksutov.

Using an extender was pushing my luck, although it worked.

EOS M6 + EF 100-400mmL II - on a CGX mount. The touch shutter is easier than the manual shutter release button with this setup.

.

The Celestron RASA Astrograph telescopes were designed with both the Canon EOS M100 and Canon EOS M200 in mind, which is why they're shown attached to the OTA on the Celestron brochures. They have a light payload weight so they're ideal for mounting to the front window. For people who aren't already committed, the EOS M200 is the most recent (and currently available) model.
.
When using my own EOS M cameras attached to Celestron spotting scopes, I usually just turn on the touch-screen and activate the 2 or 10 second shutter delay. Touch the screen gently and... Presto! No more vibrations as you take your pictures. Usually the 2 second delay is fine, especially with a suitable EQ mount for your Celestron device. I tend to turn this feature off when not using the M-series cameras for Astro.
.

M200 on a Celestron RASA 8"

.
The M100 and M200 cameras are virtually identical. The M200 has DiGiC 8 compared to DiGiC 7 on the M100 but aside from this they have pretty much matching specs. Only the increase in the AF areas is notable on the M200. So you've got essentially the same camera with the same resolution and same size and function.

That's all good advice, thank you.

I've taken only a few pix with the M100 on my RASA 8. The sensor seems not quite perpendicular to the optical axis, but that could be operator error. I don't have a Bahtinov mask for focussing.

David

DavidWright2010 wrote:

Advi wrote:

Try Canon Camera Connect

I did. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

I think that's the definition of magic.

David

I do a lot of astrophotography, and for the most part I use Canon Camera Connect on my Android (LG K92) phone, it works very well to release the shutter and start and stop 4k video without introducing any shake of any kind.  I use 4k video for solar/lunar/planetary imagery, taking 2-3 min of video which results in several thousand frames for stacking.

The only trouble I have is that I have multiple bodies, and the Canon Camera Connect app 'sees' all the bodies even if they are turned off and 20 feet away in the house LOL so I have to make sure I am connected to the 'right' camera I have hooked up to the telescope!

It is an issue when I'm actually shooting with more than one body at a time, sometimes one on a telescope for which I'll use the app, and a second on a tripod, for which I'll use the touch screen shutter and self timer. With the M6 mark ii you can use interval timer or focus bracketing to shoot many images unattended, but I'll start it with the touch shutter.

I use the M6 Mark II for full-disk solar and lunar imagery, but for extreme magnification solar/lunar/planetary I use the M200 with 4k video and a 2x teleconverter, since the M200's crop factor gets to the 'pixel level' on a 4k video with IS turned off, which is a closer crop that the M6ii's full sensor width (probably line-skipped) video. Also the M200 is somewhat smaller and lighter on the scope than the M6ii body which may reduce help vibration, especially if there's any wind.