[Help] Is there a way to automatically set and keep time synced to the world?

[AlainCh2]

He synced his 2 cameras and is now measuring drift. Each photo is a different camera, days after syncing.

Unless Nikon has dramatically changed their menus in the past 24 hours, those aren’t photos of a camera’s date and time. They are photos of date and time on a smartphone.

Correct, the cameras' time is embedded in the exif.

@PLShutterbug
Yes, you are correct,
it shows the phone clock <that is NTP> at the time of the shot.


. But sorry not to explain how to get the drift:
Look at the EXIF <that is Local> and subtract the NTP time displayed on the phone clock

@Barleyman got the right answer.

On another thread, the OP used this system to check the drifting of the Nikon camera's Local Clock.
I assumed everybody would know, but me.

I discovered that system myself only when reading that thread.

( but being quite slow I thought it was my fault )

 

[Richard B99]

That’s what Snapbridge is for. It sets time to Internet time. (However, you still have to initiate the function.) But bettter / easier than the alternatives.

 

[Stan Disbrow]

Hi,

The cell phone ought to self update from the radio base station, and they have GPS delivered timebases. So, that's a good way to see how the independent clock modules in the cameras behave.

I use GPS here in the electronics lab myself. That steers a high accuracy ovenized crystal oscillator where the main intent is for a frequency reference for equipment. There is the secondary output of clock data which, since it's there, I drive a clock display from.

But that doesn't help anything with an independent clock. Those I have to manually set once in a while. Cameras fall into this category.

Another trick is to use a HF receiver tuned to one of the many frequency reference radio stations. Here I use the US WWV and Canadian CHU.

But the phones these days are easier. Just set the camera when the phone rolls into the next minute. Ought to be Good Enough.

Stan

 

[AlainCh2]

Hi,

The cell phone ought to self update from the radio base station, and they have GPS delivered timebases. So, that's a good way to see how the independent clock modules in the cameras behave.

I use GPS here in the electronics lab myself. That steers a high accuracy ovenized crystal oscillator where the main intent is for a frequency reference for equipment. There is the secondary output of clock data which, since it's there, I drive a clock display from.

But that doesn't help anything with an independent clock. Those I have to manually set once in a while. Cameras fall into this category.

Another trick is to use a HF receiver tuned to one of the many frequency reference radio stations. Here I use the US WWV and Canadian CHU.

But the phones these days are easier. Just set the camera when the phone rolls into the next minute. Ought to be Good Enough.

Stan

I started the thread because camera's wandering clock:
it made it difficult to sequence my shots once into the PC,
after being renamed "DayTimeTaken"

It takes some time to switch bodies,
so everything should be good in under 20 seconds,
unless I shoot in parallel both. > Double tripod for instance

What I learned is to use SnapBridge and that I need to Sync them at least once a month,
If I want to stay under 10Secs I need to do it every TWO weeks

( and what were the recurring requirements ... was the unknown quantity)