3rd Party Remotes

[Tim]

I don't feel like paying what Canon's remotes cost, but I really would like a remote release for my 30D. There is one brand, Adidt, that makes knockoff replicas. Does anyone have experience with this type or any other type of remote?

[Joel Bookhammer]

I had one for my XTI that wasnt very reliable, didnt work all the time....well most of the time it didnt work. But I have some remotes for taking my flash(s) off camera, and they work great. I agree with the high price but dont skimp too much, because normally that means the quality and reliability really lacks.





thanks

[mpphoto12]

are you talking about a remote shutter release? if so i got ine n ebay from china for 1 $ ! lol but if your talking about remote flashes then i got alienbee cyber syncs for half the price of pocket wizards. lol

[Tim]

Yes I am asking about a remote shutter release. I don't need anything fancy, just a simple button that would allow for bulb exposures too.

[Don Burkett]

For what it's worth, I've tried 2 different 3rd party remote releases for my Canon 40D. Neither lasted very long. I agree Canon's price is outragious but the Canon Brand for my XTI is still chugging along. Fortunately, from one of the 3rd party remotes I ended up with a pigtail that had a mini-connector on one end. That enabled me to get a female to female connector and plug the Canon remote into my 40D. I now use the Canon Brand on both cameras.

[mpphoto12]

Yea here is what i did as an alternative, I went on ebay and found one that was wired and was only 1$!! and it had a lock. Thats all anyone really needs. so i bought it and all together it was only three dollars! It came all the way from CHINA in only THREE DAYS!! lol thats what i reccomend.

[Daniel Browning]

I got one of the $5 ones from China that worked for me for several years, though I didn't use it very often (2-4/month).

[George Slusher]

I have three Chinese-made remotes: wired, wireless, and timer. (The wired remote is heading for eBay or will be donated.) They have all worked very reliably. This ain't rocket science, folks. A wired remote is essentially a switch, a case, a cable, and a connector. The shutter button on the remote acts just like the button on the camera: push it part-way down and the camera autofocuses, sets exposure, etc. (depending upon the camera's settings). Some allow you to push down the shutter button and slide it forward to lock it on for "bulb" shots or have a "bulb" switch.


One caution: get the right connector. The Rebels use a different connector than the 30D, so read the description carefully.


The remotes were pretty cheap, though not as cheap as some have claimed. I bought a 5 meter wired remote for $18.98 (9.99 + 8.99 shipping; many eBay sellers use the shipping charge to avoid paying eBay's fees on the real price) from eBay seller "jiakgong" in China. They generally have good prices and very good service. The Yongnuo wireless remote was $28.27 with shipping from eBay seller elongpro2008 in Hong Kong. The timer remote was $41.99, again from jiakgong.


You might want to consider a wireless remote, as it wouldn't be a lot more than a wired remote. My wireless remote's receiver can also be used as a wired remote, as it has a shutter button. However, it's a lot more convenient to not be tied to the camera with a cable. (It's also safer--no cable to trip over or get caught on something.) Both wired and wireless remotes allow for continuous shooting, bulb, etc.


The timer remote is a neat device. I can set number of shots, interval between shots, and the delay to the first shot. I could have used it last August, when I did some shots of lightning. I put my 30D with a Sigma 10-20mm lens set to 10mm on a tripod and pointed at where I'd seen lightning, with the shutter speed at 30 sec (with ISO and aperture set to underexpose the scene). I took a series of shots manually. Most had nothing, but a few did show (distant) lightning, like this one.


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That's a pretty severe crop, down to about 1100 pixels wide, then scaled to 600x450. (This was my first experiment with lightning. The foreground is not black because I was taking this from a park that has a lighted bike/running path alongside a wetlands about a mile from my house. It was the only place close to my house where I could get a good view without being obstructed by buildings & trees or washed out completely by street lights.)


This would have been MUCH easier with the timer remote: set the remote for an interval a bit longer than 30 seconds and turn it loose. I probably would have gotten more good shots, as well.