I mainly work with ccd but I would like to do some imaging with my Canon EOS 5dii. I have a 12V power supply for it and would like to use it with a standard EOS lens and its built in focusing system.
Is it possible to focus from within SGP using the camera itself? I would like to use LiveView for focusing remotely, and the only way I can see to do this is the following:
Put the camera lens in AF mode
Connect with the canon utility and use its << >> controls to set the focus exactly using LiveView and a zoomed in view.
Shut down the canon utility, then go out to camera and physically switch the lens to manual focus (MF) mode so that the focus does not get changed when exposures are taken.
Connect with SGP and start imaging.
Is this pretty much what I need to do? I was hoping there was a way to avoid switching to MF mode since it means a trip out to the camera, and I lose the ability to focus remotely.
Also - if I have the camera connected to 12V, will the sgp connection to the camera ever get dropped due to inactivity?
I have installed magic lantern on the camera - if that matters.
I think you have to make a trip to the camera to take it out of AF mode. I tried this inside just now to see what happens with my T4i, and indeed, the focus started moving when I connected in SGP.
While I’d love it if SGP could handle both camera focus and aperture, I get this is pretty niche. I’ve had good success using BYE for this scenario (easier than the EOS utility, for sure). I don’t know how feasible it is for Jared/Ken, but in the EOS Utility, the “AF Manual” mode seems to stop the camera from running AF automatically so it can be controlled remotely. I wonder if setting this flag via the SDK would at least stop the AF from running? At least that way, you could focus via EOS Utility, then connect in SGP and not worry about the focus moving.
Thanks for the reply. I’m mainly focused on ccd so I’m not really requesting features or anything - I’m mainly trying to see if I am missing something and there is a different approach to what I want to do. I guess a lot of dslr work involves a telescope and a separate focuser so the issue doesn’t come up. I plan to do some imaging with the canon at times but it won’t be a priority.
I did have an imaging session last night and everything worked pretty well with sgp - but it did mean going out and flipping the lens to MF. It’s good to know it’s something I really needed to do.