trigger – Backerjack

Pulse remote trigger may set photographers’ pulses racing

Remotely controlling a camera offers photographers significant benefits, but can sometimes be a complex and time-consuming process.

Pulse is the latest remote trigger designed to enable Bluetooth control of a camera from a smartphone. It can control up to three cameras at once and is designed for use with digital single-lens reflex and mirrorless cameras via a USB port. Because Pulse uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), it’s able to communicate wirelessly with the smartphone from up to 100 feet away after being attached to a camera. Pulse ships in April and its expected future retail price is $99, although early bird backers can get one now at pricing as low as $69. Its makers are looking to raise $50,000 by Dec. 11.

There have been similar products, including MaxStone. But while that earlier product was targeted at iPhone users, Pulse works with Android and iOS devices and operates in conjunction with an app for both those operating systems. On the negative side, Pulse is only compatible with a limited number of cameras, including many Canon and Nikon models, as well as the Panasonic GH4. Users of cameras from other manufacturers need not apply, at least for now.

CamsFormer triggering system offers DSLRs more options, sensors, settings, everything

A DSLR in the hands of someone who knows what they’re doing is a powerful tool that produces high quality shots. But no matter how talented a photographer is, there are just some things that are either incredibly difficult or just plain impossible to capture, such as high-speed events. A photographer’s creative impulses can be tempered by these drawbacks.

The CamsFormer triggering system addresses these weaknesses by attaching to a DSLR’s USB and cable release port and providing a combination camera remote, high-speed trigger, and motorized tilt and zoom. All this alongside CamsFormer’s variety of sensors allows photographers to set sound, light, or infra-red triggers that sets off up to two cameras and flashes from anywhere between microseconds to 32 seconds. A companion iOS app allows for wireless camera control, photo curation and upload. It even enables things like Infinity Mode where a camera can shoot infinitely despite whatever memory limitations it might have. This product offers options available anywhere since it generates its own Wi-Fi network as well.

For the CamsFormer, this is just the tip of the iceberg. It can even add video capability to cameras that don’t have it. The $189 early bird price is a steal, but the eventual retail price of $249 isn’t bad considering everything this product does. The $7,000 campaign is looking to ship the product by July 2015.

The CamsFormer is extremely impressive in that radically expands any camera’s capabilities, adding a dizzying array of customizable settings any amateur or serious photographer would love. The product is another in a long line in creative imaging solutions like the Panlight and MaxStone that do so much to make serious photography more approachable, fun, and wallet-friendly.