Remote shutter release for Ikelite 7D housing

Hi,

I want to remotely fire my camera underwater, but I don't think my housing (Ikelite for 7D) has a way to pass a wired remote through the housing.

Does anyone have an idea of how I could do this? The remote just needs three wires (shutter, focus, ground), so worse case scenario I could drill a small hole in the housing and epoxy in a 3-wire cable. Second worse case would be to try to modify the flash synch chord to become a remote shutter, but then I'd probably lose flash capability.

Anyone know of any options?

Thanks,

Jonny

You have RF Remote on the bay or anywhere, one piece in the ikelite housing plug in the remote plug. No need to drill and crash your housing, and all ather stuff working (manual shutter, flash...)

The other piece you have a plug to sinchronise with flash, and you can plug an ILS and make with a small pelikase or something like this a housing for the remote. (an hold small light is the best i think).

I just think that drill an epoxy a cord way in your ikelite is dangerous. I don't know the way of remote under water, but outside water it's 100m RF, so i thnik you can use around 10M in water...

I didn't realize radio triggers could work underwater. I'll have to experiment a little. I have Cactus V5's that I use all the time topside, but They'd be too big to fit in the housing...

You have RF Remote on the bay or anywhere, one piece in the ikelite housing plug in the remote plug. No need to drill and crash your housing, and all ather stuff working (manual shutter, flash...)

 

The other piece you have a plug to sinchronise with flash, and you can plug an ILS and make with a small pelikase or something like this a housing for the remote. (an hold small light is the best i think).

 

I just think that drill an epoxy a cord way in your ikelite is dangerous. I don't know the way of remote under water, but outside water it's 100m RF, so i thnik you can use around 10M in water...

I would seriously doubt that radio triggers would work underwater. Maybe a very short distance (cms, not meters and definitely not 10). I know submarines use radio, but these are other frequencies and high power.

I dont know what distance your thinking about, but wouldnt it be possible to hardwire something like a bicycle break cable to the ikelite lever itself. If it needs to go by the normal remote function of the camera, it is probably better to use a cable gland rather then epoxy.

I used the second option on my Hugyfot housing using one of the Nikonos penetrators (Ikelite in your case I believe, but it is the same deal), these have five pins plenty enough for the remote release. On the housing inside I belled out the connections with a multi meter and spliced the ribbon cable into the N3 three pin plug used by Canon. (Pinouts found here http://martybugs.net/blog/blog.cgi/gear/Ca...Connector.html)

I then butchered a dead sync cable for the Nikonos plug and spliced a cable that was long enough into a second hand remote release that I had. Jobs a goodun.

As for remaining flash capability I have three Nikonos bulkhead connectors on my housing, but if I had only one I would have used a dual sync cable.

Overall this is much better than drilling a new hole as aside from have to tap the thread for the new bulkhead connector you would need to machine a recess for the oring. It a job of fairly low tolerances and one I would feel uncomfortable doing with the correct tooling (press drill, etc). If you where to go down that route a trip to a maching job might be in order.

Best Erol

I know submarines use radio, but these are other frequencies and high power.

But with radios you are talking about sound rather than light. One travels well under water whilst infra-red, just like visible red wavelenghts does not travel at all well.

no, a radio signal is an electromagnetic signal and more like light than like sound (which is movement of air/water itself). Radio triggers use quite a high frequency (Mhz or Ghz range), while the submarines i refered to before use around 30-300 hz (wikipedia-ed that)

no, a radio signal is an electromagnetic signal and more like light than like sound (which is movement of air/water itself). Radio triggers use quite a high frequency (Mhz or Ghz range), while the submarines i refered to before use around 30-300 hz (wikipedia-ed that)

Indeed that is correct, however none of the manned sub or through water comms system I have used/seen make us of any electo-magnetic wave. It is all acoustics.

Regardless, from my experience hard wired is king. I have used a remote trigger with 200m of wire, works just fine.

Rgds Erol

Erol,

Just saw your post, thanks for the info. I'm a little confused about how to get both the flash synch chord and the shutter remote wires through a single bulkhead. Is the idea that you use all 5 pins on the bulkhead, 3 go to the remote shutter, and 2 go to the flash synch cable? I can see how this could work, but I'm unsure of how the dual synch cable fits into the equation. With a dual synch, wouldn't the two cables outside the housing converge to share the same 5 pins on the bulkhead--seems this would prevent me from having them diverge again to go to shutter/hotshoe inside the housing.

I only need to be about 5 ft. deep... I might just put one of my old SLR's in a pelican case with a 4x4" glass filter set in the side for a lens port and cable glands to pass the shutter/flash synch chords. This is my setup for camera traps topside and I'd think it'd work underwater.

Thanks,

Jonny

I used the second option on my Hugyfot housing using one of the Nikonos penetrators (Ikelite in your case I believe, but it is the same deal), these have five pins plenty enough for the remote release. On the housing inside I belled out the connections with a multi meter and spliced the ribbon cable into the N3 three pin plug used by Canon. (Pinouts found here http://martybugs.net/blog/blog.cgi/gear/Ca...Connector.html)

 

I then butchered a dead sync cable for the Nikonos plug and spliced a cable that was long enough into a second hand remote release that I had. Jobs a goodun.

 

As for remaining flash capability I have three Nikonos bulkhead connectors on my housing, but if I had only one I would have used a dual sync cable.

 

Overall this is much better than drilling a new hole as aside from have to tap the thread for the new bulkhead connector you would need to machine a recess for the oring. It a job of fairly low tolerances and one I would feel uncomfortable doing with the correct tooling (press drill, etc). If you where to go down that route a trip to a maching job might be in order.

 

Best Erol

Sorry for a very late entry into this thread.

One idea I've been playing with is to use a remote flash trigger. Something kind of like a lightning trigger.

For example this:

http://www.doc-diy.net/photo/smatrig21/

...is a DIY project for a little device that plugs into the camera's remote shutter port. It includes modes for triggering based on sound, lighting (any flash), or even a laser-break with an included light detector. If you can fit it in the housing (it's pretty small, depending on the housing you might be able to), then swim a bit away, trigger by using a small manual flash thru the polycarbonate sidewall. Then you don't need any penetration of any kind.

Conceivably the sound-trigger mode could also be used, but since sound carries SO well thru water I'd worry it would be randomly triggering all the darn time. Plus any sound might scare whatever you're trying to photograph.

I would be worried about how quick this device goes into standby once closed in the housing though. Haven't experimented with it yet although I do have one. There are other lighting sensors on the market too, but most I've seen are both costlier and bulkier.

Of course if your actual strobes are also optically triggering you may have an issue, as you dont' want to trigger your strobes with the shutter-triggering flash, you want the actual onboard camera flash (or the 'master' strobe) to trigger any slaves.

The laser-break option might also work but would be a lot tougher. Would require setting up the camera (on tripod on bottom or whatever), setting up a laser as well to shine on the sensor, engaging the mode, then interrupting the beam.

This is not a sales pitch, but in light of the dramatic suggestion suggested here, I think you would be better served by looking at our remote control grip # 19305

If I recall, most control using shaft on the Ikelite housing will be through a gland with a 1/2" hole, the bulkhead supplied is a Nikonos type with a 1/2" size (both Ikelite & Aquatica use the same dimension system), so you could remove a non essential control and replace it with the bulkhead without undue or permanent damage to the housing. (to connect the grip to the bulkhead you need to get a Ikelite to Nikonos sync cord # 4104.31) and if you want to extend it, then get the 15ft long Ikelite # 4102.15 it will give you +/- 20ft over all, you can take a look at it here. http://www.aquatica.ca/en/accessories_remote.html

Again, I hope this does not come across as a commercial post, my concern is to find a viable and simple solution to the original poster, and in this case we do have a one that will not involves poking extra holes in the housing (which sends shivers down my spine every time I hear that brought up in a conversation:P)

Cheers.

Sorry Jonny

Didn t see this until now.

Apologies for not being clear from the start. My Hugyfot housing has three through housing perpetrators, two for sync cable and one for the vacuum pump. The vacuum pump can be double as a sync cable penetrator with some after market bits from the the good people at Hugyfot. That allowed me to run 2 strobes and to modify the last penetrator as remote screen/trigger.

If this isn t available on your housing try using a y-splice sync cable.

That will keep it easy and avoid having to do any permanent modifications.

Unfortunately I overseas and don t have my rig with me otherwise I would post pictures.

Hope that helps

Erol,

 

Just saw your post, thanks for the info. I'm a little confused about how to get both the flash synch chord and the shutter remote wires through a single bulkhead. Is the idea that you use all 5 pins on the bulkhead, 3 go to the remote shutter, and 2 go to the flash synch cable? I can see how this could work, but I'm unsure of how the dual synch cable fits into the equation. With a dual synch, wouldn't the two cables outside the housing converge to share the same 5 pins on the bulkhead--seems this would prevent me from having them diverge again to go to shutter/hotshoe inside the housing.

 

I only need to be about 5 ft. deep... I might just put one of my old SLR's in a pelican case with a 4x4" glass filter set in the side for a lens port and cable glands to pass the shutter/flash synch chords. This is my setup for camera traps topside and I'd think it'd work underwater.

 

Thanks,

Jonny

Hi,

 

I want to remotely fire my camera underwater, but I don't think my housing (Ikelite for 7D) has a way to pass a wired remote through the housing.

 

Does anyone have an idea of how I could do this? The remote just needs three wires (shutter, focus, ground), so worse case scenario I could drill a small hole in the housing and epoxy in a 3-wire cable. Second worse case would be to try to modify the flash synch chord to become a remote shutter, but then I'd probably lose flash capability.

 

Anyone know of any options?

Just remembered an old post and found it again (www.carbonos.com/reports/usbconnect.htm). He had Ikelite install another sync port similar to the one used for the strobes in the back of the housing. That'll give you 5 pins in a proven feedthru. You might want to try something like that.