Remote Live in operation picture on Flickr.

I recently happily acquired a replacement DSLR for the one that was stolen last year. I waited this long to get the new Canon 450D. Despite being classified as an entry-level DSLR, it has most of the functions of the “enthusiast” models (the double-digit models) and even the professional, single-digit models. All except the weight and the higher ISO settings.

So part of the big deal of the 450D is Live Mode, which more or less makes it work like a compact camera - you can see the captor output on the screen at the back, rather than through the lens. Now this has its uses, especially when fixed on a tripod or stand. A professional photographer showed me how he used it on his 1Ds III, which was holding the camera over his head to create group and crowd shots using the live mode for fixing the view.

However the 450D comes with remote live mode via the USB cable. Wow. Amazing - not only can you see through the captor live, it also lets you set every option, including focus, and take pictures which you can upload immediately. Stunningly good for anything vibration sensitive, like astronomy or wildlife via long telephotos, and for convenience in product shots, for example in preparation for ebay.

And it all works, perfectly. I’m so pleased to be able to report on something that does. More on the importance of this kind of tool shortly.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 at 9:37 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.