Needed: Cheap digital camera with remote shutter release.

August 18, 2009 3:43 PM

I'm looking for a relatively cheap digital camera that has a remote shutter release. Any suggestions?

I want to set up a camera on a tripod and take pictures of something on an easel without having to touch / nudge the camera out of position or alter the focus so I can quickly/easily photograph documents.

posted by capcuervo to technology (8 comments total)

There are certainly inexpensive digital cameras that sell with remote controls that are akin to a TV remote (infrared).

I know my old Canon G1 had such a wireless remote and, I believe, continued through the G6 or G7. With the G9, Canon stopped supplying the wireless remote although you can tether the newer G series to a laptop and trigger remotely from the software that is supplied with the camera.

I know that such capabilities cannot be unique to the Canon G series but I am unfamiliar with anything else from the point and shoot class of camera.

The older G series can usually be had fairly inexpensively from, say, Craigslist.
posted by bz at 3:58 PM on August 18

Not quite what you are after but another option is to use a digital camera with a timer on the shutter, which is what I do when photographing my opals. I set it for 2 or 10 seconds, press the shutter, take my hand off the camera, and then the shutter releases. This stops any shake that may occur from my hand on the camera.
posted by Kerasia at 4:02 PM on August 18 [2 favorites]

An alternative would be getting a cheap Canon camera compatible with CHDK and use its USB Remote Cable feature. Here's a tutorial for making the cable.
posted by Memo at 4:24 PM on August 18

Lifehacker just posted something that's sort of similar today that might be of use. The cameras they say are compatible with the freeware don't seem to be too expensive. With the software, you use your computer, a USB cable, and a compatible camera to control shutter.
posted by jroybal at 5:06 PM on August 18

I use a Fuji Finepix J150 - about $114. online from newegg.com ($10-20 more at Best Bestbuy)- that has a 2 second and 10 second remote shutter timer. Really easy to use (I use it all the time for food pics) It's a pretty nice camera, with white balance, macro setting, lots of manual overrides.
posted by j810c at 8:19 PM on August 18

There are definitely a bunch of inexpensive point-and-shoots (and a few DSLRs) that have IR remotes. In my limited experience, that sort of remote release has decent range even outdoors where there are no walls and ceiling to bounce the IR light. It's also got absolutely no mechanical connection to the camera, which may help reduce vibration for macro shots. And it does more than a standard cable release; you can zoom in and out, as well as just half-press and full-press the shutter button.

Years ago I had (actually I still have it, but it's not in good shape) an Olympus C-2500L, which came with this sort of remote; many other Olympus cameras use the same signals. You can buy cheap clone remotes for this whole range of cameras, like this $US7.01-delivered one from DealExtreme (that's not an affiliate link, BTW).

This image of the remote's manual shows you the large list of cameras the remote works with.

You'd obviously expect to get the remote with the camera, since it's a small cheap item that's part of the standard retail package (though not if you buy your camera from one of those scam-artist dealers :-). The remote may be broken or missing if you pinch some pennies by buying the camera second-hand, though; cheapie-stores like DealExtreme stand ready to fill that gap.
posted by dansdata at 12:19 AM on August 19

Thanks, everyone, for helping. But it looks like what I'm looking for does not exist in the market at this time.
posted by capcuervo at 4:04 PM on August 20

Can you be more specific about what's wrong with the above suggestions? It seems like it does exist.
posted by Caviar at 10:37 AM on August 24