The 20-mile, 2600-channel radio camera trigger
The headline is true: I’ve made a long range wireless camera triggering device that works at distances up to 20 miles, sometimes more, depending on radio used. This video shows it firing a remote camera some three miles from the transmitter:
The switch
Right off the bat, I have to say that there may be some regulations with the FCC that says you can’t use a two way radio for any purpose other than talking with it, so you might be violating FCC laws by using this thing. Will the FCC police come get you if you do this? Only you can decide that! You need a license also to operate a walkie talkie (although most people never get a license when they use walkie talkies) that uses FRS/GMRS (most of them do). To stay legal, use this camera triggering device with a MURS (multi-use radio service). MURS walkie talkies can be bought on the internet. Data communication is permitted with these radios and you don’t need a license. Read about MURS radios here and here.
Here’s how it started: In early 2008 I shot a Red Bull Air Race here in San Diego. Planes raced over San Diego Bay, flying through gate pylons in sideways positions. I wanted to make a cool shot, so I got on a boat, went out to one of the floating docks which had an air gate on it, mounted a camera at the base looking up, with the idea of shooting the planes just feet above as they raced through the gate at 200 miles per hour.
Bad thing was, it didn’t work. The gate where my camera was mounted was only about three football fields away, in the line of site, but they were out of range of my Pocket Wizards (I had a guy with the transmitter ashore). You can link pocket wizards in tandem - but that get’s expensive and wouldn’t have been possible to do as the camera remote was mounted on a floating dock surrounded by water.
So my quest to make a long range, reliable, radio camera trigger began. I started by going to a radio controlled airplane hobby shop and asking a lot of questions. I left with an airplane control transmitter and receiver, and Frankensteined together a trigger on the receiver side to fire my camera. Problem was, the range of the thing was still lousy, and there was a lot of interference, setting off my camera at random unwanted times.
So I found a better solution by using walkie-talkies. I made a special switch that works in conjunction with walkie-talkies, any walkie-talkie, the kind of walkie-talkies that sell at Walmart and Target and Radio Shack for $40-$80. Suddenly I had a camera remote trigger with 80 times the range of a Pocket Wizard - 20 miles or more, depending on the radio used and the conditions. When you buy a set of walkie talkies, they advertise their range. They are exaggerated ranges though in my opinion. In urban areas for example, the range is NOT that long. Read on!
- Is it legal? NO and YES! The device I make is only a switch, similar to a light switch. It does not emit, receive or transmit radio signals on its own. So yes, on its own, just sitting there on the desk, it is legal. But there are FCC rules which prevent two way radios from being used for anything other than talking. If you use common FRS/GMRS walkie talkes to trigger this switch, like this set up, it violates FCC rules. You can use them with MURS frequency radios, which do not require a license to use, and allow data communication. Still though, I am only making them for people as a novelty item, who want to plug the thing into a radio, tape player or Ipod, okay? You can use that kind of a device (ipod, radio, tape recorder) to trigger the camera too. But you’d have to be standing right there, next to the ipod or radio and camera, turning it off and on, to trigger the camera.
- How it works. There are three cables coming out of my switch. One connects to a nine volt battery, the other (a mini phono plug) plugs into your walkie-talkie’s headphone jack, the other plugs into your camera’s shutter input. Place remote camera, walkie-talkie and switch together somewhere, and keep the second walkie-talkie with you. To take a picture, just push the walkie talkie’s Push To Talk (PTT) button. Hold it down for as long as you want the camera to take pictures. The circuit board I make has a on and off switch. The whole thing is encased in a cell phone type case.
- Range: I have tested the setup with a camera deep inside a building in downtown San Diego, drove two miles away - with multiple buildings in between us - and the camera still fired when I triggered it from that distance. It’s a stupid-simple, long range camera trigger solution, and it works! The video above shows it in action at a distance of about three miles. The camera trigger switch is not dependent on audio quality. It can be crystal clear audio, or faint static and gibberish coming from the radio: the switch will still work. As long as there is some sort of interaction happening between the two radios, even if faint, the switch will fire your camera. The range is determined by the radio used with the switch. Most radios sold at places like Target or Walmart claim 12 miles to 28 mile maximum distances. Price for these radios varies from $29-$80 or more. Average price is about $45 for a pair of walkie-talkies (also called two-way radios).
- Size: I enclosed the switch and nine volt battery in a case used for carrying cell phones. The swith attaches to a walkie-talkie’s headphone jack on one end, and the camera on the other end. The switch has an on/off switch.
- Interference: None! None to date at least. Today’s walkie-talkies (two way radios, MURS included) aren’t the same AM type things you used as a kid, or even a couple years ago. The technology has greatly improved, preventing bleedover and other interference, by incorporating things like Interference Eliminator Codes (121 per channel on my Motorola radios) which offer superior interference protection. Radios also have QT noise filtering, which filters out unwanted transmissions from other channels or maker’s radios. I live downtown San Diego, next to a train station and shopping mall, and when I put the radio on a certain channel, and select one of the 121 additional interference eliminator code, that channel is all mine, and there’s no interference from taxis, shopping mall employees, shoppers, police, train station employees, security guards, etc. The technology seems to work pretty good. I let it sit on that channel all day, and it stays quiet.
- Compatible cameras: Can be made for any camera with shutter release plugin.
- Delay? There is a very slight delay from the time you push the walkie-talkie’s transmit button until the camera takes a picture. It is about 1/4 to 1/2 second. As a result, you may have to anticipate moments more so than you normally would.
- More about it: If you use a switch like this, you need to have walkie talkies and a nine volt battery. The triggering device plugs into a walkie-talkie’s headphone input, usually a mini phone plug, so make sure your walkie-talkies have a jack for headphones or VOX. You need a nine volt battery to power the switch. The switch has an on and off switch. In the on position, the drain on the battery only takes place while the switch is in use, so as a result, it will have a very long life.
- Guarantee? If you don’t like it, return within seven days after receiving and I will refund your money.
If you would like one of these switches I can custom make it. Please allow 2-3 weeks, since it is made from scratch. Also, if used with a walkie talkie you are possibly violating FCC rules which say that walkie talkies can be used only for talking, and not triggering devices like this. So use as a novelty item instead, with a Ipod or tape recorder. Or, use it with a MURS type radio.
Mark J Rebilas wrote:
Robert,
This is the invention many photographers (including myself) have been waiting to develop. This opens up a whole new world of remote cameras for me and I cant wait to start producing the shots.
Mark
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 4:52 pm | Permalink
MarcoTogni.it wrote:
Super cool! Congratulations!
And it’s nice to see Mark J Rebilas here too.
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 5:04 pm | Permalink
JohnK wrote:
That’s awesome! But I have a question — the trigger just relies on any kind of audio input, is that right? So, if I have a cell phone that has a audio headphone plug, you can trigger it by calling it, right? ‘Cause a trigger that can work from anywhere in the world…!
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 5:18 pm | Permalink
Pat wrote:
Great idea!! Is this similar in construction to the hand clap switch you mention in another post?
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 5:44 pm | Permalink
robert benson wrote:
JohnK:
Depending on how your cell phones ringer works, yeah, that would work.
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 5:47 pm | Permalink
Anthony C wrote:
Robert,
Great work. Let’s see, I’ve got the radio, the 9-volt battery…all I need is a camera with the proper jack!
Darn. I currently shoot with two Nikon D70S’s. I really would like to get one of your gizmos before you get swamped with orders. I’ll eventually upgrade to a D300 or D700. Would that be enough for you to know which cable to send? I’m hoping the higher-end Nikons all use the same jack.
Thank you.
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 6:22 pm | Permalink
hive wrote:
Now if someone could design the same kind of stuff… but going the other way around: camera triggering flash…. like pocketwizards. It’s not like I need to remote trigger my camera from THAT far away, nor would I feel comfortable leaving my camera away from me.
As for the inner working, I guess the triggering circuit only monitors for a peak signal… doesnt really need to be audio, could be any voltage change etc… so basically you could have a laser interruption trigger, an infrared movement detection, or any kind of sensor providing a peak signal that can be picked up.
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 7:37 pm | Permalink
Matt Zimmerman wrote:
Hey Robert! Way to go! That’s sweet. Can I place an order for both a Canon and Nikon switch? Whenever you’re accepting them that is.
THANK YOU!
Posted on 22-Oct-08 at 8:39 pm | Permalink
Kyrre Lien wrote:
Hello!
That really looks great! Is it possible to place an order?
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 3:53 am | Permalink
Robertv! wrote:
I’ve actually done this in my other life as a PA/Sound/Light person.
You can dramatically reduce the delay by switching of the CTCSS tone channel selection. The reason for the delay is the receiving radio listens for a signal, then waits to decode the audio tone on the channel before opening the squelch, thereby triggering the “camera.”
Removing the CTCSS feature (in the menu) will drop the delay to 10-20mS in my radios. The problem is anyone on that radio channel will now trigger the camera. This might be an acceptable compromise in a low activity area.
Non Camera tech:
My interface was simply a high gain audio pre-amp and a diode rectifier to a transistor and relay. When the squelch was shut the radio was quiet and the relay was off. When the squelch was open the background noise (on the radio link and mic pic-up) was loud enough to amplify, rectify and use to bias the base of a transistor to switch over the reed relay. For a camera I’d say you should switch to manual focus and may need to hardwire a “half press” on the shutter cable. Watch out for battery drain on the camera as it’ll never sleep.
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 6:54 am | Permalink
Robertv! wrote:
Oh, as a side thought.
Please check the details of your FCC regulation in these radio. Here in the UK we have clauses on the regulations that say we are not allowed to trigger external equipment or devices or to allow external triggers or devices.
Just checked your rules:
http://www.provide.net/~prsg/frsrules.htm
Read the first screenful of data.
Breaking the law is fun when you don’t get caught!
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 7:01 am | Permalink
Long range Wireless, Maybe | PhotoBlo.gs wrote:
[...] Diego photographer trying to explain himself, has designed, built, and applied for a patent for a device that allows wireless firing of a camera as much as 25 miles away using off the shelf portable [...]
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 7:02 am | Permalink
Marco Togni wrote:
Al-Qaeda will buy many of them from you, but you will have to connect them to a bomb as a detonator. You can do it, right?
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 8:46 am | Permalink
Wheels & Wax wrote:
Long range radio camera trigger (10 miles)…
Robert Benson successfully created a long range radio camera trigger using walkie-talkies available from Walmart. He started working on the project after shooting a Redbull Air race in San Fransisco where his pocketwizard remote trigger set up failed…
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 8:49 am | Permalink
hive wrote:
Al Qaeda wouldnt need that… they have people nuts enough to suicide with the bombs…
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 8:53 am | Permalink
chris wrote:
Very cool! Where/how to buy/how much for a Nikon version?
Awesome!
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 10:07 am | Permalink
Alex wrote:
Where can I buy one of these?
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 2:42 pm | Permalink
Skeptic wrote:
Well, it works from 10 feet away,that doesn’t prove it works over 20 miles now, does it?
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 7:35 pm | Permalink
admin wrote:
Skeptic: that’s why I also made a video showing it working at three miles away. The advertised range of the radios I used is 25 miles. Really though, 25 miles is hilltop to hilltop. In an urban range one mile is a very safe, conservative range for radios like this.
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 7:43 pm | Permalink
Skeptic wrote:
the video doesn’t really show it working from three miles away, it shows a blurry image of a car that *might* have someone standing next to it, but there’s no real proof the person has a camera with your gizmo on it, or even that they have any idea you are filming them
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 7:52 pm | Permalink
admin wrote:
Hi skeptic:
It’s good to be skeptical! I couldn’t think of any other way to demonstrate the range of the trigger, short of making the video in the way I did. If I had two cameras at both locations and edited them together into one production, the same argument could be applied (that it might be “staged”). The fact that regular walkie talkies can reach that far and further is no real secret. If you propose a way that I can show it working at a long distance, let me know, and who knows, maybe I’ll do it! Thanks for the comments.
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 8:37 pm | Permalink
Jana wrote:
I would like to order a canon one once they are available.
J
Posted on 23-Oct-08 at 11:22 pm | Permalink
Skeptic wrote:
You could always have had your assistant flash the car lights or even move away from the car….
Posted on 24-Oct-08 at 5:24 am | Permalink
component video switch box | Bookmarks URL wrote:
[...] The 20-mile, 2600-channel radio camera trigger The video above shows it in action at a distance of about three miles. The camera trigger switch is not dependent on audio quality. It can be crystal clear audio, or faint static and gibberish coming from the radio: the switch will … [...]
Posted on 24-Oct-08 at 9:02 am | Permalink
Steve wrote:
Hi!
When will this device be for sale? And at what price? Do you ship to Europe? Can i use Paypal? =)
regards,
Steve.
Posted on 24-Oct-08 at 10:55 am | Permalink
Michelle wrote:
Cool invention. Congrats. Personally, I can’t find a reason for 15 metres let alone 20 miles. Worst I’ve ever needed so far is … oh … 5 metres very occasionally. Now - you get a strobe triggering system over that kind of distance at a reasonable price and you’ll have the photography world at your knees.
Posted on 24-Oct-08 at 11:34 am | Permalink
The 20-mile, 2600-channel radio camera trigger | Bookmarks URL wrote:
[...] The 20-mile, 2600-channel radio camera trigger The 20-mile, 2600-channel radio camera trigger [...]
Posted on 24-Oct-08 at 12:24 pm | Permalink
Long range (up to 20 miles) Camera Trigger!!! at Erik Seo Photography Blog wrote:
[...] Robert Benson successfully created a long range radio camera trigger using walkie-talkies available from Walmart. He started working on the project after shooting a Redbull Air race in San Fransisco where his pocketwizard remote trigger set up failed because the distance was too great. After that race he worked on some alternatives and ultimately came up with this super long range radio based trigger for remote cameras. He currently has a patent pending on it, to find out more visit his blog: http://www.robertbenson.com/blog/archives/860 [...]
Posted on 25-Oct-08 at 11:28 am | Permalink
Sean McCormack wrote:
Saw this on strobist. Funny but I’ve actually been thinking about this very thing, and via the same means.
Good luck with the patent.
Posted on 03-Nov-08 at 8:33 pm | Permalink
Aaron Potter wrote:
Very great idea for the world of photography. I can see how this will help many action photographers that need a camera in a remote place when it’s impossible to be anywhere close.
Very cool!
Posted on 03-Nov-08 at 10:59 pm | Permalink
dominic wrote:
It’s worth pointing out a few things: There are two bands on which the majority of these radios work - FRS (Family Radio Service), which is unlicensed, and shorter range (2-5 miles) and open for anyone to use, and GMRS (General Mobile Radio Service) for which you technically have to be licensed to use.
I find it dissappointing that handheld FRS/GMRS dual-band radio manufacturers are quick about advertising their radio’s ranges, but not quite as quick about advertising the licensing requirement, et cetera.
I understand the desire to make something off selling your trigger transmitters, but even with all your disclaimers, I’d be careful about selling the transmitters. It might be better to sell the plans for DIY people.
It would not be fun having to deal with the FCC knocking on your door.
Posted on 03-Nov-08 at 11:18 pm | Permalink
Photo News Today » Blog Archive » The 20-mile, 2600-channel radio camera trigger wrote:
[...] Source and Read More: robertbenson.com [...]
Posted on 04-Nov-08 at 9:05 am | Permalink
hexitex wrote:
I can trigger a multiple cameras and flashes from anywhere in the world with 2 cell phones! Why is this so special?
Posted on 04-Nov-08 at 12:06 pm | Permalink
Photography Watch » Speedlinks Bucket Overflows, Flooding Basement wrote:
[...] • Pocketwizard, Schmocketwizard: Robert Benson can trigger his remote cameras from twenty miles away. [...]
Posted on 05-Nov-08 at 10:43 am | Permalink
Photographer invents radio trigger for camera with 20-mile reach | Ask the Photographer wrote:
[...] Enjoy watching these, and check out Robert Benson’s full blog post on the device here. [...]
Posted on 05-Nov-08 at 3:24 pm | Permalink
Jim wrote:
This is a great item for terrorists, set off a bomb from a mile or more away. I wonder if they would like a few dozen of these in Iraq or Afghanistan?
Perhaps you should rethink this idea, though it really is a shame that we have to worry about this type of thing these days.
Posted on 06-Nov-08 at 7:02 pm | Permalink
Nathanael Gassett wrote:
Absolutely brilliant. Great design and set up. Completely awesome. Though I’m not sure that I personally would need to fire my camera from 20 miles away, I’m geeking out at the ingenuity here.
_Nathanael
Posted on 08-Nov-08 at 9:19 am | Permalink
tego wrote:
@ Jim…. they already have them, they are called IED’s
Posted on 10-Nov-08 at 8:13 am | Permalink
Walkie Talkies wrote:
One word…..AWESOME!!!
Posted on 12-Nov-08 at 5:12 am | Permalink
remote shutter release, from 20 miles away - Club3G Forums wrote:
[...] shutter release, from 20 miles away Long range radio camera trigger | RobertBenson.com That would be [...]
Posted on 17-Nov-08 at 6:00 am | Permalink
paulalford.com | Speedlinks Bucket Overflows, Flooding Basement wrote:
[...] • Pocketwizard, Schmocketwizard: Robert Benson can trigger his remote cameras from twenty miles away. [...]
Posted on 17-Nov-08 at 1:14 pm | Permalink
cory Lum wrote:
robert., please advise when u’ll ship mines., i can’t wait to create some some amazing remote images ! MAHALO !
Posted on 28-Nov-08 at 2:57 am | Permalink
daverea.com wrote:
Long live cottage industry…
Robert Benson isn’t an engineer, and (at least to my knowledge) he doesn’t have a degree in business. He’s a photojournalist, and an accomplished one at that. As a freelancer, he’s been hired by the likes of ESPN, Inc. Magazine,…
Posted on 28-Nov-08 at 3:22 am | Permalink
Nomad Photography wrote:
This is really cool.
I was wandering around looking for a solution like this.
This is the perfect tool for remote triggering.
Posted on 28-Nov-08 at 4:57 am | Permalink
punong_bisyonaryo wrote:
This is really great!
How much would it cost to have it FedExed or sent it via a courier to the Philippines?
I have a Nikon D200.
Posted on 04-Dec-08 at 8:27 pm | Permalink
UK Yankee wrote:
I’m assuming anyone who happens to have these walkie talkies and happens to be in the space of 20 miles will be able to fire the camera just by by talking…
We tried to use these walkie talkies at Disneyland to try to keep track of each other. Problem was, we could never get a hold of each other because 30,000 other mom, dads, and kids had them too. We gave up and went back to “meet us at “.
Posted on 10-Dec-08 at 3:47 am | Permalink
Robert Benson wrote:
UK YANKEE: This isnt a problem with good radios:
Interference: None! None to date at least. Today’s walkie-talkies (two way radios, MURS included) aren’t the same AM type things you used as a kid, or even a couple years ago. The technology has greatly improved, preventing bleedover and other interference, by incorporating things like Interference Eliminator Codes (121 per channel on my Motorola radios) which offer superior interference protection. Radios also have QT noise filtering, which filters out unwanted transmissions from other channels or maker’s radios. I live downtown San Diego, next to a train station and shopping mall, and when I put the radio on a certain channel, and select one of the 121 additional interference eliminator code, that channel is all mine, and there’s no interference from taxis, shopping mall employees, shoppers, police, train station employees, security guards, etc. The technology seems to work pretty good. I let it sit on that channel all day, and it stays quiet.
Posted on 10-Dec-08 at 7:36 am | Permalink