LONG-RANGE CANON DSLR REMOTE video set off

Instructables user [Justin] typically delighted in shooting video with his Canon 60D DSLR, though there was one small problem. The only way that the video camera could be remotely triggered to shoot video was through a small IR remote with a paltry 10 foot range. even worse, the remote had to be pointed directly at the front of the video camera to work at all. To remedy the situation, he chose to rig up his own long-range set off mechanism.

He cobbled together an Arduino with components he had sitting around, mounting it in a project box on top of the camera. A commercially available RF remote shutter release is also mounted on the top of the camera, and wired to the Arduino using a small 2.5mm plug. When he activates the RF remote, it sends a pulse to the Arduino, which in turn sends the suitable signal to his video camera through a small IR LED.

While he readily admits that he could have likely used a much simpler configuration, the Arduino does its job, and he’s quite pleased with his solution. We agree with him about the Arduino, but it’s hard to argue with saving money by using components you already have on-hand.