Canon RC-6 Remote Control

Rupert67

Rupert67

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I'm considering the purchase of one of these little remote controllers, so that I can take 'selfies' this Christmas when the family are all around.

I am assured by the nice people at WEX that it has a two stage button, which allows for the AF to function just ahead of firing the shutter. However, an article in the EOS Magazine Online (a link to which WEX includes with product info on the web page) makes me think that maybe you have to focus manually first, before making the shot. Obviously full AF functionality would be preferable under self portrait conditions.

WEX web page with link to EOS Magazine Online: https://www.wexphotovideo.com/canon-rc-6-remote-control-1519993/

The instruction manual for my 5DIII contains a page about the RC-6 remote control (p.186 in the downloadable .pdf version) which includes the advice that, when using the RC-6, the camera's drive mode needs to be set accordingly, i.e. one or other of the self-timer modes which, on the 5DIII, are either 2 seconds or 10 seconds. However, when using the RC-6, am I to understand that the 'timer' element of the drive mode is over-ridden by the use of the device, which I gather has two settings of its own, instant and 2 seconds? In fact, is it really necessary to alter the camera's drive mode at all, seeing as the RC-6 is merely a remote finger on the shutter release button?

Although the RC-6 costs less than £20, I still want to be sure that it will do what I expect it to. Has anyone used one of these?
 
Get a pair of Yongnuo RF 603 Mk2 for Canon. Much better in every respect. Also much more versatile. Same price too.
 
Thanks Mickledore, I'll certainly look into that.

As it happens I already own a Hähnel Combi TF Wireless Remote Control & Flash Trigger, which has worked just fine up till now, but when I came to use it for a self portrait the other day, something strange happened. With the camera on a tripod, the Hähnel on the hot shoe and the 580EXII mounted on the Hähnel, I could get the thing to fire OK but there was no picture to see in preview. In other words, although everything had fired, nothing had been recorded to the CF card.

I was shooting in manual mode (ISO200, 1/80s, f/8, bounce plus reflector extended) and letting the AF take care of the focusing. When I switched to manual pre-focusing it still wouldn't behave. I then resorted to using my tethered remote control on a 10 second delay, using manual focusing, as I'm not sure, when using the camera's timer, if the mechanism allows time for the AF to function quickly enough.

It was a real conundrum and at the moment I just don't know what could have been preventing the picture from being recorded to the CF card. I just thought that the RC-6 might be one way I could take self portraits and have AF in operation.
 
i have both the hahnel combi tf and the rc6 they both auto focus before firing
the rc6 also has a lock button for bulb mode which could be handy

the rc6 is much more responsive being wired but obviously with a limited reach because of the length of wire
i tend to use it when using a tripod where the length of cable isn't an issue

the hahnel combi is great if you don't want the restriction of the cable but i found that in continuous shot mode it had a habit of firing off 2 shots at a time no matter how quick a pressed the button
it's obviously not a problem in single shot mode but it is one of the things that niggles me about it

the problem your having with the hahnel combi if i have read your post right is it should be used for one function or the other ( remote flash or remote trigger ) not both at the same time

because i wasn't sure i just tried my own in the same combination and same settings as you and the flash is firing before the shutter is triggered which is why your getting a black image

what you should try is mounting the 580 ex directly to the camera hot shoe plug the hahnel receiver with the remote trigger cord into the remote socket on your camera and find a place to rest the hahnel receiver
let the camera fire the flash as normal and let the hahnel fire the shutter remotely with the transmitter in your hand

it will cure your black image problem
 
cosmicma said:
<snip>

what you should try is mounting the 580 ex directly to the camera hot shoe plug the hahnel receiver with the remote trigger cord into the remote socket on your camera and find a place to rest the hahnel receiver
let the camera fire the flash as normal and let the hahnel fire the shutter remotely with the transmitter in your hand

it will cure your black image problem
Click to expand...

^^^This (y)
 
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cosmicma said:
yes i am
for some reason or other i automatically presumed the op was asking about the canon wired remote
i thought canon had done away with the IR remote years ago, it was never any good i tried it out when i first got canon DSLR's ( xxx bodies ) and it was too hit and miss to be useful
Click to expand...

Agree with that, exact positioning was required and had to be in front of the camera.
Wired remote is much better, found the jack on the Canon version clicked into place unlike the Ebay copies
 
just looked at the price of the canon RS-80N3 at the link you posted ( wex ) it looks like the price has doubled since i bought one from Mathers around 2008
i can see the attraction for the 3rd party remotes when canon are now charging so much for what is essentially a switch in a plastic case

saying that if i had to buy another it would still be canon rather than 3rd party, the build quality is worth the extra
 
cosmicma said:
just looked at the price of the canon RS-80N3 at the link you posted ( wex ) it looks like the price has doubled since i bought one from Mathers around 2008
i can see the attraction for the 3rd party remotes when canon are now charging so much for what is essentially a switch in a plastic case

saying that if i had to buy another it would still be canon rather than 3rd party, the build quality is worth the extra
Click to expand...

Sold both of mine when I went to Fuji a few years ago, I was surprised at the price too.
Found a lead the other day when I was having a tidy up, had a 2.5mm female jack one end and a N3 male the other.
Probably do wth one of the cheaper remotes or wireless triggers meant for the smaller DSLR's
 
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tijuana taxi said:
Sold both of mine when I went to Fuji a few years ago, I was surprised at the price too.
Found a lead the other day when I was having a tidy up, had a 2.5mm female jack one end and a N3 male the other.
Probably do wth one of the cheaper remotes or wireless triggers meant for the smaller DSLR's
Click to expand...

sounds like an adaptor to convert from xxx ( jack ) to xx / x bodies
 
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