The PhotoRobo in the Field

[Bobby Kintanar]

The "Araw ng Gagitingan" gave me chance to field-test my PhotoRobo at the Olabgo Bird Sanctuary. These are the first shots ever taken with this remote-controlled contraption:







Here's a couple of shots of the PhotoRobo - notice that there were very few birds - and it was quite a challenge trying to isolate the bird with a remotely-controlled camera using a 400mm lens!

I remotely maneuvered the PhotoRobo to the edge of the feeding area and waited for the birds to come in:



The PhotoRobo on the way to - somewhere; there were no birds around!



The basic concept does work - now it's just a matter of refining the camera mount to allow lens elevation control aside from the swivel mechanism.

[gabriel buluran]

nice low level shots bobby!

[Mark Itol]

Great ingenuity, Sir Bobby!

Are you able to "see through your viewfinder" remotely or do you just aim the turret and hope that one of the AF points locks target?

[Bobby Kintanar]

Apr 10, 2010 13:24:15 GMT Mark Itol said:

Great ingenuity, Sir Bobby!

Are you able to "see through your viewfinder" remotely or do you just aim the turret and hope that one of the AF points locks target?

Mark, I attached the "Hero" Live-view attachment to the camera. This attachment transmits audio and live video to a dedicated hand-held device and this lets me see what the camera's viewfinder sees in real-time. :-)

[Romy Ocon]

Here's the thread at DP Review, Bobby:

forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1029&message=35028238

[Bobby Kintanar]

Apr 11, 2010 23:35:39 GMT Romy Ocon said:

Here's the thread at DP Review, Bobby:

forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1029&message=35028238

Wow, those guys are taking the project seriously, huh! Ahihihi, the primary objective for making the thing was that it was fun - and may be useful. Hahaha.

In any case, thanks for starting the thread. I guess I'll have to be a member in order to post, so I'll just keep track of it and join in once I am accepted. :-)

[Romy Ocon]

Apr 12, 2010 1:03:25 GMT Bobby Kintanar said:

Apr 11, 2010 23:35:39 GMT Romy Ocon said:

Here's the thread at DP Review, Bobby:

forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1029&message=35028238

Wow, those guys are taking the project seriously, huh! Ahihihi, the primary objective for making the thing was that it was fun - and may be useful. Hahaha.

In any case, thanks for starting the thread. I guess I'll have to be a member in order to post, so I'll just keep track of it and join in once I am accepted. :-)

Bobby, here's a query at the DPR thread. If you can't post there yet, I'll just post the info for you.

Romy,

what is the weight of the 4x4? is there any danger of the whole being
top heavy and prone to toppling over when with a lens+camera riding
some rough/uneven terrain?

jpr2

Not sure if Bobby (the maker) is a member of DPR, but I'll post your query in our local birding forum and perhaps Bobby can reply, hopefully directly on this thread. If not, I'll post his reply here.

Romy

[Bobby Kintanar]

Thanks Ka Mastah! I joined the Forum a few minutes ago, and I've posted my response there. I have actually found a solution and have ordered it online:

I ordered the PT-2 - it can carry up to 3 Kilos. :

www.endurance-rc.com/pantilt.html



I'll have to re-wire the R/C command receiver and put in a different power source to make it work, but it should be possible and practical enough.

[Romy Ocon]

Apr 12, 2010 1:54:35 GMT Bobby Kintanar said:

Thanks Ka Mastah! I joined the Forum a few minutes ago, and I've posted my response there. I have actually found a solution and have ordered it online:

I ordered the PT-2 - it can carry up to 3 Kilos. :

www.endurance-rc.com/pantilt.html



I'll have to re-wire the R/C command receiver and put in a different power source to make it work, but it should be possible and practical enough.

Great to see you posting there, Bobby!

3 kg capacity? That means my 400 2.8 is not included in the party.

[Bobby Kintanar]

Ahihihi, I have to keep things as light as possible with this rig - else the thing may not move at all. Hahaha.

[ppaaoolloo]

Bobby you may want to submit your project to gizmodo/engadget.

gizmodo.com/5520477/rc-dslr-beetlecam-goes-on-ground+level-photo-safari

[Farmer Nestor]

Bobby D Davinci of PBP

[Bobby Kintanar]

Ahihihi, thanks for the comments my friends! :-)