Thetered mode on LEAF AFI

[jeanlucco]

All, may be somebody knows the trick to have C1 (last release 6.2.2) to recognise the camera and back immediately. Using PC, FireWire 800-400 to LEAF AFI7ii on AFI. This afternoon, took me approx. 30' to get everybody talking to each others. May be there is a trick regarding the chronology of switching on the back, then the body, then connect,.... I tried everything and no method  seems to work better than another. Suddenly C1 will attach the camera and here we go. When I connect my Canon D1mk4 the camera is right away recognised and attached. Looking forward to hear some feedback on this annoying problem. Ciao Jean-Luc

[jeanlucco]

May be one trick is to work tethered instead of thetered

[yaya]

You can set the back to use the camera's battery (the default is "automatic" which will detect if there's not enough power coming through the cable) and in any event it is best to use a PCI card that is connected to the internal power supply in your PC: article 2225

Or to use a powered repeater (especially if it's a laptop): article 2309

Hope this helps

Yair

[Gigi]

I found that my Firewire 800 cord didn't work, but the 400 cord, (with an 800 adapter to go into a Mac PB) worked just fine. Don't know if its the cable or some protocol, but that's how it was. Have you tried Leaf Capture?

[Anders_HK]

Ran tethered this weekend for first time, worked flawless on Afi-II 12 on Macbook Pro 17". 

[EricWHiss]

Jean-Luc,
Do you mean the time it takes to upload and download the camera data?  It takes mine like 30 secs too every time.  This frustrates me because when I shoot tethered and change lenses, I have to disconnect the tether to get access to the back to type in the new lens focal length for it show properly in the EXIF.  Then I have to wait the 30 seconds again - which during a shoot seems like an eternity.  Either they should fix the data upload download thing or make it possible to change that parameter without disconnecting.
Eric

[jeanlucco]

All, thanks for the replies. In resume, I am standing on the following situation:
- Further Yair advise, yesterday night I installed a FireWire 400 PCI card from LaCie on my Graphic Station HPZ400 (quadro Pro, 20GB RAM, latest NVidia card,..). The card is powered from the PC Power slot and not the PCI slot. Tried everything and again C1 does not recognize the Camera (meaning Body AFI) right away. I found out that the best results are when I follow the following sequence: start PC, Start C1 new Tethered session and then connect the Firewire cable (400/800) to the AFI7II.
 - To reply to Eric: no, once the back and the PC are talking tom each others it is going flawless and very fast. I will say that it takes approx. 10s to upload the picture. I will have a session tonight and will measure it. Your 30s seems in line if we assume that the uploading time is proportional to the number of pixel.
 - Based on last advise from Eric, I tried to use the IMac of my wife to upgrade the firware of my back. I downloaded and installed LCC last version: no way to have the back camera recognise. May be it is because I use an adapter for the FireWire Cable. Will try to get a 800/800 cable today.
 - LLC cannot be installed on PC running on Windows 7 
- I have been thinking a lot to make an adaptation on the hand grip of the AFI in order to be able to connect the camera directly to a Quantum Battery. See attached pdf (sorry for bad sketch). Main idea is to be able to shoot without any limitation of time on location and still have the FireWire plug available to connect a PC/Mac/Lapetop. http://jeanlucco.smugmug.com/Electronics/AFD50mm/16126578_KksEu#1425790151_kM3DrD4-A-LB

[EricWHiss]

Jean-Luc,
When I tried to upgrade the AFi-ii 7 the other day, there was a tiny hang up in the window where the user can tell the software about the camera - I had the AFi-ii 7 in the pick list of cameras set correctly and the lens was the 90mm apo which seemed good too.  The camera could not be recognized, however, and it took me a while to realize the lens selection in the pick list included a lens that I had made a LCC file with my AFi-ii 12 so it was confused. I changed the lens to the "generic lens" setting in the pick list and then the camera was recognized and I was able to upload the new firmware with the new GUI.  
This is with Leaf Capture software v 11.5.1

btw - When I wrote in the earlier post about 30 seconds - this is the time in C1 it takes for the camera to connect to the computer.  The files come through much faster after the tethering connection is established.

[jeanlucco]

Eric, wil try later on to use again the IMac. I heard that the quality of the cable is a sensitive case. I should try a 800/800 + install a 800 PCI card.

[Steve Hendrix]

Eric, wil try later on to use again the IMac. I heard that the quality of the cable is a sensitive case. I should try a 800/800 + install a 800 PCI card.

Jean -

I'm assuming, though no one has asked, that this is the Leaf firewire cable, not a 3rd party?

Also, here is a link to recommended firewire cards for Leaf Aptus-II. Note - LaCie is one of them, though it is the fw 800 card, not the 400 (don't know if that has any bearing).

This Best Practices Tethered link may also be of some help (though it is more concentrated towards Phase One digital backs than Leaf).
http://www.captureintegration.com/2008/09/09/the-ideal-tethered-setup/


Good luck.


Steve Hendrix

[jeanlucco]

Hi Steve,
I am using a Leaf cable 800/400 and follow most of the advise/tips in the article. I will order the LaCie 800 PCI card (in back order now) + new cable Leaf 800/800. On the other hands when the dialog between camera and C1 starts, its stay hours without problems. Thank you all for feedback.
Have a good one. Jean-Luc