Hey There!

We have some cool news for Sony owners as well as folks hoping to attach their Radians directly to their tripods. We also have a new Tech Tip, and an awesome video made by James Lewis (one of our Kickstarter Backers) with his Michron!

Video of the Week - Shot with Michron:

 Shot by James Lewis of The Nature Photography Co - www.tnpc.co.uk

Also check out this still that Greg took with his Michron last week while climbing in Southern Yosemite. We’ll be doing a Tutorial and Tech Tip in the future on some useful non-time lapse uses of Michron and Radian such as this one (self portraits!)

Checkout our Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ to see more time lapse footage!

New Sony Camera Compatibility!

We just got the new Sony S2 cables in stock. These will allow Radian and Michron to work with the following Sony cameras: 6000, A7, A77 II , A7R, A7S, HX50V, NEX 3N, A58, RX100 II, RX100 III, HX300 and 5000L. We are also testing other Sony cameras as well.

Tripod Thread Adaptor:

For those of you looking to put your Radian directly onto a tripod with a ⅜” stud, we have found and tested a handy ⅜” to ¼” thread adaptor that will allow you to attach your Radian directly to your tripod. We are working on getting them in stock on our site and we will let you know once they are in stock. In the meantime though, you can purchase it here: http://www.amazon.com/Tripod-Reducer-Diameter-Mount-Adapter/dp/B0081KP9PW/ref=pd_sxp_grid_i_0_0

What’s New In The Latest Michron And Radian App Releases?

As of August 25 there are new releases of the Michron and Radian app (Radian Android app has some delays and will be released next month). The main change made to both apps was that we did a little bit of behind-the-scenes work to make the packet transmissions more robust, and we altered the way in which the “hold” setting is set by the app.

In the new version of the app, the app automatically selects the longest hold time possible (up to 1 second) to reduce the likelihood of your camera missing the trigger signal sent by your Radian/Michron. If you’re curious about how exactly the hold settings works, please check out these tutorials : How Radian Works, How Michron Works. Also if you wondering where the latest Radian Android update is, it is currently being delayed by the Google Play submission process. We have a solution for this and will be releasing the Android update next month.

Tech Tip #2 : How Radian and Michron Work

This week’s tech tip is going to geek out a bit on some of the under the hood magic that goes into both Michron and Radian. This is also meant to supplement the How Radian Works, and How Michron Works tutorials, since we feel that the better you understand your gear, the more you can do with it.

How Radian/Michron Tell Your Camera To Take A Photo

Radian/Michron sends an electrical signal to your camera via the shutter release cable. This signal is based on standard protocols that were established long ago, and the signal is essentially the equivalent of holding your finger on the shutter button of your camera. The length of time for which this signal is sent (ie how long it thinks your finger is holding the shutter button) is called the "hold time" and can be controlled in the App.

One issue that can come up when taking a time lapse with Radian/Michron is that your camera may not always take a photo when it is told to. You may have noticed that sometimes you may need to hold your finger on the shutter button for a while (even up to 1 second) to take a photo with your camera. This is generally due to the time needed for your camera to autofocus, and adjust to its surroundings. Unlike you, Radian/Michron does not know if your camera has taken a photo or not, so if your camera is still adjusting while the trigger pulse comes and goes, you will simply miss that photo in your final footage. And this will result in your final footage appearing choppy or unsmooth.

The newest versions of the Radian and Michron Apps take steps to reduce this issue by increasing the default trigger pulse time to .5 and 1 second respectively. However, if you are using a short interval (under 2 seconds), or you are using interval ramping with Michron, this default time will be reduced to .25 seconds and .5 seconds, respectively. Michron’s pulse goes as low as .1 second for very fast intervals - If this is the case, you will need to make sure that your camera is in fully manual mode (especially the focus!).