Pulse App & Features
Current app versions: v1.15.1 Android and iOS
New Features in the Release:
HDR Time Lapse
Feature List (see extended descriptions below):
Photo
- Take a photo
- View thumbnail
- View histogram
- Multi-camera
- Connect up to 6 cameras
- Single or All Camera photo mode
- Selected camera for settings management and thumbnail viewing (Single camera operation only)
- Control Shutter, Aperture, ISO when connected via USB
- Start/Stop videos for supported cameras
- Set Duration, set Interval, set Start Delay
- Use Bulb mode for Long Exposure Time Lapse
- Exposure/Bulb/ISO Ramp
- HDR Time Lapse (New)
- Save/Load Preset
- Load Preset
- Manual or Timed
- 3, 5, 7, or 9 photos
- Unbalanced HDR mode
- Up to four photos with thumbnails
- Connect/disconnect Pulse
- Blink LED
- Rename Pulse device
- Submit a Bug to our support team
- Control LED brightness
For instructions on updating your Pulse to the latest firmware version (v1.29), please go here.
Menu Screen
- Photo - Take a picture
- Video - Start/stop video recording
- Time Lapse - Camera control, exposure ramping, HDR and long exposure time lapse
- Long exposure - Manual and timed
- HDR bracketing - Up to 9 shots with +/- 7 EV - Unbalanced HDR (Beta)
- Photo Booth- 1 to 9 photos custom intervals and image review
- Devices - Device connections
- Settings - App/firmware versions, bug reports and LED control
Main Trigger Screen - Single Camera
- Adjust ISO, shutter speed, and aperture via camera icon
- Bluetooth and camera connection displayed at the bottom of the screen
- Turn thumbnails/histogram on and off
- Responsive trigger button
- Pulse blinks to confirm you got the shot (to turn this off, go into 'Settings')
Main Trigger Screen - Multi-camera (Beta, Android Only Currently)
- Shows all connected cameras - up to six camera connections shown
- Checked box indicates which camera is connected for setting adjustment and thumbnails
- All Cameras: Off - selected camera takes a picture
- All Cameras: On - all cameras take a picture (recommended to turn thumbnails off)
Trigger Page Histogram
- Tap Image to toggle between image preview and histogram
- Quickly access camera settings to adjust exposure
Camera Settings
- Accessible camera icon in upper right corner on all pages
- Responsive
- Change camera settings by swiping or dragging left/right
- Fully manual lenses may not be able to adjust aperture in the app
Video
- Start/Stop video recording
- Adjust your camera settings to fine-tune exposure
- Canon: must first set camera to Video Mode
- Not all cameras supported
Time Lapse
- Set the interval between photos and the duration of your time lapse
- Preview the total number of photos and length of final TL video footage
- Once TL is uploaded, you can disconnect from the phone/app. You do not need to stay connected to the app for the time lapse to finish!
- Counters displayed once the time lapse is started
- Access advanced settings in upper right corner (...)
Long Exposure Time Lapse
- Useful for Astrophotography and other photo opportunities requiring exposures longer than the longest camera setting
- Set camera to Bulb mode and the Time Lapse page automatically enters Long Exposure Time Lapse mode
- Set Exposure Time, Interval and Duration. Interval defaults to 1.5x Exposure Time but it can be changed by the user however make sure it is long enough to accommodate photo processing
- Preview the total number of photos and amount of final TL video footage
- Once TL is uploaded, you can disconnect from the phone/app. You do not need to stay connected to the app for the time lapse to finish!
- Counters displayed once the time lapse is started
Advanced Time Lapse Menu
- Exposure Ramp
- Bulb Ramp
- ISO Ramp
- Speed Ramp (Roadmap item)
- HDR Time Lapse - NEW
- Save Preset - save current time lapse settings as a Preset
- Load Preset - load saved preset or canned preset
Time Lapse Exposure Ramping
- Delay the start of your exposure ramp
- Set duration of ramp
- Set start and end exposure values. Pulse will smoothly ramp the exposure during the time lapse by changing the shutter speed and ISO (easy export for LRTimelapse)
- Preview the number of photos and exposure value change
- Note: end exposure value must not be more than interval length, and your camera must have enough time to save the image between intervals
Time Lapse Bulb Ramping
- Simplified version of exposure ramp focused on shutter ramping
- Delay the start of your bulb ramp
- Set duration of ramp
- Set start and end shutter values. Pulse will smoothly ramp the exposure during the time lapse by changing the shutter speed (easy export for LRTimelapse)
- Preview the number of photos and exposure value change
- Note: end exposure value must not be more than interval length, and your camera must have enough time to save the image between intervals
Time Lapse ISO Ramping
- Simplified version of exposure ramp focus on ISO ramping
- Delay the start of your ISO ramp
- Set duration of ramp
- Set start and end exposure values. Pulse will smoothly ramp the exposure during the time lapse by changing the ISO (easy export for LRTimelapse)
- Preview the number of photos and exposure value change
- Note: end exposure value must not be more than interval length, and your camera must have enough time to save the image between intervals
HDR Time Lapse - NEW
- Merges HDR and Time Lapse
- Set number of photos for HDR (3, 5, 7, or 9)
- Turn feature on
- Navigate back to Time Lapse main screen and note "HDR Time Lapse" indicating HDR Time Lapse active
- Interval set to accommodate the number of HDR pictures set. If the interval is lowered it may not leave enough time to take all of the pictures
- During time lapse, the current shutter value is displayed
Save as Preset
- Saves time lapse settings into a user defined preset
- Can be loaded using Load Preset
Load a Preset
- Load a saved preset or canned one
Long Exposure
- Manual Exposure: keeps the shutter open until you stop it (time set to infinity)
- Timed Exposure: set amount of time the shutter will be open
- Timer shown when shutter is held open
HDR
- Set the number of bracketed photos to be triggered
- Set the exposure value steps between bracketed images
- Maximum settings: 9 bracketed images +/- 7 EV stops
- Example: 3 images with 1 EV Stop will take 3 separate images at 1/20, 1/10, and 1/5 shutter speeds if initial camera exposure is 1/10s
- Unbalanced HDR Mode selection
Unbalanced HDR (Beta, Android Only Currently)
- Set the number of bracketed photos to be triggered
- Set the exposure value steps between bracketed images
- Maximum settings: 9 bracketed images +/- 7 EV stops
- Example: 3 images with 1 EV Stop will take 3 separate images at 1/20, 1/10, and 1/5 shutter speeds if initial camera exposure is 1/10s
- Unbalanced HDR Mode selection
Photo Booth
- Pick an interval between 5 and 60 seconds
- Take up to 10 photos per session
- Review your images with thumbnail previews to make sure you got the shot(s)
- Pulse blinks during next image countdown and flashes blue when photo is triggered
Devices
- Shows all connected devices and cameras
- Disconnect/reconnect Pulse with app by tapping the check mark
- Tap Rename button to add a nickname for the device(s)
- Tap Blink LED and Pulse will flash its LED
- Swipe down on page to scan for Pulse(s) - this is important for multi-camera operation as multiple swipes may be required for connection of all Pulse/camera pairs
App Settings
- About displays the app version and current version of the firmware for the connected Pulse
- Submit a Bug - see next
- LED Level allows a user to adjust the brightness of the LED light from high to completely off
- Permissible Mode - Pulse will not check your camera mode (Manual, Auto, etc...) before shooting. Using this mode can help overcome some communication issues.
Submit a Bug
- Once you've recreated the issue, fill out this form and submit it to our team of engineers
- Bug reports are incredibly useful for solving issues as they contain a full log of camera/app/phone interactions that led to the issue
- Thanks for the help! We'll get back to you over email if we need more info.
Still stuck? Shoot us an email. We're here to help.