Control your GH3 from a Web Browser - Now with video !

dtbow

BTW, the frame size is about 24-25k, make sure your buffers are big enough. I had to increase the UDP implementation's default buffer size to make it work (on iOS).

lenuisible

@dtbow

the header is 132 bytes long after that you have a JPEG image until the end of the packet.

actually it depends on the modes the GH3 is in, it can be 132, 144 and 156. To know from where you should cut, you have to read the 32d byte, it give you the relative position of the starting of the JPG (it's either 64, 70 or 7C).

Unfortunately the stream stops when in video recording mode.

Yep, nothing we can do I'm afraid (apart from waiting an update or a hack)

That is focus peaking on top of wifi is pretty useless

agree, but funny

I had to increase the UDP implementation's default buffer size to make it work (on iOS).

Did you code a live view player for iOS ?

When I asked you to test the above files, I was referencing to the BrowseJPG one (because you complained in another topic that you couldn't download the pictures on your MAC with Lumix Link).

dtbow

@lenuisible

"actually it depends on the modes the GH3 is in, it can be 132, 144 and 156. To know from where you should cut, you have to read the 32d byte, it give you the relative position of the starting of the JPG (it's either 64, 70 or 7C)."

Thanks, good to know.

"Did you code a live view player for iOS ?"

Yes, I did. iOS is what I develop for most of the time, so the choice was obvious. Furthermore if stream would work during recording using iPhone as a focus support would be really cool.

BTW, if someone is interested to play with it on his iDevice - let me know. The app is not polished, but seem to work stable (and way faster than Lumix Link iOS app).

I haven't yet tried the Chrome app, will do. Are RAW files unsupported as in iOS app? Since for photos I mostly shoot RAW, it would make sense to me to invest the time making an app only if RAWs are supported. Maybe a hack could enable this...

debaser

Hi, I don't know if it's too much to ask, but I make some stopmotion animation and I would love to use my GH3 and lenses in my next project, this software is a good step in that direction but it will be perfect if someone could add the option to get a 50% opacity layer of the previous taken picture over the liveview.... can someone do that?! please!

Me and the stopmotion community would be the forever grateful for that!

fegato

brilliant work. do you think is possible to use the video stream coming from gh3 for different purposes than just monitoring e.g.: using it in a broadcasting software just like a input source?

lenuisible

@debaser There may be a way to do that without too much work, but it will be ugly :

you will have to use jpg+raw so we can access a jpg file of the last picture
i will try to make a small web page which allow to display the last taken picture and shoot a new one (it will require that you launch chrome in non secure mode, see the related post above)
You will then have to use ghostwin to make this window transparent
Finnaly you will use the java liveview behind it (you will have to align them well manually)

The problem I have is that it requires going from recmode (to take the picture and have the liveview) to playmode (to diplay the last one) and it takes some time, so some delay must be included in the code. you will also only have 640x480 quality to work with on the PC screen for that superposition

@fegato no, the quality of the stream is really too low : 10 fps, with 24kB jpegs

dtbow

@debaster that sounds like an interesting app idea. Combined with some other support tools to pre-calculate the stop motion / timelapse and motion support (points which location is pre-calculated and animated for each frame) this could become something really unique. I could relatively quickly come up with "something", though making a quality app would require time, as usual. The other question is whether there are enough people getting GH3 to make development of a full-featured app feasible.

@lenuisible @fegato I get approximately 30fps on iPad, but yes, it is just 640x480 and severely compressed. 10fps is probably due to the java app is not fast enough to draw all frames.

Hionhifi

Since the G6 also supports WiFi, does anyone know if this app will control that camera as well? That would be cool.

lenuisible

@Hionhifi

I don't have G6, so I don't know, but I assume it should work, we just need a G6 (and a GF6) owner to test it.

starios

the weird thing is that you can add in this java subsections in ss and aperture that you cannot set from gh3's body. It is great for fading in a timelapse shot with 768 subsections for one stop :P I also believe (correct me if I am wrong) it shoots only in video mode ss16000, this does not work in photos even when shot with electronic shutter. I am happy now shooting 24p ss48 LOL

starios

I know nothing about programming and my question may be childish, is it possible to use a usb midi controller as a camera controller through this program, something like using pitch wheel to focus :P There are usb midi controllers not necessarily with keys but potentiometers and buttons and have nothing to do with sound, just lite data packets of orders

starios

I just found some articles about Java input from MIDI, it would be great follow focus, zoom and general control with real buttons and potentiometres

starios

is it possible to control focus in olympus zuiko lenses?

starios

did the hen came first or the egg? :P

JohnnyMauser

I also would be very interested to controll the camera via MIDI or OSC! Is it possible to integrate that?

lenuisible

@starios and @johnnymauser I don't know anything about MIDI and OSC, but what you need is anything that can send a HTTP GET request (basically what your web browser is doing when you try to reach a website), if the MIDI device you're speaking of can be programmed to do that, this can work, but you still need a Wifi connection.
The easiest way to have a physical interface changing the GH3 settings is maybe to use an arduino controller with a wifi shield (http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoWiFiShield).

For focusing, I'm afraid that the delay will be too long to have a nice experience.

About Zuiko lenses, I don't have any, but it should work.

narcus

Is there a possibility to get recorded movies quickly from the camera to the pc without touching the camera? What we do now is we record the finish of a horse race with a capture card and then we do a replay of that sequence. We could now eliminate that pc and reduce the complexity of the setup if we can start and stop the recording on the camera via web remote and then copy the recorded file to disk and reply it from the second PC. The preferred way to copy the file would be via the usb cable. Does somebody have a solution for this?

1anentropic

Suggestion: put the code up on github.com so others can contribute

narcus

I wish I could write some code but I am only using the software lenuisible made

tosvus

I'm confused about this program. Tried to download .jpg and rename it but says it is not a valid zipfile.

valdi99

I wanted to let you know it works also with G6. Not perfectly, but it works!
Lenuisible - GREAT work, I am really impressed!

hellrazor

I would really like to see an Android APP for this! I will take a look myself around middle of Feb when my gm1 arrives.

Brian_Siano

I know this may not be feasible, but one feature I'd love to see in these remote control software systems is control over manual focus. It'd be terrific if we could specify focus settings in a sequence, and as we go through a take, we tell the camera to shift focus appropriately.

Let's say we want to rack focus during a shot, but we can't do it by hand. It'd be terrific if we could specify a list of focus settings for the shot. So, when the shot starts, we're at Focus Setting 1. But, when we want to rack focus, we tap a button on the screen, and the camera goes to Focus Setting 2.

And if such a thing can apply to zoom and aperture, even better.

Lufthummel

@hellrazor - yes, that is my plan, too! I have a spare prototype now running in plain Java /Swing client running. I'm able to get the IP via UPnP and to successfully connect the camera. I also managed it to create a custom JPanel to display the live stream inside a JFrame without blocking the application (Threading does the trick...). I've to make the application more reliable in terms of network connections and to handle connects/disconnects. I encapsulate as much functionality as possible so the porting to android will be easy.

I also understand now how to calculate the aperture min & max values from the lens data (value 2 & 3 in the response). So I can calculate the right aperture and send it to the cam. I still have not the full understanding of all values I get as lens data. Has anybody an idea what value 3 & 4 in lens data are about?

@Brian_Siano: if we can figure out the minimum (close) /maximum (infinite) value for focus and are able to set a distinct focus value then it should be easy to implement your use case.

I will update my prototype on the weekend and upload it once I get a stable version. So stay tuned

P.S.: I've a G6 which I use for testing

Brian_Siano

@Lufthummel re the focus issue

First of all, maybe we ought to refer to this feature as "settings cues." A shot may require having one set of focus, zoom, and aperture settings at one moment, another at a later moment, etc. So the user may have a list of these settings and, as the scene is being shot, taps a button to have the camera adjust to the next cue.

Second, the focus thing may not require knowing the actual distances. These things depend on the lens, the zoom setting, the aperture, etc. It may only require that the camera "know" how the lens is set at a given moment-- some digital value that the web control can display. Maybe it can be 1 through 100, where 1 is the closest that the lens can focus, and 100 as the furthest. The user can refocus the lens before the shot, take note of the values, and plug those into the cue list.

I still use a GH2, and boy, sometimes I wish I could control it via a USB cable.

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