Hair trigger soft release

colinh

colinh

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Hi there,

I'm a happy user of the TA soft release. But, I'd like something even better! My Contax RTS II has an shutter release that operates at the slightest pressure. (It uses a separate button for activating the meter.)

I had the following idea:

How about a spring loaded release? You'd prime it by rotating it, say half a turn. There'd be a plunger with two ramps around the circumference. As you slightly depress the button this pushes down a catch which releases the plunger. The ramps then force the plunger down as the plunger rotates. The profile of the ramps would control the acceleration and deceleration.

I made a couple of drawings once, so this is all perfectly clear to me :) Do you have any idea what I'm talking about Tom?


colin
 
Damn! That looks exactly like what I think my idea would look like.

My question would be not "How it works" but "what does it do?"

Is it "just" a softie, or is it powered, as it were?


colin
 
well, I still have a cable release operated by an air pump. Perhaps Roland will like to add a pressure can instead of the pump.

Cheers,
Ruben

Colinh, your idea sounds intelligent for self home doing, but relatively expensive to manufacture. Nevertheless I can propose to try to cushion the softie, either between the softie button and the shutter shoulder, or cushion the contact of the camera shutter button and its moment of activation - ALTHOUGH I am absolutely ignorant of the Contax RTS II. If you go for the first option, both leather and/or rubber are very good materials.
 
In practice, Colin, Sherry, Don or Youxin can adjust the trigger pressure
to non-Leitz specs. That and a TA button might the most practical
(and admittedly more boring) solution.

Cheers,

Roland.
 
I had a custom Mauser with set triggers. One trigger set the mechanism and the other fired the gun. Once set the weight of a flea could fire it. Stu
 
ferider said:
In practice, Colin, Sherry, Don or Youxin can adjust the trigger pressure to non-Leitz specs. That and a TA button might the most practical
(and admittedly more boring) solution.
Click to expand...

Ah, but it's not just the pressure, it's also the travel. Although, obviously, anything is more practical than designing and making such a thing. :)

Still, I have a lathe and milling machine... just no CNC which is a shame.

Ruben, I mentioned the RTS II release in this post in the Evil SLR forum.

colin
 
Well there are pneumatic self timers that are placed on the shutter... Most notable was the one thats available from Yuri at Fedka.com. Only problem with something being spring loaded is that it would have to be designed in such a way as to prevent vibrations or movement in the camera from the piston that would depress the shutter release.

If not done properly it would negate the effects of a 'soft' release methinks.
 
Stu W said:
I had a custom Mauser with set triggers. One trigger set the mechanism and the other fired the gun. Once set the weight of a flea could fire it. Stu
Click to expand...

NOW, that's a good garage project--adapting a Mauser 98 set trigger mechanism to a Leica.
 
jbf said:
Only problem with something being spring loaded is that it would have to be designed in such a way as to prevent vibrations or movement in the camera from the piston that would depress the shutter release.

If not done properly it would negate the effects of a 'soft' release methinks.
Click to expand...

Well, of course, it would be designed this way! :)

The spring would be two pieces of (possibly multilayered) spring steel (?) (Ger: Federstahl) located diametrically opposite each other. Their action would create only a couple (torque) and no net force on the camera.

If one wanted to be Really Clever (TM) one could arrange things so that as the plunger goes down a coaxial counterweight goes up! Again - no net force on the camera.

Getting all of this in a cylinder of 15 mm diameter and 10 mm height is what you might call - a Challenge :)


colin
 
ferider said:
Hmm .... Anybody knows how the OZTNO works ? (see for instance 170139010942).
Click to expand...


I askd the seller what exactly the OTZNO does (as I would have bought it if it had been what I was after) and he sent me this nice reply

It is a soft release. Originally, it was coupled with a mechanical timer
(which was sold separately), which when activated, would depress the
shutter button after several seconds. That way, you could set the camera up
(on a tripod, perhaps) and set the timer to take your picture. However,
because the button is nearly flush with the surface of the camera, you
needed to have the soft release to raise the height of the button (so to
speak) so that the timer would work. In any event, people use the soft
release now because it feels more comfortable to use than depressing the
button on the camera itself. I have one for each of my three Leica M
cameras.

Hopefully, that was somewhat clear. Good luck.
Click to expand...


I.e. Its just a softie.

colin
 
I have the OTZNO. As a softrelease, it sucks compared to the TA softie. It is too tall. It is an adapter that basically turns the shutter release button into to the type that is found on the screw-mount Barnacks. This way, one can use the old accessory cable releases and self-timers built for the Barnacks on the M's. I bought one primarily to use an old Leitz APDOO self-timer with my MP. Works great for that purpose so I have the OTZNO permanently attached to the APDOO.
 
I just had a much simpler idea that would solve my problem (of camera shake) apart from holding it better :)

A major part of the problem is the travel needed and the not very clear pressure point after which the exposure takes place.

What would help is simply a long extension to the TA soft release which goes down the hole like the plunger of a cable release and which in its resting state is already pushing the shutter release to just before it's release point.

Again, I hope this is clear. Diagrams would be so much easier.


colin
 
I invented one that you use with your eye. When you want to take a picture , just blink your eye and presto you have taken a picture. Great soft release. I am selling them for $5,000. each I take cash only, money back Life time warranty.
 
The idea of a spring loaded trigger has merits. Only problem is the delay between you hitting it and it firing. There is a "transfer" of movement involved.
Leica tall release was the means to clear meters and finders. Works quite well, but puts a LOT of stress on the release of the camera. Very easy to bend it as it sticks up a good 1/2"!
My favorite system for release/advancing film (apart from Rapidwinders) was Graflex weird 35 mm camera, powered by a CO2 cartridge!!
I am playing around with a "low profile" spring dampened release for my Nikon RF's and SLR's. It is rather complex as it would require 4 parts + a spring. Dont know if I ever make one - but I keep sketching on my pad while watching movies on TV!
 
Agfa's "sensor" release is something similar: the release is also "cocked" as the film is wound and shutter cocked, pressing the normally orange-red shutter release button lets go of the spring that runs the shutter.
 
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