RoboSHOOT MX-20, MX-15, RX-20, ad RX-15, User Manual

Page 1: ...RoboSHOOT X Series USER MANUAL ...

Page 2: ...t Rev Date Revision Description 2 0 1 2 18 2017 Initial Production Release For Version 2 0 x firmware and App Feature addition RX Remote Shutter Release Various MX 15 and other corrections 2 1 0 4 21 17 Version 2 1 firmware update Nikon supported on all units ...

Page 3: ...ations 6 RoHS Declaration 7 System Overview 8 Features 9 Master MX Devices 11 Slave RX Devices 12 Getting Started 13 Connecting the modules 13 Camera Settings 14 Speedlight Settings 15 Tips 16 Main Indicators 17 Group Indicators 18 External Ports 19 Stand Alone Operation 21 Group Assignment on Slaves 22 Customization MX 20 Only 22 Clear 22 Flash Test Modeling Light 23 ...

Page 4: ...eting 27 Mult Angle Photography 27 Multi Master Mode 28 In Camera Control 29 Basic Menu Mode 30 Commander Menu Mode 32 In Camera Control Considerations 34 Focus Beam Catch Light 35 App Control 36 App Start up 37 Overview 38 Flash Groups 40 Timer 42 Intervalometer 43 High Speed Capture 44 External Trigger 46 Special Power up Button Functions 47 Troubleshooting 53 ...

Page 5: ... periodically EQUIPMENT CARE AND FUNCTION Be sure speedlights and RoboSHOOT units are secured with alignment pin engaged Failure to do so may result in misfires intermittent operation and or drop damage Never pick up a camera or speedlight by the attached RoboSHOOT or other device It could break free and cause significant damage to your equipment LEGAL We limit our liability for the purpose of kee...

Page 6: ...quipment generates uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions may cause harmful interference to radio communications However there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception which can be determined by turning the eq...

Page 7: ...ct meets the applicable Innovation Science and Economic Development Canada technical specifications Disposal recommendations Always follow local requirements when disposing of electronic waste These devices and batteries should not be treated as household waste for disposal They should be taken to an applicable collection point for recycling of electrical and electronic equipment By ensuring prope...

Page 8: ...lectrical and electronic appliances Following substances namely are involved Lead Pb Cadmium Cd Hexavalent chromium Cr Polybrominated Biphenyls PBB Polybrominated diphenyl ethers PentaBDE OctaBDE DecaBDE Mercury Hg Serene Automation Limited herewith declares that all of our products are manufactured in compliance with RoHS This claim is based on our own internal analyses vendor supplied analyses a...

Page 9: ...d can be used directly without configuration And for more advanced use the MX 20 can be configured via an intuitive user interface right from your Bluetooth enabled phone no button sequences to remember In addition to In Camera and App controlled radio flash trigger the MX 20 supports a wide variety of advanced technical photography applications requiring precise timing and control This manual pro...

Page 10: ...ock Focus Beam Catch Light support App Group Settings including Man TTL flash power Man Auto Head Zoom and TTL Offset Remote shutter control via App Multi Angle support via RX Shutter Release Modeling Light function Built in Intervalometer Timer HS Capture Flash Group Profile Bracketing Flash sync output for external strobes RX 20 Full support for External Triggering via optional remote switch or ...

Page 11: ...erval Duration Profile Bracketing High Speed Flash Config Mode Proportional Fixed delay Exposure Duration Delay from trigger Shutter Mode Trigger Module Settings Trigger Assignment Trigger Source Sensitivity Sensor select optional Batteries 2 AAA Battery Life Unit on and operational typical 12 hours Unit in standby typical 5 days Size LxWxH 3 3 x 1 7 x 0 9 in 84 x 43 x 23 mm 1 2 in 13 mm for shoe ...

Page 12: ...Full Hold to activate Profile Select Bracketing p24 Profile Select only on MX 15 Half Click Hold on MX 15 to Test Flashes p22 Half Hold to Activate Modeling Light MX 20 p22 During Profile Select Half Hold to save current profile 2 Side Function Button Click to Clear Active Functions Return to Normal p22 Hold to Toggle Flash Enable Disable p23 Click with camera menu active toggles between basic and...

Page 13: ...h p22 2 Side Function Button Presently Unused 3 Power Switch 4 Main Indicators p17 5 Assigned Group Indicators p18 6 External Sync Port RX 20 only p19 To trigger external Low Voltage Strobes Read and follow all Safety guidelines carefully Use only as recommended by the strobe manufacturer and in conjunction with RoboSHOOT safety guidelines We strongly recommend use with a voltage isolator intended...

Page 14: ...the speedlights Should a speedlight not support wake up you may need to cycle power on that speedlight Must engage with this alignment hole Retractor Pin shows when aligned Camera MX 15 or MX 20 MX 15 or MX 20 MX 15 or MX 20 IMPORTANT To ensure proper operation and minimize drop risk check that alignment pin is mated and engage locking mechanism on all RoboSHOOT units and speedlights Always turn o...

Page 15: ... instead use the RoboSHOOT Flash Enable Disable buttons for this AutoFP HSS is supported with compatible cameras and speedlights Flash Exposure Compensation The camera and App provide flash compensation settings They are additive Use whichever you find most convenient We recommend against using compensation provided on the speedlight itself Shutter Speed Some X series cameras support flash sync up...

Page 16: ...incompatible speedlights set the speedlight to manual Consult www sereneautomation com for current information about compatible speedlights Unsupported speedlights should not be used Speedlights with unknown support status may or may not operate even in manual mode Worse damage to the speedlight or RoboSHOOT device could occur For any speedlight with unknown support status always use manual mode a...

Page 17: ...ot Center Weighted etc is more reactive when using flash Spot metering is especially useful when using Flash Exposure Lock Remember the camera will try to achieve middle gray in the metered area When TTL operation is employed it can be used as another auto exposure mode For example If Exposure M mode and ISO are all manually set the photographic exposure will still be controlled by the camera as i...

Page 18: ...Pattern Indication Pulsing Ready with Camera Power On Blinking Camera off Fast Blinking Check Flash Settings Slow Pulsing Low Power Standby Pulse Shutter Release Other Flash Exposure Lock or Profile Select Active Single Pulse Focusing Blinking Intervalometer Timer or Bracketing MX 20 only During firmware updates different indications apply Yellow and blue main LEDs indicate activity Group LEDs ind...

Page 19: ...andby Pulse PC Sync Group Indicators These provide status for the group or attached speedlight On the slave they also indicate which group the slave is assigned to All Units Color Pattern Indication Slow Pulsing Standby Assigned group Blinking Charging On Ready Slow Blinking Flash Group Disabled Profile Select Mode MX Units Only On MX units Indicates Profile Number On at varied Brightness Relative...

Page 20: ...l manufacturer warranties Consult Safety guidelines before using external ports When using any port Read and follow all related Safety guidelines carefully Never connect to any voltage greater than 6V MX 20 Ports The Camera Port provides an optically isolated shutter and focus release When doing profile bracketing App or Sensor triggered exposures or any timing functions connect a shutter release ...

Page 21: ...Port The External Flash Sync port on the RX 20 provides an optically isolated interface for low voltage sync inputs This is used as either a shutter release for additional cameras for multi angle photography or to trigger external Low Voltage Strobes Use only as recommended by the strobe manufacturer and in conjunction with RoboSHOOT safety guidelines We strongly recommend use with a voltage isola...

Page 22: ...icated in Getting Started set the camera and flash modes and you are ready to begin shooting With the new Fujifilm cameras with EF X500 control nearly all functions are available even without the App Key new additions and changes to prior versions include Extensive In Camera Group Control Flash Enable Disable Flash Exposure Lock Profile Selection and Edits Improved Profile Bracketing Sensor Activa...

Page 23: ...nly Note Several Features Defaults and Button functions can be customized via App settings and may function differently than described here see Settings info on the in App info pages for more details Clear Currently active functions can be cancelled by pressing the side button see page 11 This causes operations such as Flash Disabled Flash Exposure Lock and Profile Bracketing to deactivate and ret...

Page 24: ... the MX 20 can be changed via Flash Group Settings while connected to the unit The unit will respond according to last programmed settings Enabling or Disabling Flashes quickly Push and hold the side button to enable disable flash see page 11 The Main LEDs will strobe when the command is accepted and the Group LEDs will indicate current status To re enable the flashes just repeat the push and hold...

Page 25: ...remain active and set using prior exposure values This allows for more creativity If you wish to compensate you can use flash exposure compensation TTL Offset Exit FEL by clicking the side button or turning the camera off on Button Lockout If the Main LED flashes red every time a button is pressed the buttons are locked out This mode allows you to prevent unwanted button operations Lockout mode is...

Page 26: ... quickly apply the same settings to each subject Experiment with uncertain lighting very quickly for example with Macros In this case RoboSHOOT can bracket across the four profiles automatically MX 20 Profile selection is performed by holding the top button to enter select mode and clicking the same button to select the desired profile While in profile Select Mode the main Red LED is blinking a sl...

Page 27: ... Profile values click Restore Profile values that were present before profile selection was activated Thereby allowing you to save the prior settings to the selected profile Default Profile TTL Power values blank is zero Group Master Profile A B C D 1 2 2 3 3 2 3 4 1 2 3 1 If you save a new profile the current group values and zoom modifiers are saved such as Zoom override and Angle if provided by...

Page 28: ...p button twice until the LEDs strobe The Main Yellow LED will periodically pulse three times indicating this mode is active Exit Bracketing by clicking the side button or turning the camera off on Mult Angle Photography MX 20 RX 20 can be configured for remote release of additional cameras This enables simultaneous exposures from different camera angles via the App or external trigger See Device A...

Page 29: ...rding to the use of the camera For example a flash pointed at a camera can be disabled for that camera and enabled for another set automatically according to which camera is in use To use Multi Master mode Set each MX unit to Multi Master mode see Device Admin page for information Make sure each MX device is using the same radio channel and the same App settings It is recommended to use this mode ...

Page 30: ...he X500 where the Basic menu is only available when controlling on camera flash and the Commander menu is only available when controlling off camera flash RoboSHOOT does not distinguish between on camera and off camera Instead all flashes are considered members of groups which may or may not be off camera This gives you more powerful control The Basic menu applies to global control for one or more...

Page 31: ...he following controls Flash Enable or Disable M Off with no TTL flash present TTL Off otherwise Multi Strobe not supported TTL Offset Master offset for all TTL groups Manual Power Not supported cannot set manual power for all groups at once use commander menu instead TTL Mode All modes available per camera settings ...

Page 32: ...es available with TTL flash present Zoom Usual usage lets you manually set zoom head focal length Angle Usual usage lets you modify zoom head focal length to be wider or narrower than lens or set value LED Enables Catch Light and or Focus beam on assigned group ...

Page 33: ...mander Menu provides the following controls Group Mode Enable or Disable TTL TTL M or Off Multi strobe not supported Group TTL Offset or Group Manual Power o TTL enables setting of overall TTL offset for all groups and Group A Group B balance TTL Mode All modes available per camera settings ...

Page 34: ...ignment And for the MX 20 it can control which group the Auxiliary Catch Focus Light emits from App settings specify how this is done o On Camera flash can be set to Group D Group A or According to the Master Group assignment o Focus Beam Catch light can be sent from On Camera flash All Groups of the Master Group Assignment MX 20 only Profile Number Because channels are robust in RoboSHOOT channel...

Page 35: ...se items to be aware of When shooting using M exposure mode the focus beam is not provided by the camera Unsupported modes will be skipped if selected o Multi Strobe flash strobe effect is not supported at the present time It will be skipped if possible when selected and TTL flashes are present o On Basic menu Manual mode is prevented if TTL flashes are present and TTL mode is prevented if no TTL ...

Page 36: ...ommander mode side button Focus Beam Catch Light This utilizes the auxiliary beam of selected compatible speedlights For the MX 15 the light is sent from the Camera Master Assigned group Master in the Commander menu This defaults to On Camera flash For the MX 20 you can specify where it is emitted from as specified in the App s Flash Group Settings Default is Camera Master Assigned group but you c...

Page 37: ...s on If you do attempt to pair you may get a unsupported message which can be ignored On Android first pair with the RoboSHOOT before use This only needs to be done once To do this turn on the MX 20 Master and go to Settings Bluetooth and select Search or Scan for devices Select RoboSHOOT from the list of devices A dialog asking if you wish to Pair with it should be shown shortly Select to Pair wi...

Page 38: ...lated and an info view with text bubbles will show how to navigate In this mode no device interactions will take place and the screens will be somewhat static Forcing Settings Consistency The App can be used to maintain the same settings in each MX unit This is done by forcing settings update upon connect by selecting All Settings of the Update Upon Connect App Setting Otherwise those App Settings...

Page 39: ...eat place to start to get more detail The Function Settings right side provides access to all the settings for this view in this case Flash Groups On the bottom of each function page or view is a status and navigation bar Nav There are several icons on it but only one is clickable the This brings up a Navigation menu as shown below The other icons on the bar provide status about Radio Signal Stren...

Page 40: ...image of the Navigation Menu Notice the far left icon on this Navigation menu is an information icon This takes place of the Flash Groups icon here because we are currently on the Flash Groups function page For other function pages it is located in place of the that page s navigation icon Note even though a function is running you can still select another function A message will indicate the funct...

Page 41: ... A to 2 and Group B to 2 will result in a 4EV difference in requested power from the speedlights in those groups However by long clicking instead of turning the knob you toggle between TTL and manual Manual bypasses TTL and will affect overall exposure Note if you drag your finger off a knob the knob s pointer will follow your finger This allows for much more precise settings Clicking toggles betw...

Page 42: ...fset Flash Exposure Lock TTL Flash Test Shutter Release and optionally Modeling Light Modeling Light Profile tray and zoom controls may not be visible To modify click the settings icon in the upper right corner and select group function settings Zoom controls allow you to set the speedlight zoom for each group It can be set as a specific value or as a multiple of the current lens camera setting Th...

Page 43: ... into position The timer mode also allows you to take a sequence of triggered shots one exposure for each trigger with or without delay This is ideal for stop motion photography It s also great for candid shots where you might trigger an exposure when a loud noise is heard Other uses of triggered exposure are fireworks and other events that might be triggered via sensor Of course you have to take ...

Page 44: ... Profile Bracketing modes Bracketing is great for many types of photography including macro portraits and even street scenes It assures repeatable results using a variety of settings This goes well beyond the capabilities of your camera s built in intervalometer when utilizing flash Note if during the first exposures the shutter release cable is not detected the intervalometer sequence will abort ...

Page 45: ...ther than that RoboSHOOT takes care of the complexity To use this capability set up your darkened environment and get ready to take the shot Using the high speed capture settings page set the values as needed and take a reference shot Set Ref button to set exposure levels for the next shots Then when you are ready press Armed When the sensor detects an event the speedlight is triggered optionally ...

Page 46: ...ents such as a balloon bursting Proportional mode fires the flash a multiple of the time between two trigger events In the following example two sensors 1m apart are 3 5m from the subject 1 m 3 5 m The proportional delay factor is 3 5m 1m 3 5 This allows you to position the camera without knowing how fast the projectile is moving A custom sensor would be required for this method Parameters for shu...

Page 47: ...caused by some sensed event The sensor will be detected when you plug it into the External Trigger Port ECP on the Master Sensor modules such as an Audio Detector Optical Detector or Digital Trigger are available on a per request basis subject to availability You can also plug in a switch to the Trigger Port to trigger from switch closures or provide your own sensors A detailed specification for t...

Page 48: ... cycling one by one To initiate a firmware upload on an MX 20 device 1 Remove MX 20 from the camera and turn it off 2 Press and hold the side button with the top button held way and turn the unit on 3 Once the LED cycle through all LEDs is complete release both buttons If successful the main LEDs will indicate Yellow with rapid Red flashing followed by ALL Group LEDs Blink Green Red Green Click si...

Page 49: ...te takes about 3 minutes MX 15 Firmware Update Since the MX 15 does not support the App updates are not available using it Instead the MX 15 supports unit to unit updates If you have access to an MX 20 you can use it to update your MX 15 To do this place your MX 15 in update mode as described above in in steps 1 3 Once the MX 15 in in update mode turn on the MX 20 and place it close to the MX 15 A...

Page 50: ...ion This disables profile selection editing capability This function is unavailable on the MX 20 as its button functions are set via App Settings Change Radio Channel At power up hold Side button until LEDs complete cycling one by one If successful the Main Yellow will flash three times rapidly then the Green Group LEDs will flash three times indicating the new channel number coded per the same ta...

Page 51: ... the following table Group LED Version Number Coding D C B A Value D C B A Value 0 l 8 l 1 l l 9 l 2 l l 10 l l 3 l l l 11 l 4 l l 12 l l 5 l l l 13 l l 6 l l l 14 l l l 7 l l l l 15 So for example the pattern of ON LEDs Green A Red B C Green A indicates version v1 6 1 whereas Green B Green D C indicates v2 0 12 Multi Master Mode To toggle Multi Master mode Continue to fully hold the Top button of...

Page 52: ...nother camera Likewise for Power Zoom and TTL offset settings and any other modes Note while operating in Multi Master mode if someone else is also using Multi Master mode in the same area they could take control of your flashes If this occurs simply change all your MX units to a different channel they must be all on the same channel restart your RX units and turn on a camera This will set all RX ...

Page 53: ...after the main yellow LED is steadily on Once you see the main Red LED blink you can release If set to X sync the Red LED blinks 3x slowly or is set to Shutter Release the Red LED blinks 5x quickly This same 5x blink will occur every time to turn on the unit to indicate it is set to Shutter Release This mode will remain active until you toggle it again restore the unit to defaults or load new firm...

Page 54: ... Red Pulse Red Orange Medium Green Slow Check Camera Alignment and Power Unit asleep Cycle power No sync with Master Check MX Unit Turn on units then Camera off on RX Green Group LED On MX Green Group LED On Camera Indicates Flash Ready Check Flash Battery Alignment and Power Restart MX device to resync Check Camera Settings Begin Shooting Yes Yes Yes No No No Red LED blink speed Check Flash Setti...

Page 55: ...Notes ...

Page 56: ...Notes ...