DSLR Remote Pro is a program that you install on your PC, that can control most of the features on your camera. Even the budget cameras such as the 350D, although you miss a few of the non-essential features on the smaller models, like selecting focus points DSLR Remote Pro still allows you to do things you would never be able to on the camera itself.

Here’s a few examples:

Auto bracketing more than 3 exposures. If you are doing HDRi this is very cool as you can create up to 9 exposures even though your camera itself can only do 3.

You can control:

• Exposure
• Aperture
• Exposure mode
• Metering mode
• ISO
• Flash compensation
• File type (RAW, jpeg/large/fine/medium etc..)
• White balance
• Color temperature
• Drive mode
• Auto focus mode

There’s also features that allows you to set your camera to take timed sequences. For example to create those cool animations of a flower opening, or dead easy stop motion.

If you have one of the newer Canon cameras with Live View, you can also do focus stacking. When working with macro photos the depth of field is very limited, less that one millimeter. With focus stacking you simply have DSLR Pro take a series of shots where the camera will change to focus every so slightly. That gives you a series of shots that when combined will have the whole subject in focus.

The coolest thing is that with your camera hooked up to DSLR Remote Pro, as soon as you snap a shot from the camera it will be immediately transferred to your PC and displayed on the screen. I have a notebook, and when I’m out shooting macro for example I have my camera hooked up so after taking a photo I can see it in full size a second after taking it, allowing me to see if my focus was dead on. It’s almost impossible to judge if your focus is dead on even on the larger 3″ screens of the 5D/1D.

I also do product photograhy and some portraits, and it’s so much better to just eyeball your modelling lights, shoot, and see the result in full resolution seconds later. No more constant removing flashcard and inserting into card reader dance, just fire and see exactly what you got. When working with a client and especially a model, the mode can see just how her posing works and instantly adjust to get a better angle, clients can see the image immidiately and tell you if it’s how they wanted it.

Setting up DSLR Remote pro couldn’t be easier. Make sure you have installed the Canon WIA driver (Get it for free at the Canon sites), go into your camera menu and select “PC Connection” somewhere in the menus. Connect a USB cable to the camera and fire up DSLR Remote Pro and hit F8 to take a shot.

This is also a very simple way of teaching new photografers what things like exposure values, apertures, ISO, white balance, and so on does to the photo. Just put your camera on a tripod, focus on a subject and adjust things from DSLR Remote Pro and students can see immidiately what happens to the photo, hands on to the max. Now, if only lightroom could auto import from nested folders then DLSR Remote Pro would be a perfect marriage with lightroom.