D200 Wireless Grip WT-3

[Oz_Beachside]

Hello,

Just been to an amazing camera and electronics shop, called Yodobashi, in Tokyo. Its amazing. Great beacuase Nikon things are in stock, and many are very cheap.

Picked up the WT-3. Its a vertical grip for the D200 (similar to the MB-D200), with wireless file transmission built in.

VERY IMPRESSED. Why? Because the MB-D200 was designed to sell D2xs's to those that want a vertical grip. By that, I am refering to my disatisfaction with the feel of the battery door (under right thumb) makes it feel like a piece of rubbish, while the rest of the MB-D200 grip is very nice build.

THe WT-3 fixed the ergonomic failures of the MB-D200. THe door, since its only a single door, is similar to the D200 standard battery door. Made of the same strong plastic as the D200 body. Not flimsy like the afterthought on the MB-D200.

Of course, with this improvenet, comes a cost. Its only a single battery, so if you need the grip for the battery life, stick with the barn-doored MB-D200. If you want D2xs vertical grip feel (well, nearly, but lets apply some cost benefit rational here), the WT-3 is WONDERFUL.

Oh, yes, it also transfers files wirelessly, so in a studio setup, this will save file transfer time, allow me to preview directly on my PC (doing away with the LCD on the camera), giving me instant (within moderate transfer time) feedback, to adjust my exposure, light position etc... This would also render multiple CF cards redundant for this scenario.

I hope to have this running in the Melbourne Portraiture Lighting workshop, June 10.

Ergonomics:
MB-D200 7/10 (functional, solid, but mediocre)
WT-3 9.5/10 (great, but room for improvement, well, ... there has to be some differential to the D2xs as 3 times the price of a D200...)

will update this once I have had a try out on the technical file transmission etc...

[Alpha_7]

Sounds like your wrapt with your new purchase, I haven't got a battery grip myself to know about the flimy door feeling but I'd be disappointed shelling out the money to find parts of it dodgey. I think I can continue to live without the vertical grip.

Thanks for the review.

[ozimax]

Ah, Yodabashi Camera, been there many times, but Sapporo store, not Tokyo. What an experience, floors and floors of electronic stuff, much of which we never see in Australia.

I still have my Panasonic CD player, purchased in Sapporo in 1996. This unit has circled the globe and is still in pristine working order.

Japan is an amazing place alright. Have you had a hot can of coffee from a vending machine yet?

Ozi.

[padey]

I look forward to a review once you get back.

[Oz_Beachside]

a great addition to an S5!

I'll post some more feedback once I have obtained the non japanese instal instructions....

[fishafotos]

They are awesome little devices. If you don't mind me asking, what did you pay for it? I have seen them in London but they were around 400 pounds, which is $1,000 AU.
I wish they made one for the D80... Not that I could afford it!

[Oz_Beachside]

They are awesome little devices. If you don't mind me asking, what did you pay for it? I have seen them in London but they were around 400 pounds, which is $1,000 AU.
I wish they made one for the D80... Not that I could afford it!

Nikon Australia had one attached to the D200, on one of the large lenses, maybe the 200-400 VR.

They said they had just arrived (demo stock), and expected them to retail for around $850.

THey first asked 80,000 JPY, discounted to 76,000 JPY, cost me $757 AUD. I know these will be cheaper when they get to HK, but thought i'd get one while had it in my hands.

[tasadam]

Is there any truth to the thought that the WT-3 cn be used as a wireless shutter trigger? If so, how, and what transmitter do you need to do it? Hopefully NOT a wireless laptop...

[Oz_Beachside]

Is there any truth to the thought that the WT-3 cn be used as a wireless shutter trigger? If so, how, and what transmitter do you need to do it? Hopefully NOT a wireless laptop...

Yes, and Yes, I think!

Since I bought mine in Japan, my manual is Japanese...

I read that you can trigger camera functions from the computer, and send to the camera, to take pics (and change some soft settings). Within the context of those features, yes, it would require a PC to trigger via that software.

As far as a simple trigger goes, um, dont know. The trigger on a D200 normally is made via the 10 min connector, but somehting may be possible via the WT-3 as it plugs into the USB socket.

I'll post more if I see it in my travels.

[Oz_Beachside]

wow, its been sitting on my desk for 3 months, and now just got the Fu*&^%#@$ing thing to work!!!

if you are not an IT network engineer, not recommened. FTP/PTP/IP/MAC are all foreign to me, so it was most definitely not the plug and play experience I was hoping for.

happy to report, that can now send files to my PC via wireless

transfer for 2mb JPG, about 10 seconds, and for 15mb NEF, about 15 seconds. Both while writting to CF card also.

Now just need to work out how to get the files to pop up on the screen so I can see them while working in a studio environment.

any ideas?

the nikon guys at PMA said I need Capture NX or similar???

[Kyle]

Yep, capture NX or even C1 Pro will do it for you

Good to hear you finally got it working

[Oz_Beachside]

Yep, capture NX or even C1 Pro will do it for you

Good to hear you finally got it working

thanks Kyle. Is C1 Pro, a nikon product?

also, do you know if adobe make something within photoshop?

[seeto.centric]

Oz,
its not a nikon product. its made by Phase One.
i believe that sandisk extreme 3/4 cards should come with a complementary copy of the LE version of C1 (capture one).

-j

[beetleboy]

In my experience (haven't tried it for a while) C1 won't actually "pop-up" pics that are loaded into a folder. In order to get your pics to appear you need to switch to another app and then back again so that C1 refreshes. Bloody annoying. It's not designed to work tethered with Nikon's at all.

Not a big deal tho cos it's a bloody frustrating program to use; no shortcut keys (for anything useful anyway) and the image adjustments are very limited. The last part is a real pity cos when you do get things working in C1 it produces beautiful files.

[Oz_Beachside]

I am happy with CS2 for PP.

Just want some way to shoot tethered, and have the files pop up with no user interaction (just shoot, wait 10-20secs, and view from a distance).

Is Nikon Capture the only option?

[MCWB]

I think Bibble can do this as well?

[beetleboy]

Yes bibble can but it's as slow as a goat on go-slow drugs? I don't know, was a slow day at work and I'm struggling to English speak good.