| The Nikon WT-4 Wireless/Wired Remote Control: Overview and Installation |
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Introduction These notes are to supplement the Nikon WT-4 manual with a few first-hand experiences and insights along with an abbreviated installation guide. The principle subject here is installation and use in "PC" mode with the WT-4 connecting wirelessly. I have personally done/tested everything described here. Both infrastructure and ad hoc communication methods are dealt with. Most of the setup procedure is common to the two methods. The notes are based on infrastructure with ad hoc differences specifically noted. The Operating System is Windows XP. In infrastructure mode, communication between computer and the WT-4 takes place by means of a wireless access point on a LAN with the computer operating either wired or wirelessly. Infrastructure is liable to be the preferred connection when in vicinity of your home or office LAN. Ad hoc networking exists when communication takes place directly between the WT-4 and the wireless connection of a computer (typically a laptop). This will be the connection required when out of range of your LAN. The WT-4 transceiver is an excellent if outrageously priced accessory providing the D3/D300 (hereafter referred to simply as the "camera") owner comprehensive remote control in conjunction with the additional rather pricey "Camera Control Pro 2" software. About the only thing important you can't do remotely is operate the manual zoom ring on a lens. In all fairness, while bemoaning the high price, the WT-4 does provide a highly reliable and useful performance so Nikon would probably argue it is a case of getting what you pay for. The WT-4 uses the same battery as the camera which means you might not have to buy a battery but can use one of your spares. This is the only concession to economy made by the system. If you don't have a spare battery be prepared to shell out another $80. Your wallet should then have plenty of room for moths. The WT-4 will not work with other recent Nikon cameras such as the D80. You have to purchase the WT-3 which costs almost as much as the WT-4. What I think of this is unsuitable for print. Installation and use are really quite straightforward. The notes and other information here include clarifications and mention of several peculiarities and other interesting items useful to know about but not found in the manual. The manual is quite comprehensive, however, and includes configuration of a LAN from scratch. It is assumed here you already have a functioning LAN with a wireless access point, which could be a router incorporating a switch and wireless access point (a very common configuration these days). Notes are based on my own LAN system which is set up as follows:
The steps to take in setting up for infrastructure and ad hoc communications modes are identical except where specifically noted. Preparing the Computer(s) and Network Page 5, instruction manual: This could easily be overlooked. The WT-4 needs access to TCP ports 20/21 for ftp (not discussed here) plus TCP port 15740 and UDP port 5353 for PC mode (discussed here). Most virus checkers include firewalls which, like Windows firewall, are activated by default. It's common to find more than one firewall inadvertently active on a computer. This makes no sense and you should eliminate the redundancy, then enable those ports on the remaining firewall on each computer you intend using with the WT-4. Alternatively, if you are already behind a firewall in your gateway router, simply turn off the computer firewalls unless you are really obsessed with "belt and suspenders" security. The firewall provided by your gateway router (if you are using one) to the Internet does not require any re-configuration. If opening those ports raises a security concern, enable MAC filtering in the firewall, as described in the manual. This restricts port access to a unique device (your WT-4). This precaution should be necessary only when using an ad hoc wireless network consideration. The manual informs you the WT-4 is not accessible from other networks reached by means of a router. This is slightly misleading. You can access the WT-4 from anywhere within your LAN even if independent branches of it are connected through a router (such as in my situation). I think what they mean is that you cannot access the WT-4 from beyond your gateway out there on the Internet in the way you might a webcam. The camera and the WT-4 will, however, be locally accessible anywhere within your LAN. This access limitation could easily be overcome by using something like VNC or PCAnywhere and then operating the WT-4 host computer from any location on the planet having Internet access. Infrastructure setup only: Before doing anything always ensure your computer is actually talking to the LAN. You can test this by trying to access Google or another machine on the LAN. Speaking from experience, it can be very frustrating if the connection surreptitiously dropped and there you are trying to get the WT-4 to work, wondering why it will not connect. Any time you have a connection problem, do this test before trying anything else. Infrastructure and Ad Hoc: On a couple of occasions my WUSB300N wireless adapter has mysteriously lost contact with the wireless access point when disconnecting the camera following a profile setup. The connection is easily restored by unplugging the WUSB300N from its USB socket on the computer, then plugging it in again - a very minor glitch but possibly worth knowing about. This is almost certainly a hiccup having to do with the wireless adapter and not the WT-4 system.
Installing the Software This is perfectly straightforward. You need the WT-4 Installation Wizard and Camera Control Pro 2. You will have to install a copy of the Wizard and Camera Control on each computer you intend using for wireless control of the camera with the WT-4.
Preparing the Camera Go into the camera setup menu for USB and select MTP/PTP. If you don't do this the WT-4 can't connect to the camera. (For subsequent drag and drop of images in conventional use of the camera you will have to go back into the menu and reset USB to the mass storage option.) Images are automatically downloaded to the computer when the WT-4 is used. The image destination is set in Control Pro2. You will read frequent advice in the manual to turn the camera off when relocating the USB plug, attaching the WT-4 etc. I have not found this necessary. "Hot plugging" is a feature of the USB interface and normally does not cause any problems.
Installation Connect the camera to the computer USB port and turn it on. Start the WT-4 Wizard. The Wizard cannot proceed unless it finds the camera. The manual doesn't tell you this but right about now (first session only) Windows will want to install some camera drivers. Just follow the prompts after disabling the Internet search option on the first screen the driver wizard shows you. When the drivers are in, continue with the WT-4 Wizard. It is not necessary to re-boot when finished. The manual suggests you must use a primary USB port (not a port on a hub). I have found this precaution unnecessary so, perhaps, it is a matter of who made the hub, whether or not it is powered, etc. Use what's most convenient. If that's a hub and there seem to be connection problems, locate a primary port and use that. You must now prepare profiles for your connection using the WT-4 Wizard. The camera can store a maximum of nine profiles, which should be plenty. Ensure the camera is still connected and powered on. Choose the "Manual" process so you know exactly what you are getting. This is easy. Fill in the SSID of the existing wireless access point you will be accessing (infrastructure only) and the encryption code. For infrastructure, channel will be automatically found. For infrastructure mode, select "infrastructure", of course. An interesting aspect of profiles is that there is no place to identify the computer you will be connecting to - only the network. A profile provides for a connection between the WT-4 transceiver and a specific computer and network ... the computer on which the profile was prepared . This applies to both infrastructure and ad hoc modes. These access parameters cannot be changed remotely at the camera while trying to connect. What this means is that for each computer on the LAN you intend using with the WT-4 you must build a profile using that computer and with the camera connected to a USB port on that computer. The profiles are almost trivially simple to set up but if you want to use the WT-4 with more than one computer, be sure to document the computer used to prepare each profile in the profile name, along with wireless network access point SSID and access mode (infrastructure or ad hoc). For example: "HP_INFRA_WNET1" if you want to connect by way of the HP laptop (in my case) using infrastructure mode to my WNET1 wireless network. When a profile is completed it is automatically uploaded to the camera. Later, when using the camera remotely, you will use the "Wireless" camera menu option to choose a profile for the computer/network combination you want to use. There does not seem to be any way to save profiles on your computer so if a profile in the camera disappears or is deleted you will have to make a new one. This is so easy to do it is unlikely ever to prove inconvenient. Furthermore, why should a profile disappear anyway?
Installation (Ad Hoc notes) Same as for infrastructure with the following important exceptions and observations:
Use
When you take a picture from the keyboard it is automatically downloaded to a default location on the computer unless you use the Control Pro option to identify a preferred target. If you subsequently want to control the camera from a different computer on the LAN, simply select the appropriate profile from the camera menu. You will have to run out to the camera to do this. Most users will employ only one computer so this really is a non-issue. Keep in mind the slightly difference between infrastructure/ad-hoc connection protocols. The WT-4 is a remarkably robust performer and works flawlessly over a considerable distance. Having all this control without wires is addictive and affords opportunities for photography impossible by other means. I have not encountered any problems at all, the cost of this product being the only source of lingering irritation.
Use (Ad Hoc notes) You obviously will not need to check LAN connectivity because the LAN isn't being used. Getting things started is simply the reverse of establishing an infrastructure connection where you load an infrastructure profile and the WT-4 immediately begins looking for the SSID broadcast by your wireless access point, then connects. For ad hoc connection, load your ad hoc profile from the camera as you might for infrastructure but ... it is now the WT-4 that begins broadcasting a network SSID (as if it were a wireless access point which, in a way, it is). Run back to the computer and in "Wireless Connections/View Wireless Connections" look for the SSID of the ad hoc connection being broadcast by the WT-4. It should be there. Wait half a minute if it isn't (remembering to refresh the network list frequently). Connect to that SSID as you would to any other. Be patient. For some reason ad hoc takes significantly longer to connect than infrastructure. Other systems may differ. Give it a couple of minutes at least even if nothing seems to be happening. The essential difference between ad hoc and infrastructure is role reversal. In infrastructure the LAN wireless access point does the SSID broadcasting and the WT-4 looks for that SSID, then the computer, from information in its infrastructure profile. In ad hoc, the computer looks directly for the WT-4 when you choose the SSID the WT-4 is broadcasting and the LAN access point is not involved. In both communication modes you can use the same wireless connection configured on the computer. It does not have to be a special ad hoc variety. An existing infrastructure connection will work for both methods. This is probably because the WT-4's networking is somewhat specialized ... the computer must look for it but it, in turn, will never look for the computer. So, the fact the computer (being in infrastructure mode) is not broadcasting an SSID is irrelevant. Maybe they should call it ad hoc "lite". It could be useful to know the laptop will simultaneously support more than one wireless adapter. You could, for example be controlling the camera ad hoc remotely off the built-in adapter while doing something in infrastructure mode on the LAN by means of a USB adapter like the WUSB300N.
General Network Issues Networking - and wireless especially - comes with a few surprises. You may occasionally find after switching USB ports, going back and forth between ad hoc and infrastructure modes and general mucking around that wireless network access doesn't work quite the way it did before, including dropped connections, difficulty in reconnecting to the Internet (or camera) etc. There is no single way to deal with these glitches but consider trying things in the list below. Some of this is pretty desperate and a good deal of it has to do with USB attached wireless adapters which can prove especially finicky - but that's how networking is. Grab your lucky rabbit's foot and ...
Outright hardware failure is extremely rare but it does happen. In my experience routers are the most likely to develop a permanent problem but that may just have been luck of the draw. There are often firmware updates for routers and other network products. There's a chance an upgrade could help you with an apparently malfunctioning unit.
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