Photosniper goes digital

[Aanything]

Today I decided to backup all of my important files on my website's unlimited space. It's gonna be long, and, don't knowing what to do in the meantime, i tried to make my newly acquired photosniper kit trigger my dslr's shutter.
Incredibly, it worked at very first try.

My sony's remote control port are 3 metal pins, connecting all of them fires the shutter.
An old 3-pin cd-rom cable (actually it was 4 pin, but I ground off one) fits like charm:

Then i took the cable's opposite extremities, and fitted them in the metal part that triggers the shutter of the zenit es: it's a metal cylinder with a hinge coming up when the trigger is pressed, and it has two holes containing two screws.
I removed the screws and fitted the cable's contacts through the holes: the cables connected to the middle pin and the lens-side pin together through one hole, and the other pin-other cable through the other hole.
(Connecting the middle pin with the pin on the lcd side will result in having the shutter button always half pressed, that will exclude the menu keys:)

Then I anchored the metal contacts so that when the hinge comes up touches all of them, and the shutter fires.

Sadly I didn't take pictures, I really didn't expect it to work: but I have to improve it, both aesthetically and for solidity.
So hopefully I'll be able to post a better guide on how to do it.
In the meantime, if anybody has questions, please feel free to ask.

Shooting whit the photosniper now it's even more fun!

[DigiChromeEd]

I've often thought of buying a photosniper kit but I don't think it would be a good idea to step outside my front door carrying one, unless of course you have a deathwish!

[Aanything]

Oh, well, now that I live in the countryside it's not a problem: my neighbours live at 3 km from me, and surely go out whit rifles more often than I will do with the photosniper, so I won't probably alarm anyone .
On the other hand, thinking of going out with it when I was living in Milan is quite scary.

[fermy]

Shame that you didn't take pictures. I need a mechanical setup anyway for my E-PL1, but illustrated working electronic solution would be useful in any case, especially since yours looks to be very simple.

Luckily mainland Europe is much more relaxed than Britain or US. I paraded my sniper through the city center and favorite promenade and the only reaction it drew was curiosity.

[NewStuff]

I've done Similar with my Photosniper. I'll tidy it up a bit, and post some pics tomorrow.

I've used it in the town center, and I had an Old boy berating an overly enthusiastic police officer with it when he started giving me a hard time about it. I love the reaction it gets... once people realise You are not about to turn them into smithereens with a "missile", then they are really curious about using an old lens on a digital body, and one that looks like a "gun" is just awesome to most of the General Public I find.

Although living in NI, I don't think it would be the smartest thing in the world for DigiChromeEd to take that out in public without warning any local officers beforehand.

[SonicScot]

I'd be very interested to see how you rigged this up, congratulations on doing so.

[Aanything]

I have to buy a couple of things to make it more steady, now it's hold together by tape and gravity and it works for 10 shots then it needs to be readjusted.
As soon as I get what I need I'll post pics, it's really easy in theory.

[SonicScot]

[NewStuff]