Saving camera settings to computer?

Is there any kind of utility that will allow you to list/print/save/restor​e the settings on Canon cameras? I know you can save/recall them using the custom mode dial settings, but is there any to save/document them externally?

In the canon world the eos utility is the interface to the camera. I checked the eos utility manual and while there are options for setting shooting preferences there does not seem to be any way to save or restore camera settings and defaults.

Maybe there is a third-party utility out there, but I don't know of it.

Thanks. The EOS Utility was my first thought as well, but I didn't see the kind of functionality I was wondering about. And Canon may not even expose enough of their cameras' object models for a 3rd party to write such a program. IDK

You can on the 1d series, at least the last few models.

Yes, but only them.
With a 7D, for example, you can save the flash settings to the computer and you can do the same with settings for the WFT-E5, but that's all.

The Canon 1DMkIV has the ability to save its settings to the memory card. Go to http://www.youtube.com​/watch?v=DoVCSCjSKl8 for the Canon tutorial that covers how-to-do. Unfortunately, I'm not aware of any other models that havethe capability.

If the process of writing them to the card, then putting them on the computer for storage, then having to take the card back to the computer at a later date to retrieve them, then having the camera read them off the card is not too much trouble, why not just use a pencil and a piece of paper? At least that way you can carry them in your bag, without the need of a computer.

In the early days of the space race several American test pilots were injured during super-sonic ejections because the sudden blast of a 600+ MPH wind snapped their heads backwards. The US Government spent HUGE sums of money developing a more aerodynamic helmet. The Soviets drilled a few holes in the back of the helmet.

The race to put a man on the moon occurred before portable computers came along. Astronauts had to write things down. During the race to get a man on the moon, NASA spent millions of tax-payer's dollars trying to develop a ball-point pen that would write in a zero-G environment. The Soviets gave their cosmonauts a pencil.

Sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

Or not have an abundance of money.

Personally I think the value of saving camera settings to the memory card is there only as long as you use that storage to read them back from the memory card again, not if you take the tour over to the computer as well.
I use the method myself to save network setups for my WFT-E5B, since the WFT can hold five setups internally, but sometimes I move around among more locations than that. Then it's good to have a previous setup stored under a file name on the card.

apersson850 wrote in post #14834704
Or not have an abundance of money.

Personally I think the value of saving camera settings to the memory card is there only as long as you use that storage to read them back from the memory card again, not if you take the tour over to the computer as well.
I use the method myself to save network setups for my WFT-E5B, since the WFT can hold five setups internally, but sometimes I move around among more locations than that. Then it's good to have a previous setup stored under a file name on the card.

I agree. Storing them on the card would be very convenient on my 60D, it only has 1 C setting. Moving everything to the computer seems a bridge too far.

TSchrief wrote in post #14834674
If the process of writing them to the card, then putting them on the computer for storage, then having to take the card back to the computer at a later date to retrieve them, then having the camera read them off the card is not too much trouble, why not just use a pencil and a piece of paper? At least that way you can carry them in your bag, without the need of a computer.

Or you could copy settings to all your memory cards and never be without them, and never have to enter them manually again.

TSchrief wrote in post #14834674
The race to put a man on the moon occurred before portable computers came along. Astronauts had to write things down. During the race to get a man on the moon, NASA spent millions of tax-payer's dollars trying to develop a ball-point pen that would write in a zero-G environment. The Soviets gave their cosmonauts a pencil.

Sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

Sometimes you don't want graphite floating around inside your spaceship or flammable tools being used. But you use them anyway until Fisher Pen Co. funds their own AG-7 pen research and provides it to NASA at retail prices.

Classic Internet mythology.

Interestingly, the Focal software saves camera settings before setting it how it wants, then restores them. It leads me to believe that through the SDK you could probably access and store a lot of settings. I wonder how complete the list is? No idea, but food for thought.

I created tables in a Word document to save the settings in C1, C2, and C3 in both my 7D and 5DIII. Filling out the table really makes you think about some of the AF settings. For me C1 is landscape defaults with mirror lockup and 2 second timer (assumes camera is on tripod), C1 is wildlife, and C3 is fast wildlife such as birds in flight. I am very glad we can save those use cases.

TSchrief wrote in post #14834674
.....In the early days of the space race several American test pilots were injured during super-sonic ejections because the sudden blast of a 600+ MPH wind snapped their heads backwards. The US Government spent HUGE sums of money developing a more aerodynamic helmet. The Soviets drilled a few holes in the back of the helmet.

The race to put a man on the moon occurred before portable computers came along. Astronauts had to write things down. During the race to get a man on the moon, NASA spent millions of tax-payer's dollars trying to develop a ball-point pen that would write in a zero-G environment. The Soviets gave their cosmonauts a pencil.

Sometimes it pays to think outside the box.

True or not these are great stories... going to remember these for a office staff meeting sometime.....

Thanks!

I always try to use false historical accounts to prove points in meetings, it does so much for general corporate direction!

For reference though so we are a bit more educated on this: http://www.snopes.com/​business/genius/spacep​en.asp

A good story, true or not, makes a point. That is all I was trying to do. I can see saving settings to the card. That makes sense. If you have to go through the trek back and forth to the computer, it would be easier to write them down. Setting up a camera is not - wait for it... - rocket science. Sometimes it pays to think about WHAT you want to accomplish. Default is not always the best option.