How To Use A Remote Shutter With The Leica SL2 | Gear Talk

TL;DR Yes, you can wirelessly trigger the Leica SL2 with a little bit of a workaround. Use a Panasonic GH6 trigger with a 2.5mm to 3.5mm TRRS adaptor. Scroll to the bottom for links!

Intro

Don’t get me wrong the Leica SL2 is a phenomenal camera. The Leica build quality is the best I’ve experienced and the images it produces are stunning. With that being said, it is not perfect and it has some really odd and often frustrating quirks. Today’s blog topic and quirk of choice is the lack of a viable remote shutter release. I have deep-dived Google, dodged aggressive opinions on obscure camera forums and even tempted Quora Q&A’s to find a potential solution for this issue. And to my luck, I have succeeded! But before we get there let's talk a little bit about the problem at hand.

Leica SL2 Trigger Problems

As an architecture and interior design photographer I rely heavily on off-camera triggers for multiple reasons. The first reason (and probably most obvious) is to reduce camera shake when hitting the shutter. There is nothing worse than hitting the editing suite and realizing that the 10-second ambient long exposure is soft from camera shake. Now this can be addressed by using a 2-second timer which I usually do, but it inevitably adds extra time to the shoot and doesn't help with the second reason why I rely on off-camera triggers. 

The primary assistance a remote shutter release offers me is how it allows me to fire the camera when I’m at a distance that's impractical or impossible with a self-timer. I am always shuffling furniture, fluffing pillows, staging lights, setting up flags, and bouncing reflectors behind the scenes of my interior photographs. Without a trigger, I am forced to become a part-time professional speed walker as I briskly walk back and forth to adjust the scene and fire the SL2. Because most of my interior shots are composites of 3-10+ photos this becomes extremely tedious and time-consuming.

Let's say each shot I take I have to run back and forth once which takes 30 seconds in total. That's an average of about 240 seconds or 4 minutes per composition just spent speed walking. Now add that to a full-day photo shoot with 20 compositions, we're talking 80 minutes spent just transporting my finger to and from the shutter button. This reality adds up over time and can mean the difference between landing the shot and missing the perfect natural light. 

Solution A - Leica RC-SCL6

So you might say “Adrian just buy the Leica RC-SCL6 remote trigger and be done with it”. The thing is I don’t really want to spend $180 USD ($245 CAD plus shipping, Tax and import duties) on a little piece of Leica-branded plastic. This piece of plastic is also only solving my first problem. The primary issue with the RC-SCL6 is that its Stone Age wired technology erases my ability to fire the camera from more than a foot away. No good. 

Solution B - Leica Fotos App

So then you say “Adrian shut up, you know the Leica Fotos app allows remote camera control including firing the shutter. Just use that and stop complaining.”. And while I do agree with you (although you're acting a bit rude...) the Leica Fotos app is far from perfect. I’ll admit that the Leica Fotos app is the best I have personally used BUT it has one fatal flaw: reliability. 

As an architectural photographer, having reliable tools is essential. There is nothing worse than having to fiddle around with your iPhone while the sun is setting, your client is eyeballing you, and there are five other people on set slowly losing patience with you and your little camera app. I need to be able to make the shots efficiently, and reliably for the sake of time and professionalism. My client is putting their resources and often a lot of money into the shoot - I have to be damn sure that an app isn't going to get in the way. 

To top it off, you know those little $50 "Amazon Special" remote triggers that are made for every camera manufacturer? Yeah, they don’t make one for Leica of course. 

This trigger issue is so important to me that I was just about to say screw it and walk the plank off the Leica fanboy ship into the open waters of Canon, Fuji and Nikon (excuse the sea-faring metaphor). 

Now What? Story Time

All was lost. I was destined to live a life of power walking or ditching Leica entirely. Out of desperation, I decided to embark on a perilous journey through the most vile, terrifying, and time-sucking corner of the Internet: camera forums. As I dodged pixel-peeping reviews, Nikon hate threads and articles from 2007 teaching you how to edit HDR, I came across a hint of hope. It seemed like the Leica SL2 may in fact be compatible with some third-party remote triggers (kinda) - hallelujah!

So it turns out that the Leica SL2 and Panasonic Lumix share some internal components and functionality. But not all Panasonic accessories are compatible. What I did find is that the Panasonic GH6 and the Leica SL2 do share the same remote trigger signaling technology (also kinda...I’ll get to that soon). I needed to test this out. 

I went straight to Amazon to give Mr. Bezos my hard-earned money in exchange for a potential solution. I bought two different cheapo remote triggers (linked below) and patiently waited by the door like in a 2005 McCain Crescendo Rising Crust Pizza ad (minus the oven-light sunburn) for Fedex to deliver my newly found solution. 

The big day arrived and as soon as Santa...I mean Fedex… dropped off my order I ripped it open, loaded up some fresh AAA’s and plugged it into the SL2. That’s when tragedy struck. As I inputted the reciever's connection into the Leica SL2 I was met with a very unsatisfying jiggly loose non-connection. 

It turns out that Panasonic uses a 2.5mm jack input while Leica uses 3.5mm. Okay, not a problem - I went back to the Amazon jungle and foraged a 2.5mm to 3.5mm jack adaptor. This is it, It’s going to work! After 24 more hours waiting in front of the front door, the adaptor finally arrived. I again ripped open the package and dashed to my camera bag to take out the SL2 with the vigour of a 7-year-old on Christmas morning. I plug it into the camera…perfect it…and turn on the remote release. 

Here is the moment of truth. I press the remote shutter button. Silence. Deafening silence. I turn the camera and trigger off and back on again. Nothing. I dive through the settings on the SL2. Nothing. So I tried the second trigger I bought in hopes of a solution. Once again I’m met with crickets. Am I going to have to sell the SL2 after all? Over such a simple issue?? After I finish wiping my tears I head back to the World Wide Web for guidance. I traverse deeper into the dark forest of forums looking for a light at the end of the tunnel. Suddenly…I come across this beautiful and eloquent phrase, like Indiana Jones discovering the golden amulate in an ancient cave: Tip Ring Ring Sleeve.

Tip Ring Sleeve AKA TRS is the number of connection points on the tip of a jack connector. The most common is three, which is probably what you have plugged into your Silver 2012 Honda Civic’s AUX input. This is also the type of adaptor I purchased. It turns out there is another option with the appropriately named Tip Ring Ring Sleeve AKA TRRS. It turns out the extra "ring" in the "ring ring" in fact makes quite a difference. A TRRS jack connection has four contact points. You’ve probably seen it before if you own a pair of headphones with that little microphone and control buttons on the chord. So the Leics SL2 has a TRRS connection, not a TRS. Is this the golden ticket?

I head back to Mr. Bezos’s shop and make one final last-ditch effort purchase: A 2.5mm to 3.5mm TRRS adaptor. Success. Back to the door, I wait. 24 more anxious hours pass until I hear a fateful knock at the door. I greet the friendly postperson who has become an unexpected hero in my life recently, grab my package, and scurry back to the SL2. 

2.5mm TRRS receiver output (left) pictured next to the 3.5mm TRRS adaptor (right)

It’s time. It’s make or break baby. I tear open the TRRS adaptor in slow motion and plug it into the SL2. I then mount and attach the receiver and power up the transmitter. The camera is booted up and the moment of truth is upon me. Am I going to have to end my journey with the Leica SL2? Was this all for nothing? Should I speak to my therapist about this? I fatefully press the remote shutter button…

Few moments in life truly impact you. Your first kiss, the day you graduate university, your firstborn child….fixing a frustrating IT issue….

CLICK!

I scream in excitement, terrifying my cat and my partner Zoe. It’s a jubilant moment of chaos and triumph. I have done it. I have stolen the Declaration of Independence! Or at least I have solved a mid to mildly frustrating camera tech issue. BUT I HAVE DONE IT! I set my goals and I have achieved them! And best of all, both triggers work! This is a good day.

The set up in action

The Solution

So, here are the links to the products that I purchased (totally not sponsored, although I wish it were):

Trigger A: Pixel Pro DMW-RSL1 for Panasonic

Trigger B: PROfezzion PR-UN1 for Panasonic 

2.5mm - 3.5mm Adaptor: Venton 3.5mm to 2.5mm Adapter

That’s it, that’s all you need to make it happen. I hope I was able to help someone out there avoid the B.S. to get to this simple solution. If you found this article useful please let me know on Instagram @adrianstilesphoto

Until next time - Adrian