GP-E2, Rebel T5 Compatibility, and things that don't go bump in the night

[markhail]

I have come into possession of a Rebel T5 from an estate. The previous owner used it to take pictures while he was hiking in GSMNP, Dupont Forest, the BRP, etc. but many of the pictures are of the "Nice. But where is that?" variety. So I got an idea to get the GP-E2, and heck followed after. I bought one from KEH.

1. The GP-E2 had no cables . However, a standard USB A to mini-USB allows me to (theoretically) upgrade the firmware and run the Log Utility to pull off GPS log data which I get by putting the GPS in my pocket and walking around. So it works that much at firmware 2.02 .

2. The T5 is at 1.02 firmware. It shows the "GPS device settings" menu item, but selecting that says "This menu cannot be displayed/GPS unit is not connected"

3. However, when I try to tweak the flash settings to see if there's some oddball stuff there, the T5 says it can't do that because there is a non-flash accessory in the hot shoe.

So, there are several alternatives -- maybe.

1. Perhaps it's that the T5 doesn't really support the GP-E2. The documentation stands firmly on both sides of that question. Option a would be to buy a used T5i (cheap, but most of my equipment is Pentax so I'm trying to not to get sucked down the more expensive rabbit hole) IF that supports the GP-E2. The doc says yes, but.

(I have the GPS logging thing for my Pentax equipment but the calibration sequence is a PITA and the GPS comes and goes on a K5. It seems to work better on the K-r but we drop to 12mp, which may be irrelevant as I don't blow anything up to bigger than 8x10. That's a whole nother discussion which I can avoid for now.)

2. Option b is to buy a Solmeta unit which says that it supports the T5. (GMAx-EOS2) Availability is the thing, as it's hard to find a source. If it is the hot shoe on the T5, then that could end up being another dust attractor.

3. I could validate which part of the link is screwed up. Taking the GP-E2 to a big box store and asking if I might test it on a Canon DSLR would maybe satisfy whether it's a GP-E2 issue or a T5 issue. How to validate the T5 is trickier as there is no flash unit with the camera. The behavior when playing with the flash settings suggests that the camera at least sees something ....

4. I could look for another, validated-to-work GP-E2 with the magic cable(s) [ plus perhaps a converter thing for the camera side].

5. I could try to get the pinning requirements and synthesize a cable. I will be saving swear words as preparation. The connector into the GP-E2 is the tricky part and a bit of a search on Grainger doesn't show anything, so this might involve visiting electrical supply houses. Possibly one of the legendary OTG USB cables might work ?

6. I could do the maximally inconvenient thing and put the GP-E2 into logging mode in my pocket and let it collect log data while hiking, and then use exiftool / jhead to tweak dates and times on the computer to see if I can then append GPS information. Not being a Luddite, this is really the court of last resort (I believe I need a current version of Lightroom to make this work, or perhaps the Canon image software ).

I'll take any useful hints.

[jrhoffman75]

As a previous owner of a GP-E2 I can assure you that none of those options will work.

The cable that plugs into the GPS unit has the physical shape of a Mini-USB but the terminal configuration inside is different. It has five terminal connectors at the bottom of the plug.

You could try calling Canon parts and see if they sell the item as a replacement part.

[markhail]

CablesOnline had a 1 ft version which is slightly less likely to inadvertently catch on my glasses.

The original test cable looked like this:

[jrhoffman75]

The GP-E2 cable has a piece of white plastic at the bottom (like a shim raising up the contacts, and I think there were five contacts. It's been a while since I had mine, but I did take a photo to send to someone.

I am still confused on how you plan to use the GPS and the photos on the camera to find where the photos were taken.

[markhail]

The kmz file that gets downloaded from the GP-E2 has location information that will map my route to Google Maps.

However, there's no time information in it. This makes it impossible to sync with the pictures. Now I need to go read my Garmin Oregon 700 manual to see if it will produce a correct file.

[jrhoffman75]

OK, now I think I understand. You are going to hike a route, find the same location that shows on the Rebel T5 and mark a GPS location?

If so, why not just take a cellphone snap; that will embed the GPS info.

[jrhoffman75]

I’m confused on how you plan to use the T5 and the GP-E2 to identify where the images were taken.

[markhail]

Ah. Well...the whole line of discussion in the photo.stackexchange thread suggested that GPicSync1 and GPSBabel were options along with an $80 piece of software that would let me sort of match the log (fuzzily) with the dates on the pictures. THe (relatively) easiest option was something called GeoSetter, which makes use of both GPSBabel and ExifTool to rummage through the pictures. If I had time data in the logs from the GP-E2, this might have worked.

[markhail]

So, the call to Canon support. No, you can't get the CG2-3379-000 cable except if you're lucky enough to find someone who has one overnighting in a desk drawer somewhere in Europe . Still pondering the wisdom/stupidity of that.

The B&H option might not have the proper connector for the GP-E2 as Mr. Hoffman has graciously shown; if it did, then maybe, if I got a USB-C to mini-USB connector to fit into the T5 and IF this still sent the proper signal through, it might work. I'd probably need a site visit to B&H for this.

Plan B. Apparently if I could win a 7D in a lottery or find one in a pawnshop cheaply priced, the GP-E2 is supposed to work in the hot shoe . The entry seems to be around $300 for a used body at B&H, and we're starting to throw more good money after bad.

Plan C. Get a Canon point-and-shoot with GPS capability built in. I have a 280 from that estate which will collect GPS data and log it. The log data includes TOD (in GMT, so some gentle hammer persuasion may be required) but then maybe I could run a suitably formatted log through GeoSetter and get the information appended to the pictures. It would not be as nice as the O-GPS2 which has the compass direction (which direction you took the picture in) due to the multi-step process but it's better than where I am right now. I think it's slightly easier to get the logs off that than off the Oregon 700 .

In summary, then. You need a relatively recent Canon body , a relatively healthy bank account to get the GP-E2 to work as easily as the Pentax O-GPS2. There's probably tedious solutions available but it is what it is. I'm thinnking i might harass the place that sold me the GP-E2 given the support/lack of issues, but it's probably a lost cause to do so.

[jrhoffman75]

Can't you just use a cell phone then? Most will tag photos with GPS.

Many relative recent Canon bodies have GPS anyway.

I just saw on Keh that they have a GP-E2 with the 1.5M cable. If you are committed to using the T5 give them a call, complain that they sent you the GPS w/o the cables and see about getting the other one.

Forget anything about the USB-C. Sounds like you were already able to connect the GPS to your computer which was USB-A. Why get a USB-C cable and then convert it to USB-A?

[markhail]

The GP-E2 works in the hot shoe of a T5i.   The T5 fired a flash mounted in the hot shoe, so my conclusion is buy the T5i