Canon Cameras
Canon DSLR and Mirrorless Camera Support
IOC Snapshot supports compatible Canon DSLR and mirrorless cameras over Wi-Fi.
There are currently two different Canon Wi-Fi connection methods available:
- Canon CCAPI – Recommended for newer Canon cameras that support Canon’s Camera Control API.
- Canon EOS Wi-Fi – Compatible Canon EOS cameras can use the standard Canon EOS Utility-assisted connection, or our new experimental direct EOS Wi-Fi connection using Canon’s EOS/EDSDK communication instead of CCAPI.
If your camera supports Canon CCAPI, we recommend using CCAPI. If your Canon EOS camera does not support CCAPI, you can use the standard Canon EOS Utility-assisted connection or try our experimental direct Canon EOS Wi-Fi connection.
What Is the Difference Between Canon CCAPI and Canon EOS?
Canon CCAPI is Canon’s newer Camera Control API. The camera connects to your existing office Wi-Fi network and IOC Snapshot communicates with the camera over the network. This is our preferred Canon connection method when the camera supports it.
Canon EOS Wi-Fi uses Canon’s EOS/EDSDK communication instead of CCAPI. Compatible cameras can use Canon EOS Utility to handle the Wi-Fi pairing and connection, or they can use our new experimental direct EOS Wi-Fi connection without EOS Utility maintaining the connection.
Option 1: Canon CCAPI
Use this method if your Canon camera supports CCAPI.
With CCAPI, your Canon camera connects to the same private Wi-Fi network as the computer running IOC Snapshot. IOC Snapshot then automatically discovers the camera and receives photographs over the network.
Before attempting to use the camera inside IOC Snapshot, we recommend testing the camera with the included Canon CCAPI Receiver application.
The Canon CCAPI Receiver lets you verify that:
- The camera is connected to the correct Wi-Fi network.
- The computer can discover the camera.
- Authentication is configured correctly if you enabled it.
- Photographs can successfully transfer from the camera to the computer.
Once you can successfully take a photograph and receive it in Canon CCAPI Receiver, the camera is ready to be used with IOC Snapshot.
Watch the Canon CCAPI setup video:
If your supported Canon camera does not show the Camera Control API option, Canon’s CCAPI Activation Tool may need to be run once while the camera is connected to the computer with a USB cable.
Download the Canon CCAPI Activation Tool
Normally IOC Snapshot will automatically discover the camera. If your network blocks multicast or SSDP discovery, the Canon CCAPI Receiver and DSLR Settings applications also allow you to manually specify the camera’s CCAPI URL.
If you manually specify the camera address, we recommend assigning the camera a static or reserved IP address so that the address does not change.
Option 2: Canon EOS Wi-Fi
Use this method for compatible Canon EOS cameras that do not support CCAPI.
Canon EOS Wi-Fi uses Canon’s EOS/EDSDK technology rather than the newer CCAPI interface. There are two ways to use an EOS Wi-Fi camera with IOC Snapshot.
EOS Utility Assisted uses Canon’s normal EOS Utility software to pair the camera with the computer and make the camera available to IOC Snapshot. This is the standard, non-experimental EOS connection method.
Direct EOS Wi-Fi is our new experimental mode. IOC Snapshot communicates directly with the camera using Canon’s EOS/EDSDK technology and does not require Canon EOS Utility to maintain the connection.
If you prefer the established Canon workflow, use EOS Utility Assisted mode. If you would like to avoid having Canon EOS Utility manage the active connection, you can try our experimental Direct EOS Wi-Fi mode.
When using Direct EOS Wi-Fi, the camera must first be paired with the computer. Once the initial pairing is complete, IOC Snapshot stores the pairing information and can reconnect to the camera using the same computer.
The saved pairing information can also be copied to another computer. When the second computer uses the same pairing information, the Canon camera recognizes it as an already-paired connection and can reconnect automatically without requiring the complete pairing process again.
This can be especially useful in an office with multiple operatories or when replacing a computer, since the existing Canon pairing can be transferred instead of pairing the camera from scratch again.
Before attempting to use the experimental Direct EOS Wi-Fi connection inside IOC Snapshot, test it with the included Canon EOS Receiver application.
The Canon EOS Receiver allows you to complete the direct pairing process and verify that the camera can connect and transfer photographs successfully.
Once you can successfully take a photograph and receive it in Canon EOS Receiver, the experimental Direct EOS Wi-Fi connection is ready to be used with IOC Snapshot.
Watch the Experimental Canon EOS Wi-Fi setup video:
The video also explains how the saved Canon pairing information can be transferred to another computer so that the additional computer can connect using the existing camera pairing.
Please remember: Direct Canon EOS Wi-Fi support is currently experimental. Canon EOS Utility Assisted mode is also available and is not experimental. We have tested the direct connection technology with compatible cameras, but Canon camera models and firmware versions can behave differently. If your camera supports CCAPI, we recommend using CCAPI instead.
Using Your Canon Camera with IOC Snapshot
After successfully testing your camera with either Canon CCAPI Receiver or Canon EOS Receiver, open the DSLR Settings application included with IOC Snapshot and select the appropriate Canon connection.
Then open IOC Snapshot Twain Driver or other program (Dexis Snapshot or VixWin Snapshot for example) and click the Phone/DSLR button. This is the same button used for supported iPhone, Android, Nikon, Sony and Canon camera connections.
When the Canon camera is connected and ready, the Phone/DSLR button will turn green indicating that the camera is available.
Take photographs normally using the shutter button on the camera. IOC Snapshot will receive the photographs and import them into your imaging session.
Which Canon Connection Should I Use?
- My camera supports Canon CCAPI: Use Canon CCAPI.
- My camera does not support CCAPI but is a compatible Canon EOS camera: Use EOS Utility Assisted mode, or try Experimental Direct EOS Wi-Fi.
- I prefer a wired connection: Compatible Canon EOS\CCAPI cameras can also continue to use Canon EDSDK over USB.
Canon maintains a list of cameras that support CCAPI here:
Canon also maintains an EDSDK compatibility list for EOS cameras:
A Simple Troubleshooting Rule
If the camera does not work inside IOC Snapshot, first go back to the appropriate standalone test application:
- CCAPI camera: Test with Canon CCAPI Receiver.
- EOS camera: Test with Canon EOS Receiver.
If the camera can successfully transfer a photograph using the standalone receiver, then you know the camera, computer and network connection are working before troubleshooting your dental imaging software. Only 1 computer can use a camera at a time!