Camera not detected or disconnecting

Almost every connection problem comes down to one of a handful of causes. Work through the steps in order — most people are shooting again by step 3.

The app shows No Camera Connected

1. Wake the camera

Make sure the camera is switched on and awake. If it has powered itself off to save the battery, press the shutter button halfway to wake it. A nearly flat battery can also stop the camera from talking to the Mac — swap in a charged one.

2. Quit other apps that use the camera

Only one app at a time can control a camera over USB. Quit any other tethering, camera-control or photo-import app — including Photos and Image Capture, which macOS may open by itself when a camera is plugged in. Then turn the camera off and on again.

3. Stop Image Capture from grabbing the camera

If Photos or Image Capture keep opening whenever you connect the camera, tell macOS not to open anything:

1. Connect the camera and turn it on.
2. Open Image Capture from the Applications folder and select your camera in the sidebar.
3. At the bottom of the window, set Connecting this camera opens to No application.
4. Quit Image Capture, then turn the camera off and on again.

macOS remembers this per USB port. If you later plug the camera into a different port and the problem comes back, repeat these steps.

4. Check the cable and the port

• Push the plug all the way in at both ends — a half-inserted plug is a classic cause of dropouts.
• Use a data cable, ideally the one that came with the camera. Many cheap USB-C cables only charge.
• Plug straight into the Mac. Hubs, docks and the USB ports on a monitor or keyboard often can't keep a camera connection stable.
• Try another port, and unplug other USB devices you don't need right now.

5. Turn off the camera's Wi-Fi

On many Canon models the camera ignores the USB cable while its Wi-Fi function is on. Turn Wi-Fi off in the camera's menu, then reconnect the cable.

6. Check that the Mac sees the camera

Choose Apple menu → About This Mac → More Info… → System Report… and select USB in the sidebar. If your camera isn't listed, the Mac itself can't see it — the cause is the cable, the port or the camera, not DSLR Assistant. If the camera is listed, keep going.

7. Give a full memory card a moment

When a card holds thousands of photos, macOS can take a minute to read it after the camera connects, and the camera shows up in the app only after that. Wait a little, or use a card with fewer photos on it.

8. Restart everything

Quit DSLR Assistant, turn the camera off, unplug the cable, and restart the Mac. Then connect the cable, turn the camera on and open the app. If you use a cloud-sync app such as Dropbox or Google Drive, quit it for this test too — on some Macs they have been known to get in the way of camera connections.

9. Confirm your camera model

Check that your exact model is on the camera list.

The camera disconnects during a session

• Auto power off. While a time-lapse, bracketing series or Bulb exposure is running, DSLR Assistant keeps the camera awake. Between sessions the camera can still switch itself off — for studio days, set Auto power off to Disable in the camera's setup menu.
• Mac sleep. During a running task the Mac stays awake by itself. If you leave the app idle between shots, the Mac may sleep and drop the camera. On a laptop, turn on Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off in System Settings → Battery → Options; on a desktop Mac, the same option is in System Settings → Energy.
• Power. A battery that runs flat ends the connection. Use the camera's AC adapter for long sessions.
• Cable strain. A cable that gets tugged when you move around the set can drop out for a split second. Secure it to the tripod or use a cable lock.

Still not working?

The bell button in the toolbar opens the Activity Log, which lists recent errors — they often point straight at the cause. When you contact us, tell us your camera model, your macOS version and what the Activity Log says.

If the camera connects but a task won't start or photos don't arrive, see Solve shooting problems.