Advanced Topics

LUTs in CineEI vs Picture Profiles

LUTs serve different purposes depending on your shooting mode.

CineEI / Log Shooting (Select LUT)
Picture Profile with PPLUT (Non-Log)

In CineEI, CineEI Quick, or Flexible ISO mode, the camera always records S-Log3. The selected LUT (base-look-value) controls monitoring output only.

embed-lut-file writes the LUT as metadata into the recorded file. It does not bake the LUT into the image.

Properties used:

Property	Purpose
`base-look-value`	Select active monitoring LUT
`embed-lut-file`	Embed LUT metadata in the recording

Without CineEI or Log Shooting, LUTs are used through PPLUT slots in Picture Profiles. Standard PP1-PP11 presets do not use LUTs. To apply an actual .cube LUT in non-log mode, use PPLUT1-PPLUT4 (Custom slots 0x41-0x44).

Properties used:

Property	Purpose
`picture-profile`	Select PP1-PP11 or Custom 1-4
`pp-lut-base-look`	Select which PPLUT slot to use as base look

Key difference:

	CineEI (Select LUT)	PPLUT (Picture Profile)
Recording	Always S-Log3	LUT baked into recording
LUT purpose	Monitoring only	Applied to recorded video
Post flexibility	Full	Limited

Import LUT file

POST /api/cameras/{cameraId}/lut/import uploads a .cube LUT file to the camera. The import is asynchronous — the endpoint returns 202 Accepted and the result is delivered through the lutImportResult SSE event.

Body: filePath (absolute path on the server filesystem), slot (1-16).

curl

curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/cameras/D10F60149B0C/lut/import \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"filePath": "/path/to/MyLUT.cube", "slot": 1}'

SSE result

{
  "slot": 1,
  "status": "success"
}

{
  "slot": 1,
  "status": "error",
  "error": "invalid_file"
}

Error codes:

Code	Description
`general_failure`	Unspecified import failure
`invalid_filename`	File name not accepted by camera
`device_busy`	Camera is busy
`storage_full`	Camera storage is full
`invalid_parameter`	Invalid slot number or parameter
`invalid_file`	File is not a valid `.cube` LUT
`invalid`	Generic validation failure

CineEI overview

CineEI is Sony’s cinema-style log shooting system. The camera records S-Log3 footage at a fixed Base ISO, and Exposure Index (EI) shifts the monitoring LUT without changing the recorded signal.

Mode	Hex	ISO Control	Use Case
Off	`0x1`	Normal ISO	Standard video
CineEI	`0x0301`	Exposure Index	Locked base ISO workflow
CineEI Quick	`0x0302`	Exposure Index	Simplified CineEI
Flexible ISO	`0x0501`	Normal ISO range	Log recording with variable ISO

Switching modes

# Enable CineEI
curl -X PUT .../properties/movie-shooting-mode \
  -d '{"value": "0x0301"}'

# Enable CineEI Quick
curl -X PUT .../properties/movie-shooting-mode \
  -d '{"value": "0x0302"}'

# Enable Flexible ISO
curl -X PUT .../properties/movie-shooting-mode \
  -d '{"value": "0x0501"}'

Exposure Index vs ISO

	Normal ISO	Exposure Index (EI)
What it controls	Sensor gain	Monitoring LUT brightness only
Affects recording	Yes	No
Noise impact	Direct	None
Purpose	Expose the image	Preview post exposure

Full CineEI workflow

Switch to movie mode

Set exposure-program-mode to a movie mode such as Movie Manual.
Enable CineEI

Set movie-shooting-mode to 0x0301.
Set color gamut

Set movie-shooting-mode-color-gamut to 0x1 (S-Gamut3.Cine).
Choose Base ISO

Set base-iso to High or Low.
Set Exposure Index

Set exposure-index to the desired EI value.
Select monitoring LUT

Set base-look-value to the desired LUT.
Enable LUT embedding (optional)

Set embed-lut-file to 0x2.

CineEI LUT workflow

Use LUT import together with CineEI when you want monitoring looks without baking them into the recording.

Enable CineEI

Set movie-shooting-mode to 0x0301.
Import LUT

Call POST /api/cameras/{id}/lut/import with the .cube file path and target slot.
Select the monitoring LUT

Set base-look-value to the imported LUT slot.
Enable LUT embedding (optional)

Set embed-lut-file to 0x2 to include LUT metadata in the recorded file.

PPLUT workflow

For non-log shooting, apply an imported LUT through a Custom Picture Profile. In this path the LUT is baked into the recording.

Import the LUT

Call POST /api/cameras/{id}/lut/import with a .cube file and slot number.
Set a Custom Picture Profile

Set picture-profile to 0x41-0x44 (Custom 1-4).
Select the PPLUT slot

Set pp-lut-base-look to the desired slot.

Guardrail commands

Guardrail commands prevent unwanted camera operations in tethered and mixed-use environments.

Shutter lock (`shooting-enable`)

The shooting-enable property disables or enables the shutter via the SDK.

Read the current state

curl http://localhost:8080/api/cameras/{id}/properties/shooting-enable

Disable the shutter

curl -X PUT .../properties/shooting-enable \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"value": "0x2"}'

Re-enable the shutter

curl -X PUT .../properties/shooting-enable \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"value": "0x1"}'

Guardrail workflows

ISO limit enforcement

Lock the shutter if ISO exceeds a studio threshold, then unlock it once the operator brings ISO back into range.

Scan and Tag subject tracking

In volume photography workflows, write image-id-string for the current subject and lock the shutter when no valid subject ID is present or the shot limit is reached.

Compatibility

shooting-enable requires:

A camera that supports CrDeviceProperty_ShootingEnableSettingLicense
An active Volume Photography Commands license installed on the camera

Without the license, the property returns empty or not writable.