See it
The live picture over Wi-Fi, or full quality through an HDMI capture card. Histogram, zebras, peaking, a grid and the camera's own meter, one click each.
Version is out
Run your Sony camera
Run your Sony camera
from anywhere.
Live picture, focus, exposure, video, photos, slow motion and time-lapse, from across the yard or across town. One clean window on your computer, or your phone, with no cables.
Free and open source. No account, no subscription, no tracking. Tested on the A7S III.
- Windows 11x64
- macOS 14.1+Apple & Intel
- iPhonecoming to TestFlight
- iPadcoming to TestFlight
- Sony camerasover Wi-Fi
0.20sfrom camera to screen on the same Wi-Fi
240fpsS&Q slow motion, in HD
9,999photos in one time-lapse
8minlong exposures, held open on Bulb
0accounts, subscriptions or trackers
Your whole camera, in one window
Everything you'd reach for on the camera is a click away.
And the picture stays big in the middle.
Focus it
Click the picture to focus or track. Drag the focus ring, jump along the focus bar, or magnify to check what's sharp.
Shoot it
Video, photos, bursts, brackets, S&Q slow motion, time-lapse and long exposures. Save to the card, your computer, or both.
Try it
A working model of the window. Click the bird to focus, then switch on the tools.
Click the bird to focus
Zebra level
Peaking strength
Peaking colour
A model in your browser, not a camera: a depth map of the photo decides what's sharp, so try the flower too, and a narrower iris for more in focus. In the app the picture comes from the A7S III over Wi-Fi, about 8 times a second.
See what's sharp
Tell what's in focus from across the yard.
Click the bird and the camera focuses there. Turn on Peaking and the sharp edges light up. The camera's own focus boxes show what it's locked on, and the magnifier zooms in to check.
- Peaking in red, yellow, cyan or white
- Focus ring and focus bar in MF or DMF
- ×2 and ×4 magnifier
Lock on and follow
Click a bird once. The camera keeps it sharp.
Set Tap does to Tracking and click. The camera's tracking box stays on the bird as it hops about, and you see it move in the live picture.
- Click to focus, or to track
- The camera's own focus boxes, drawn on the picture
- Tells you if the camera didn't start tracking
- Right-click cancels a touch focus or tracking
Clean, and quick
Three tabs. Nothing hidden in menus.
Video and Photo switch the camera for you and keep what you change while shooting right in front of you. Anything you only set once lives in Setup, out of the way.
Video
One big Record button, with a red outline around the picture while rolling. Automatic recording, your four video setups, exposure, Base ISO and focus, all on one page.
Photo
Take photo, Time-lapse or Long exposure. Pick Single, Burst, Timer or Bracket under Drive, then only the choices for that one. Four more setups, just for photos.
Setup
Where photos are saved, file format, video format and frame rate, Super 35, white balance, audio and more, without touching a camera menu. Settings your camera doesn't have are left out.
- The histogram and meter float over the picture: drag them anywhere.
- The window opens at the picture's shape, with no black bars.
- If the Wi-Fi drops, the camera keeps recording and the app reconnects by itself.
Your setups, one click away
C1 to C4. Click, and the camera is set.
Each saves how the camera is set right now: mode, exposure, focus, and for video the file format and frame rate. Video and Photo each have their own four.
24p · XAVC HS 4K · 1/50 · F2.8 · ISO 640
Click a setup. It turns green while the camera matches it.
S&Q slow motion
Ten times slower, in one click.
Pick how fast the camera shoots and how fast it plays back. Save it to C4 and slow motion is right there.
S&Q shoots at
S&Q plays at
10× slower
One second of a take-off plays for 10 seconds.
Up to 240fps in HD on the A7S III. The fastest rates need an HD file format.
Base ISO
The A7S III's two native ISOs, one click each.
640 and 12800 in S-Log3. 12800 is the cleanest choice in low light. The buttons only appear on the A7S III; other cameras use the ISO control.
Photos, time-lapse and long exposures
Three ways to shoot, one tab.
Photo
Pick a drive, then just the choices for that one.
Save to your card, your computer, or both. A full-size RAW takes 4 to 12 seconds to arrive over Wi-Fi, so for bursts use Both with Small JPEG.
Time-lapse
Pick how often and how many. The app tells you how long it'll shoot and how long the clip will play.
Shoots for1h 40m
Plays for25 sat 24 fps
One photo every 1 to 60 seconds, up to 9,999 photos, using the camera's own interval shooting.
Long exposure
Pick a length from 1 second to 8 minutes.
30 s
Tell it the ND filter on your lens and it suggests a length from the meter. Long exposures need the camera in M.
Automatic recording
It can even film wildlife for you.
Tick Automatic recording and walk away. The app watches the picture, starts recording when something shows up, focuses on it, and stops once it's been gone for a while.
Watching for animals…
Record when it sees
Stop once it's been gone for
- Watching the picture, once a second
- Something shows up
- Focuses and starts recording
- It leaves, the timer runs
- Stops the take
Runs on your own computer. No pictures leave it. The iPhone app runs its own, on the phone.
Knows birds, common mammals and people. Something it doesn't know, like a squirrel, may not set it off.
Learns to ignore a spot that keeps setting it off, like splashing water, for 10 minutes.
What it caught by itself
Real takes from the A7S III at the feeder on Nov 4, each started by the app. Cropped from 4K and colour-corrected for the web.
Picking the model that spots them
Every candidate looked at the same 486 frames with an animal in them and 763 without. RemoteCam uses the one that finds the most without false alarms and still runs on an ordinary computer.
Animals found out of 486, and false alarms out of 763 empty frames. All RF-DETR models. The closer look checks a crop around the last sighting again.
Watch
How far away can I run my camera?
From 20 metres to across town, then not even there. One question, one camera at the feeder.
Run it from anywhere
Hide the camera. Walk away. Keep shooting.
Hide the camera by a feeder, up a tree or across the yard. Then keep walking.
From anywhere, with Tailscale
Put the camera on your iPhone's hotspot and run it from a computer anywhere. Download Tailscale on each device, log in with the same account, and it's automatic. Your devices find each other, with nothing to type.
Over mobile data the picture comes once a second by default, to save data: about 100 MB an hour while a computer is watching. Pick 3 or 8 a second on the phone for a smoother picture (about 280 or 750 MB an hour). The iPhone app has to stay open on screen.
Your iPhone joins the computer's camera
When on your computer is running the camera, the iPhone and iPad find it and show the camera through it, with nothing to type. Using the computer's camera means using its automatic recording too.
Or turn it round: in the iPhone app, turn on Let my other devices join, and an iPad or a computer runs the camera through the phone.
400 ft away, on a cable
Camera at the house on its Wi-Fi, computer 400 ft away at the end of a long Ethernet cable. The picture still arrives in about a third of a second, about 9 times a second.
Anything on the same network works: Wi-Fi, a cable, or both.
From your phone's browser
Tick Allow phone control in Setup and open the address it shows on your phone. You get the live picture, record, tap to focus, the focus ring and the camera's settings, at home or over Tailscale.
Protected by an access code. The computer stays on with the app open. On an iPhone, Share › Add to Home Screen makes it a full-screen app.
Two rules behind it all: the camera is on one network at a time, and one device runs it while the others join in.
How fast is the picture?
Measured with a clock, not a guess.
An iPad shows the computer's clock. The camera films it, and the computer shows both. The gap between them is how long the picture took.
Same Wi-Fi
0.20sabout 8 pictures a second
Camera and computer on the same router. Median of 24 readings.
400 ft of Ethernet
≈0.33sabout 9 pictures a second
Camera on the house Wi-Fi, computer at the end of the cable. A spot reading.
Hotspot + Tailscale
≈0.25s1 picture a second, or 3 or 8
Camera on the iPhone's hotspot in the woods, computer elsewhere. Each picture takes about 0.25 s; it comes once a second by default to save mobile data.
The camera's own recording is always full quality. These numbers are only for the preview you watch.
iPhone & iPad · coming to TestFlight
No computer at all.
Just your phone and its hotspot.
for iPhone and iPad runs the camera on its own, out where there's no Wi-Fi. It isn't out yet: it'll come to TestFlight, Apple's app for testing, first, and to the App Store later.
- Live picture
- Tap to focus
- Exposure
- Video
- S&Q
- Photos
- Burst
- Time-lapse
- C1 to C4
- Automatic recording: animal, bird or person
- Joins your computer's camera
- Hand it to a computer
iOS and iPadOS 16 or newer. Photos and video stay on the camera's card. It only works while the app is open on screen, so keep the phone plugged in for long sessions. Close the app on your computer first: the camera takes one remote at a time.
Everything it does
The whole list.
See
Live view over Wi-Fi, or full quality through an HDMI capture card. Rotate it for a camera on its side.
Focus
Click to focus or track. In MF or DMF, drag the focus ring or jump along the focus bar.
Check focus
Focus magnifier and peaking.
Expose
ISO, shutter and iris, with a histogram, zebras, the camera's meter and one-click Base ISO on the A7S III.
Record
One big button, with a red outline around the picture while rolling.
Slow motion
S&Q, up to 240fps in HD on the A7S III.
Save your setups
C1 to C4: four for video and four for photos.
Shoot photos
Single shots, bursts, self-timer, brackets, time-lapses and long exposures, saved to your card, your computer or both.
Set up the camera
Video format, frame rate, Super 35 crop, RAW or JPEG, white balance, audio and more, without a menu.
Use both cards
See what's left on each slot, and format a card from the app. It asks first.
Run it from anywhere
Phone control at home or over Tailscale, a computer through the iPhone's hotspot, or 400 ft of cable. Install Tailscale, log in, and it's automatic.
Film wildlife
Automatic recording starts and stops for animals, birds or people, and focuses on them. It runs on your computer; no pictures leave it.
Stay informed
Battery and card warnings before you run out.
Stop worrying
Reconnects by itself, and the camera keeps recording if Wi-Fi drops.
Get help
Send log to the developer in Setup, one click, only when you press it.
Handy keys
H histogramZ zebrasP peakingG gridR rotateF9 record, take a photo or start a long exposure
Download · version
Free. For your computer and your phone.
No account, no subscription, no tracking.
Windows
Windows 11, x64
Download for WindowsHow to install
- Open the installer from your downloads.
- If a blue Windows protected your PC box appears, click More info, then Run anyway. It shows up because the app is new and free, not because anything is wrong.
- It installs itself and puts an icon on your desktop.
Mac
macOS 14.1 or newer
Download for Mac Older Intel Mac? Use this one.How to install
- Open the disk image from your downloads and drag the app onto Applications.
- Open it from Applications. If your Mac asks whether you're sure, click Open.
- Click Allow when it asks about your local network. Without this, the app can't find the camera.
Not sure which Mac? Apple menu › About This Mac. Chip: Apple uses the main download, Processor: Intel the Intel one.
iPhone & iPad
iOS 16 or newer · not out yet
Join on TestFlightWhat's TestFlight?
Apple's free app for trying apps before they reach the App Store. The iPhone app goes there first: once it's ready, install TestFlight, open the invite link and tap Install.
Windows on ARM
Linux
Android
Not supported, sorry.
Every version and its notes are on GitHub releases. The app looks once at launch for a newer version and shows a button; it never installs anything by itself.
Which cameras work?
Will it work with your camera?
It's tested on the A7S III. Sony says its remote software can control the cameras below over Wi-Fi, so they should work too, but nobody has tried most of them yet.
Tested
Confirmed by a user
Should work, not tried yet
Won't work over Wi-Fi
Update your camera to its latest firmware first. Some features, such as click to focus, may behave differently on your camera. Cameras not listed at all, such as the A7 III or a6400, aren't supported by Sony's software. Have one that works? Tell us on GitHub.
Set it up in 3 steps
About 10 minutes, once.
You'll need a supported camera, Wi-Fi where you're shooting, and a Windows 11 PC or a Mac on macOS 14.1 or newer.
-
1
Install the app 2 minutes
Download it above and open it. The first time, you'll see a short note about Sony's terms: click OK or I agree.
-
2
Set up your camera 5 minutes
Close Sony's Monitor & Control app first. On the camera, press MENU, then tick these off. These are the A7S III's menus; most newer Sony cameras are very similar.
Menu names can differ on older firmware. Tested on the A7S III with firmware 5.01.
-
3
Connect 1 minute
With your computer and camera on the same Wi-Fi, click Connect camera…, pick your camera, and type the user and password from your photo. If your computer asks about network access, say yes.
That's it. Your picture appears, and from then on it reconnects by itself whenever you open it.
Have an AI assistant?
Let it walk you through, one step at a time.
Paste this into ChatGPT, Claude or another assistant.
Something not working?
My camera isn't in the list
Check the camera is on, on the same Wi-Fi as your computer (not a guest network), and has Remote Shooting on. Still missing? Find its address under Network › Wi-Fi › Display Wi-Fi Info. and type that IP address into the box in the app. On a Mac, check System Settings › Privacy & Security › Local Network.
It says the user or password is wrong
Use the exact user and password from Access Authen. Info. Capitals matter, and the user often isn't admin.
It won't connect while Monitor & Control is open
Close Sony's phone app. The camera only takes one remote at a time, and that goes for the computer and the iPhone app too.
The picture is choppy or keeps dropping
The camera's Wi-Fi signal is weak. Move your router or a mesh point closer to the camera. Recording carries on in the camera even if the link drops.
Still stuck?
In Setup, under Something not working?, click Send log to the developer. You'll get a short reference, like K7Q2MX, to quote when you get in touch. Nothing is sent until you click, and it holds no passwords, photos or video. It's kept for 90 days.
The full guide is in the README on GitHub.
Free, private, open
Yours, with no strings.
Free
No subscription, no in-app purchases. The code is MIT licensed.
No account
Nothing to sign up for. Open it and connect.
No tracking
No analytics in the app, and none on this page either: no cookies, nothing loaded from anyone else.
Your password stays put
In Windows Credential Manager or your Mac's Keychain.
Help when you ask
Send log in Setup sends what went wrong, only when you press it. No passwords, photos or video.
Detection runs locally
The animal detector runs on your own computer or phone.
Open source
MIT licensed. Read every line on GitHub, and build it yourself if you like.
Specifications
- Computer
- Windows 11 x64, or macOS 14.1 or newer on Apple or Intel. Windows on ARM and Linux aren't supported.
- iPhone and iPad
- iOS and iPadOS 16 or newer. Coming to TestFlight first.
- Connection
- Wi-Fi on the same network as the camera, with an optional HDMI capture card for the picture.
- Live view
- 1024×576 on the A7S III. About 0.20 s and 8 pictures a second on the same Wi-Fi; about 0.25 s a picture over a phone hotspot and Tailscale, 1 a second by default.
- Photos to your computer
- Full size, or a small JPEG. A full-size RAW took 4 to 12 seconds on the A7S III in our tests, depending on your network.
- Time-lapse
- One photo every 1 to 60 seconds, up to 9,999 photos, using the camera's own interval shooting.
- Animal detection
- Runs on your computer once a second. It knows birds, common mammals and people.
- Phone control
- A web page on your phone, over your home network or Tailscale, protected by an access code.
- Remote access
- Tailscale, signed in to the same account on each device. Only Tailscale and local network addresses are answered.
- Built on
- Sony's Camera Remote SDK v2.02.00 on Windows and Mac.
- Price
- Free. MIT licence.
Good to know
- Tested on the A7S III. An A9 II user has confirmed it works too. The other cameras on the list should work, but nobody has tried them yet.
- Warranty: Sony's terms say a camera controlled through an app like this is no longer covered by its manufacturer warranty.
- isn't made by, endorsed by or supported by Sony. It uses Sony's Camera Remote SDK.