A new iPhone and iPad app from an independent developer lets one person watch and run up to four Canon and Sony cameras at once. It is free for one camera; the multi-camera upgrade is listed at RM119.90 on the Malaysian App Store.
Contents
Quick facts
- App: Director Mode by Claudio Ripalti, version 1.0, iPhone and iPad, iOS 17.6 or later
- Price in Malaysia: free (Basic, one camera); Director Mode Pro is a one-time in-app purchase listed at RM119.90
- Cameras: 19 Canon and Sony models are named on both the App Store listing and the developer's site; the site lists 26 in all
- Connections: Wi-Fi, wired LAN on Canon Cinema EOS, and USB-C on supported Sony and Canon EOS R bodies
What it does
Director Mode turns the phone into a remote monitor and control panel. On the developer's site it lists live view, ISO, shutter, aperture, white balance and Kelvin control, tap to focus and subject tracking, and recording start and stop on each camera or on all of them together with a single "REC ALL" button. Up to four feeds sit in a grid on one screen, with recording status for each angle.
The monitoring tools listed are a waveform, focus peaking, frame guides, anamorphic de-squeeze and custom .cube LUTs. On Sony bodies it can also hold a chosen shutter angle when the frame rate changes.
What is free and what costs RM119.90
The developer's download page says Basic is free and works with one compatible camera. Pro is a one-time in-app purchase that adds the multi-camera console, the advanced monitoring tools and wired USB-C for compatible Canon EOS R cameras. That page quotes US$29.99 as a launch price; the Malaysian App Store lists the same upgrade at RM119.90 as of 10 November.
Which cameras work
The developer's two lists do not match, so here is what both agree on. The App Store listing and the compatibility page both name 11 Canon bodies: the EOS C50, C70, C80, C300 Mark III, C400 and C500 Mark II cinema cameras, and the EOS R1, R5 Mark II, R6 Mark III, R6 V and R50 V. Both also name 8 Sony bodies: the FX3, FX3A and FX30, and the Alpha 1, Alpha 1 II, a7S III, a7R VI and a7 V.
The website adds the Canon R6 Mark II, R8 Mark II, R8 and PowerShot V1, and the Sony FX2, a9 III and a7C II, for 26 in all. The App Store text instead adds a Sony "A7r" and the FX5. Check your exact body on the compatibility page before paying. Our earlier coverage includes two bodies on both lists, the Canon EOS R6 Mark III and the EOS R6 V.
How fast the picture arrives
The developer publishes its own delay measurements, camera to app, for five setups. On the same two cameras it measured both ways: about 30 ms over USB-C and 110 ms over Wi-Fi on a Canon R6 Mark III, and about 40 ms over USB-C and 130 ms over Wi-Fi on a Sony a7 V. A Canon C50 over Wi-Fi measured about 120 ms. These are the developer's figures, not ours; it does not say which phone, network or method it used, and it says results vary by camera, device and connection. It recommends 5 GHz Wi-Fi where available.
The limits
Director Mode is not made or endorsed by Canon or Sony, and the developer says available controls and live view quality depend on the camera model, firmware and connection. Three Canon cinema bodies, the C70, C300 Mark III and C500 Mark II, are marked "adapter needed" on the App Store listing. Apple's App Store records give a release date of 5 November, and when we checked, the Malaysian listing said the app had not received enough ratings or reviews to display an overview, so the free Basic tier with one camera is the sensible way to test a setup before paying.
If your only camera is the phone itself, we recreated a whole music video on one with no budget, and that way of shooting is what Pocket Cinematic teaches.
