How to set-up a live view tether for your Sony Camera

Live view tethering allows photographers the ability to preview on computer/monitor what their camera is previewing. This is useful for a self-portraits as well as

I’ve been trying to figure out how to and the disparate documentation online has been disparate. So here is my first attempt to teach people how to

Requirements

1) You must have a compatible camera. According to Brian Smith (http://briansmith.com/capture-one-pro-for-sony-adds-live-view-tethering-for-sony/), there are currently only three models that support live view tethering: Sony A7II [ILCE-7M2], A7S [ILCE-7S] and A77II [ILCA-77M2]. If yours fits one of these or is a newer high end model, you’re likely in luck!

2) You must download Capture One Pro, as Sony implemented this features in version 8.1. The free version will not have this feature.

If you meet both requirements, you can continue with the set-up process.

Step-by-Step Process

1) Switch your USB Connection to PC Remote: This should be found in Menu > Last Tab. This is very important, as leaving it in Auto and connecting your camera to your computer will likely go to Mass Storage mode.

USB Connection is currently in the last tab

2) Connect your camera to your computer using the USB connector: I’m using one that came with my Kindle as it’s longer than the one that came with my camera.

Connecting the camera to my Mac using the USB connector

If you have issues with your computer not recognizing your camera, you may need to update your drivers or try another USB cord. Mac OSX Yosemite is a little finicky with Sony Cameras.

You can tell the cameras has connected your camera will return back to a live preview and will have PC blinking in the preview.

When the camera has been successfully connected to the your PC while in PC Remote, PC will appear on the screen

3) Open Live View in Capture One Pro: There are multiple ways to bring up this view.

Under the Window menu in the global navigation, Live Menu should appear.

Live Viewmenu will be within the Window menu

In the catalog view, you can click the camera icon to bring up the Live Preview.

And voila, you should be able to see a live preview of your Sony camera through the tether feature! As you can see below, you can also adjust the settings on your camera through your computer.

Caveats

There is a little lag between what’s shown on the computer versus what’s on the screen.
The preview image quality is pretty grainy.