Wireless Tethering: Sony Camera to Cloud

For professional sports, news, and wedding photographers, speed is everything. The traditional workflow involves shooting to SD cards, running to a laptop, ingesting images, and then uploading.

This guide shows you how to skip the laptop entirely. By using the built-in FTP client in modern Sony Alpha cameras, you can upload JPEGs or RAWs directly to the cloud while you shoot.

Prerequisites

1. Sony Camera with FTP support (a9 series, a1, a7R IV/V, a7 IV, FX3).
2. Internet Connection: 5G Mobile Hotspot, Venue Wi-Fi, or Ethernet.
3. Rilavek Account: To act as the bridge between FTP and S3.

Step 1: Create a Pipe & Sender

First, configure the destination and access credentials in Rilavek.

1. Log in to your Rilavek Dashboard.
2. Create a Pipe: Connect it to your desired S3 destination (e.g., s3://my-agency-bucket/live-event/). Note the Pipe ID (e.g., pipe_123).
3. Create a Sender: Go to Senders, create a new one (e.g., SonyCam), and copy the password.
4. Construct your FTP Username: Combine the Sender name and Pipe ID with an @ symbol.
   • Format: SenderName@PipeID
   • Example: SonyCam@pipe_123

Step 2: Configure Camera Network Settings (Wi-Fi)

To upload wirelessly, your camera needs internet access.

1. Press MENU on your camera.
2. Navigate to Network (Green Globe) → Wi-Fi → Access Point Set.
3. Choose your phone's Personal Hotspot or the venue Wi-Fi network.
4. Enter the password.
5. Important: Enable Priority Connection for this network. This ensures your camera automatically reconnects if the signal drops.

Step 3: Configure FTP Server Settings

This tells the camera where to send the files.

1. Navigate to MENU → Network → Transfer/Remote → FTP Transfer Func.
2. Ensure FTP Function is set to On.
3. Select Server Setting and choose an unused server slot (e.g., Server 1).
4. Enter the following details:
   • Display Name: Rilavek (or "Brands" to identify the target).
   • Destination Settings:
     • Host Name: ftp.rilavek.com
     • Secure Protocol: Off (Resulting in Port 21).
   • User Info Setting:
     • User: (Your combined username: SenderName@PipeID)
     • Password: (Paste the Rilavek Sender Password)
   • Directory: /

Step 4: Critical Transfer Preferences

These settings determine reliability and speed.

1. FTP Power Save: Set to Off.
   • Why? This prevents the camera from killing the connection when it goes to sleep, ensuring uploads finish in the background.
2. Transfer Target (Video): Set to Proxy Only.
   • Speed Advantage: This sends small, lightweight video files immediately for social media/news desks while you keep the heavy 4K/8K originals on the card.
3. Auto FTP Transfer:
   • Option A (Event/Sports): Set to On to upload everything as you shoot.
   • Option B (Selective): Set to Off if you want to manually select winners to save data.

Step 5: Custom Button for Speed (Selective Workflow)

If you disabled Auto Transfer, set up a "One-Click Upload" button:

1. Go to MENU → Setup → Operation Customize.
2. Select Custom Key Setting (Playback Mode).
3. Assign a convenient button (like Fn or C1) to FTP Transfer This Image.

Now, when reviewing photos, just hit that button. You will see a Green Check Mark appear once the upload is successful.

Step 6: Start Shooting

1. Return to shooting mode.
2. Take a picture.
3. Look for the FTP Icon (arrow connecting to a cloud or server) on your screen:
   • White Icon: Connected and ready.
   • Orange Icon: Connection error (check Wi-Fi).
   • Blinking Arrow: Upload in progress.

Pro Tip: Map "FTP Transfer" to a custom button (like C1 or C2) in MENU → Setup → Operation Customize to quickly toggle uploads on/off during a shoot.

Your images will now appear instantly in your S3 bucket, ready for editors to access anywhere in the world.