Sony PXW-FX9 User manual

Quick Reference Guide
PXW-FX9
pro.sony/FX9
This guide has been optimised for
mobile viewing and is fully interactive

2
Contents
A. Introduction to this guide
B. Initial Camera setup
C. Choosing the right operating mode
D. Scan Modes, frame rates and codecs
E. Shutter, Shutter Speed and Shutter Angle
F. ISO, Gain and Dual ISO
G. White Balance and Tint
H. Exposure, Zebras, Waveform and Histogram
I. Aperture/Iris and Auto Exposure
J. The ND Filter System
K. Auto Focus and Focus Aids

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Contents
L. Gamma Settings In Custom Mode
M. The MATRIX: How to change the colour ranges
N. Custom Mode Other Settings (use with caution)
O. Using the Cine EI Mode (in detail)
P. Slow and Quick Motion, Interval Record and
Picture Cache Record
Q. SteadyShot and Post Production Image Stabilization
R. Audio Options
S. Recording, Recording Media and Backups
T. Networking and Wi-Fi Overview
U. Error messages and common problems

Contents
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A. Introduction to this guide
This guide does not replace the user manual. It is intended
to be used in conjunction with the user manual and it is
recommended that you read both this guide and the user
manual to get the very best from the camera.
Where you see text in bold it indicates a menu setting,
button or switch setting. For example:
(MENU: Project – Base Setting – Shooting Mode).
Indicates: refer to the camera menu, Project page, Base
Setting page, Shooting mode sub page.
Where there are multiple menu choices a suggested or
recommended setting will be given as an initial starting
point to get you going. These settings should give good
results in the majority of cases.

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B. Initial camera setup
B1. APR and bright pixels
B2. Multi-function Dial
B3. Assignable Buttons
B4. User Menu
B5. Direct Menu
B6. Saving your preferred camera settings
B7. Status Pages
Section Index

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
B1. APR and Bright Pixels
After switching the camera on you may see a message
saying “Please Execute APR”. This is not an error or
malfunction. The APR (Automatic Pixel Restoration)
function minimizes the appearance of bright or dark
sensor pixels and minimizes sensor noise.
Cover/cap the lens so that all light is excluded and press
the Multi-function Dial, the handgrip thumbstick or the set
button to execute the APR function.
If you do not perform APR you will be reminded to
perform APR the next time the camera is turned on.
You should perform APR regularly to maintain the best
possible image quality or if you notice tiny bright dots
(bright pixels) within in the cameras output.

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
B2. Multi-Function Dial
The multi-function dial at the front of the camera is very
useful for navigating through the camera’s menus. In
addition, it can be used in conjunction with the push
buttons for ISO/Gain, White Balance, shutter, iris etc. to
quickly change these settings.
You can also set the Multi-Function dial to control some
of these functions directly without having to first press a
button.
If you go to (MENU: Project – Multi Function Dial –
Default Function) you can add a default function for the
dial for when the camera menu is not activated or when
a function button has not been previously pressed. My
personal preference is to set this to “Iris”. Do note however
that control of the iris via the Multi-Function Dial is in 1/3rd
of a stop steps. Iris control is possible via the Assignable
Dial on the handgrip.

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
B3. Assignable Buttons
The FX9 has 10 assignable buttons plus the ability to
assign an alternate function to the focus hold button that
is found on certain Sony lenses. By default, nothing is
assigned to buttons 2, 3, 6. 7, 8, 9 and 10. So there is plenty
of scope to add new functions to these buttons.
Functions are assigned to the buttons via
(MENU: Project – Assignable Button).
A suggestion is to assign the “Base ISO /Sensitivity”
and “Video Signal Monitor” options to two of the
buttons as these will likely be commonly used
functions. In addition, if you shoot using S-Log3 you
may want to assign “Gamma Display Assist” to another
of the assignable buttons (see section 6 for more
details on this).

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
B4. User Menu
The FX9 has a user menu that can be customized to
include the menu items that you use most often. This
allows you to go directly to the items in the user menu
with no need to scroll through the menu systems dierent
sub sections.
Up to 20 items can be included in the user menu. The
factory settings include 20 pre-installed items. In order to
add or change an item you must first delete at least 1 item
from the user menu before the new item can be added.
The user menu can be edited by going to (MENU: User
Menu – Edit User Menu). As well as adding and removing
items from the User Menu you can also change the
display order by using the “Move” option to move each
item up or down the item list.
In addition, it is also possible set the camera so that only
the User Menu is active. This is done via (MENU: User
Menu – Menu Settings –User Menu Only). When set
to “ON” you can only access and scroll through the user
menu. To restore the ability to scroll down to other the
other menu sections you can return this back to “OFF” at
any time.

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
There is an additional password protected method for
locking out all menu pages other than the User Menu. To
enable this normally hidden option in the menu system
you must press and hold the Multi-Function Dial, then
while still pressing the Multifunction Dial press the Menu
button to enter the cameras menu system. Now you will
find the following menu item (MENU: Technical – Menu
settings– User Menu With Lock). When you select “ON”
you will be prompted to enter a 4 digit security code to
enable the User Menu only locked function.
WARNING: Be sure to make a record of this security
code as it is required to unlock the full menu system.
You cannot unlock the menu system if you lose this
code number and will need to contact your local Sony
oce for assistance.
To unlock the full menu system, press and hold the Multi-
Function Dial, then while still pressing the Multifunction
Dial press the Menu button to enter the cameras menu
system. Then go to (MENU: Technical – Menu settings–
User Menu With Lock). Select OFF and enter the
passcode.

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
B5. Direct Menu
Direct menu allows you to quickly access the many of
the cameras settings without the need to enter the main
menu system. The direct menu system can be access by
pressing the “Direct Menu” button on the hand grip or by
pressing the Multi-function Dial.
Once activated you will see the direct menu items
highlighted in orange in the viewfinder. You can then scroll
through the direct menu items using the Multi-function
Dial or by using the Thumbstick on the handgrip. Direct
Menu items can then be selected and adjusted directly.
For full details on the items that can be adjusted please
refer to the User Manual.

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
B6. Saving your preferred camera settings
If you have made any changes to the user menu, you can
save those changes to an SD or Card or Memory Stick in
the Utility card slot by going to (MENU: Project – User
File). This may be useful should you wish to copy your
preferred user menu layout to another camera. User Files
also save the settings of the functions included within
the user menu, this allows you to use user files to save
settings such as scan mode or frame rate provided those
menu items are included in the user menu.
You can also use “All Files” to save not only the User
Menu settings but also a snapshot of the camera’s setup
including any other menu settings such as configuration
of the assignable dial, operating mode and scan mode
etc. All Files are very useful for switching quickly between
dierent frame rates and scan modes by saving an All File
for each preferred setup or to copy your preferred camera
settings from on camera to another. Be aware however
that “All Files” overwrite the cameras white balance
settings each time one is loaded. It may be preferable to
use a user file as an alternative to an All File to save your
preferred settings as User Files can be set not to overwrite
white balance settings.

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
All files are saved to an SD card in the Utility Card slot by
going to (MENU: Project – All File).
See the user manual for full details of what is saved in the
dierent file types.

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Section Index
B. Initial camera setup
B7. The Status Pages
By pressing the “Status” button on the camera you can
view a series of pages that show the current status
and setup of the camera. These pages are very useful
for quickly checking things like recording setup, audio
levels, scan mode, network and monitoring status. It is
recommended that you familiarize yourself with the status
pages as they are a useful way to quickly determine how
the camera is configured.

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C1. Custom Mode and Cine EI Mode –
What’s the dierence?
C2. Overview of Custom Mode and S-Cinetone
C3. Overview of Cine EI Mode
C. Choosing the right operating mode
Section Index

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Section Index
C. Choosing the right operating mode
C1. Custom Mode with S-Cinetone and the Cine EI mode
– What is the dierence?
The PXW-FX9 has two distinctly dierent operating modes
which are called “Custom” and “Cine EI”. The camera will
create high quality images at all available frame rates and
resolutions in both modes.
In Custom Mode the PXW-FX9 behaves much like any
other conventional video camera where the picture you
see in the viewfinder is the picture that is recorded to
the XQD cards. In the Cine EI mode the camera operates
using optimized settings that allow it to capture the widest
possible dynamic range and colour range. This wide range
image will look flat and washed out if viewed directly on
a conventional monitor. But it contains a huge amount of
picture information that can be manipulated and adjusted
on a computer in post-production to achieve a highly
refined final look. To make shooting this way easier the
camera incorporates a system of LUT’s (Look Up Tables)
that allow the operator to see in the viewfinder or on a
monitor an approximation of how the footage being shot
will look after it has been adjusted in post-production.

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Section Index
C. Choosing the right operating mode
Previous generations of Sony cameras have created
images with a default look based on the Rec-709 standard
for television cameras. When Sony’s VENICE digital cinema
camera was introduced it came with a new default look
tailored for high end, film style production. This new look
produces very pleasing images with warm skin tones and
very smooth film-like highlights.
The two dierent base operating modes can be selected
via (MENU: Project – Base Setting).

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Section Index
C. Choosing the right operating mode
C2. Custom Mode and S-Cinetone: The default
operating mode
Custom mode is the easiest way to use the camera. In
Custom Mode the camera operates much like any other
traditional video camera where the pictures you see in the
viewfinder or on a monitor are the same as the images
that are recorded. In this mode you have the ability to
change many of the camera’s image quality settings
including:
White Balance and tint, which changes the camera’s
colour response to match the colour temperature of the
light in the scene so that white objects appear white.
Gain or ISO, which changes the brightness of the image.
Gamma and Knee alters the cameras dynamic range and
contrast of the recorded images.
The Matrix which alters the colour range, hue and colour
saturation.
Detail and Aperture which alter the apparent image
sharpness.
The FX9’s default look in custom mode is called
“S-Cinetone” this is a combination of a gamma curve
called “S-Cinetone” and a colour matrix called “S-Cinetone”.
S-Cinetone is designed to look great straight from the

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Section Index
C. Choosing the right operating mode
camera. While sharing many characteristics of the Venice
look, it is dierent as it is tailored for great looking video
direct from the camera with minimal eort for many types
of video productions rather than film or movie production
that may include post production grading.
In addition, in Custom mode it is also possible to use other
gamma and matrix combinations to match the FX9 to
other Sony cameras.
See sections 12, 13 and 14 for more details on using
Custom Mode and its various settings.

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Section Index
C. Choosing the right operating mode
C3. Cine EI and s709: For shooting using S-Log3 with
post-production grading
The other base operating mode is the “Cine EI” mode.
This mode is tailored for obtaining the largest possible
dynamic range and colour range from the PXW-FX9. In
this mode you shoot using the S-Log3 gamma curve and
either the SGamut3 or SGamut3.cine colour space. When
viewed on a conventional monitor this S-Log3 material
will often look flat and washed out. Footage captured this
way will need to then be colour graded in post-production
to produce the desired end look. This is a more complex
workflow compared to shooting a direct final image using
Custom Mode but it does oer more creative possibilities.
As a result, the Cine EI mode tends to be used more
for productions where image quality is the primary
consideration rather than ease of use or production
turnaround speed.
When using the Cine EI mode, depending on how the
camera is set-up, it can apply a Monitor LUT (Look Up
Table) to the Viewfinder, HDMI and SDI outputs to simulate
how the footage may look after it has been colour graded.
The default LUT in the FX9 is the same “s709” LUT as
used by the VENICE camera. As a result, when this MLUT
is applied to the viewfinder or outputs the video will look
very similar to footage from a VENICE camera.