Videographer hacks Sony A7 IV to add this feature. ‘I found a path traversal bug allowing me to get the fully decrypted firmware’
Reddit user Mr_BananaPants said he “reverse engineered” Sony firmware to add shutter angle, but things backfired after the mirrorless camera became unresponsive
A photographer shared on Reddit how he managed to reverse engineer the firmware of the Sony A7 IV to add a shutter angle feature to the mirrorless hybrid stills-and-video camera. The videographer mentioned in a thread that he discovered a path traversal bug allowing him to get the fully decrypted firmware of the A7 IV, which had never been done before.
Shutter angle is a method of measuring exposure time relative to a video's frame rate, measured in degrees, which determines the amount of motion blur in each frame of footage. While photographers measure exposure in absolute time, cinematographers prefer shutter angle because it automatically adjusts when changing the frame rate, ensuring consistent motion blur without mental calculations.
The A7 IV could technically calculate shutter angle, but Sony restricts the feature to cinema-line models like the FX30 and higher-end rigs like the FX6. After successfully hacking the A7 IV, the videographer attempted to enable 8K video recording, despite warning of the "major risk of bricking the camera." Unfortunately, the camera became unresponsive and required professional service.
The videographer kept the firmware bug details under wraps, preventing other users from replicating the hack. However, caution is advised when attempting such actions, as legal consequences may arise, as claimed by a user who received a cease and desist letter from a law firm representing Sony.
Written by urgent.news from Digital Camera World's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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