Use this page to prepare each camera family before the first event. Camera Server can handle many day-to-day settings later, but these body-side settings should be done once per camera.

Before you start

• If camera bodies have been used on different installs, do a factory reset first so every unit starts from the same baseline.
• Connect cameras in the same physical order as the rig before you number them in Camera Server.
• Prefer wired connections for event rigs whenever that camera family supports them.

Canon USB cameras

Apply these settings on each Canon body before connecting it to the rig:

1. Set the main dial to M (manual).
2. Leave the lens in AF so you can focus during setup with half-press or a back-button AF control on supported bodies.
3. On recent bodies, disable Retract lens on power off so a power cycle does not shift the focus point.
4. Enable a 6x4 grid overlay to help with pre-calibration and framing checks.
5. Set AF method to 1-point AF.
6. Avoid Servo focus on the event rig. Focus the shot, then leave the camera in a stable single-point focus mode.

Sony USB cameras

Sony bodies need a few more one-time menu changes before they are ready for Camera Server:

1. Complete every first-boot prompt, including language, date and time, timezone, and the Imaging Edge link, so the camera will not stop for onboarding again later.
2. Set the main dial, or Shooting mode, to M (manual exposure).
3. Set Focus area to Center and keep AF w/shutter enabled.
4. Turn Control with Smartphone off.
5. Turn PC Remote on.
6. Turn Long Exposure NR, High ISO NR, SteadyShot, and DRO off.
7. Turn the camera grid overlay on to make pre-calibration easier.
8. Power the camera off and back on after saving the settings, especially if you use battery couplers.

GoPro HERO11 to HERO13

GoPro setup starts with the rig architecture, because the connection path matters more than on USB mirrorless bodies:

1. Choose the connection architecture first: direct USB to a Windows host for smaller rigs, or Raspberry Pi clients over Ethernet for larger arrays.
2. Use the wired GoPro Labs workflow for stable event rigs. GoPro over Wi-Fi remains Experimental and should be treated as a test path, not the default production path.
3. Use high-quality powered USB hubs. On Pi-based rigs, group each set of cameras on a client node instead of trying to load one computer USB bus with the whole array.
4. Power cameras on one by one in the physical order of the rig so Camera Server can assign and remember the correct numbers.
5. After the cameras appear, set the trigger mode and the rest of the capture settings from the Xangle dashboard so the whole array stays consistent.
6. Before event use, run a full trigger, download, and playback test on the exact cabling and hub layout you plan to deploy.

Android phones

Android phones join the rig through the Xangle Remote Camera app and the local network, just like other phone cameras:

1. Install and open the Xangle Remote Camera app on the phone, or complete the one-time USB provisioning flow if that is how you deploy the app to the device.
2. Keep the app in the foreground and grant Camera and Local Network permissions the first time it runs.
3. Put the phone on the same local network as the machine running Camera Server.
4. Wait for the phone to appear in the camera grid as a single camera, then open its tile and verify live view, photo capture, video capture, and lens selection.
5. Before the event starts, run a full trigger and download test on the exact phone model and Wi-Fi network you plan to use.

Android operating notes

• Keep the phone awake and keep the app in the foreground. A locked or backgrounded phone is not a reliable camera node.
• Each phone appears as one camera. The selected lens is a setting on that camera, not a separate camera in the roster.
• If the phone is missing from the roster, confirm the app is open, the phone is on the same network, and Local Network permission was granted.
• If the phone connects but shows no live view, reopen the app and confirm Camera permission is still allowed.

iPhone on Mac (Experimental)

iPhone support is Experimental. Setup currently requires help from the Xangle team because the iPhone app is not publicly distributed yet. Follow these steps the first time you connect an iPhone to Camera Server running on a Mac. Once the phone is discovered, it will reconnect automatically on the same network.

1. Make sure you have a Mac running Camera Server (XCS26 or later), an iPhone running iOS 17 or later, and both devices on the same Wi-Fi network or subnet.
2. Install Xangle Remote Camera on the iPhone before the event with help from the Xangle team. The app is not on the App Store yet, so self-service installation is not supported today.
3. Launch Camera Server on the Mac, open the Cameras module, and confirm the status bar shows the server is listening (default port 8680).
4. Open the Xangle Remote Camera app on the iPhone. The app advertises itself on the local network with Bonjour and shows the phone name, IP address, and connection state.
5. Wait a few seconds for Camera Server to discover the iPhone automatically. If it does not appear, verify both devices are on the same subnet and that UDP 5353 (mDNS) and TCP 50080 are not blocked.
6. Open the iPhone tile, test photo capture, test video recording, and confirm autofocus responds before the event starts.

iPhone operating notes

• Keep the Xangle Remote Camera app in the foreground on the iPhone at all times during an event. iOS suspends background camera access.
• Disable Auto-Lock on the iPhone (Settings → Display & Brightness → Auto-Lock → Never) so the screen does not turn off mid-capture.
• If the phone disconnects, simply reopen the app. It will re-advertise and Camera Server will reconnect within seconds.
• For multi-phone rigs, each phone needs its own unique name (Settings → General → About → Name) so the grid can distinguish them.
• USB connection is not required. iPhones connect exclusively over Wi-Fi.
• If you are using a captive-portal event network, make sure the phone has completed the portal sign-in before launching the app.