How to Get S-Cinetone on Older Sony Cameras (a7III, a7C, a6400, a6600, RX100 series etc.)

May 25
13 min read

Updated: Jul 16

Own an older Sony camera like the A7III, A6400 or an RX100 series camera? You've probably noticed that S-Cinetone—Sony's acclaimed cinematic picture profile—isn't available in your camera's menu. Luckily I found a way to get S-cinetone’s distinctive film look by using settings already built into your camera.

Why bother in 2025? Because some of the Sony film simulations are based on S-Cinetone—and not everyone owns a camera with it built-in. You might also want to match colors between an older and newer camera or get cinematic skin tones and highlight roll-off without using LUTs.

The key to achieving the S-Cinetone look? Alternative color mode & gamma settings that are already available in your camera's menu.

What is S-Cinetone?
Kodachrome & S-Cinetone
How to Replicate S-Cinetone on Older Sony Cameras
Adjusting Gamma Curves for S-Cinetone Look
Fixing White Balance and Color Cast Issues
S-Cinetone Simulation Recipes
Comparisons by Cameras
How to Adapt S-Cinetone Recipes for Older Sony Cameras
Additional Resources

What is S-Cinetone?

S-Cinetone is designed to mimic the cinematic look of Sony's VENICE camera, optimizing skin tones and delivering film-like colors straight out of the camera. Introduced with the FX9 and later featured on models from the a7S III onward, S-Cinetone combines Rec.709 with softer tonal gradations, resulting in vibrant skin tones and rich colors without heavy grading.

S-Cinetone was designed to replicate the look of Sony’s VENICE cinema camera, with a focus on natural skin tones and film-like colors straight out of the camera. First introduced with the FX9, it’s now available on models from the a7s III onward.

Unlike S-Log3, which requires color grading expertise, S-Cinetone delivers ready-to-use footage, perfect for tight deadlines or when minimal post-processing is needed.

What sets S-Cinetone apart is its unique tonal curve, which combines elements of traditional Rec.709 with film-like characteristics. This results in softer gradations in highlights and shadows for pleasant skin tones and richer colors in all tonal ranges, even when overexposed.

Though it offers slightly less dynamic range than S-Log3, its ease of use makes it super practical, as it allows you to focus less on grading, and more on storytelling.

S-Cinetone vs. Kodachrome - Surprising Similarities

Kodachrome film recipe for Sony — *Kodachrome V2*

Kodachrome is one of my favorite film stocks – I have multiple film simulations (Kodachrome V1 & V2) that replicate it, as well as a pack of Kodachrome LUTs.

Safe to say, I’ve analyzed this film stock a lot. And exploring Kodachrome’s iconic color palette gave me a deeper appreciation for its rich, deep tones and natural color rendering. Its unique chemical process gave it archival stability and a look that feels timeless. That's what made it a favorite for travel, street, and nature.

As I studied Sony’s S-Cinetone, I noticed striking similarities. Both offer warm, cinematic colors—reds leaning orange, blues shifting with exposure, and skin tones that take on amber or rose hues. It reminded me of Kodachrome 25 and the look of Fred Herzog’s Kodachrome photography: skies that range from ocean blue to deep velvet, greens that lean slightly towards cyan or olive, and magentas subtly pushing red.

It got me thinking: did Sony take inspiration from Kodachrome when shaping the Venice color science?

While these are only personal observations, Sony’s deep roots in cinema—where Kodak film dominates—make the idea plausible. In fact, when building my Sony film simulations, I found recreating Kodak tones easier on Sony gear. Their color science already leans warm, much like Kodak film.

Since the VENICE camera is widely used in modern filmmaking, Sony’s similarity to Kodak’s classic film look feels intentional. But again, these are just personal observations based on hours of research and color comparisons.

If you're curious, I’ve published a few articles on recreating Kodachrome with Sony cameras — feel free to check them out. I also have some Kodachrome LUTs that you can grab if you’re just as in love with this film as I am.

Kodachrome LUT Pack

Buy Now

S-Cinetone Colors Are Not Perfect

While S-Cinetone comes close to a balanced cinematic look, I’ve found it often benefits from minor tweaks. By default, it can can produce magenta skies and yellowish skin tones, which aren’t always ideal.

A simple fix is to raise the Color Phase by +2 and adjust Saturation to taste. This shifts hues clockwise on the color wheel — blues move toward cyan, yellows toward orange — resulting in a more pleasing image.

Ofc, you can refine the look further using Color Depth, Kelvin, and the Color Filter to refine the look. But these 2 simple tweaks are enough to make S-Cinetone truly shine.

How to Replicate S-Cinetone on Older Sony Cameras

If you’re aiming for that cinematic S-Cinetone look on older Sony models like the a7III, a7C, RX100VII, or ZV-E10, you’re not alone. Many people love S-Cinetone for its natural skin tones and smooth highlight roll-off—but it’s not available on these cameras by default.

Why Pro Color Mode Isn't the Answer

Someone tried to recreate S-Cinetone using Pro mode, and while the results weren't bad, it didn't quite work.

After testing every color mode available on the Sony Alpha a6700 using vector scopes and a color checker, I found that the Pro mode doesn’t come close to S-Cinetone’s color mapping and saturation. The color shifts are quite different.

Take a look at this GIF.

But I found a better option.

The Best Alternative - Still/Movie Color Mode

If you're trying to replicate S-Cinetone on a Sony camera that doesn't officially support it (like the a7 III), your choice of Color Mode will make a big difference.

After extensive testing, I discovered that Still & Movie color modes come much closer to S-Cinetone’s base color science. Here’s why:

More accurate color mapping than Pro mode which has magenta shifted tones
More accurate Reds and Blues
Better, more natural-looking skin tones

S-Cinetone vs Movie color mode on Sony a6700
- S-Cinetone vs Still color mode on a6700

Movie vs. Still Color Mode on Sony Cameras – Which One Matches S-Cinetone Best?

But which one should you choose?

Sony's color science has evolved significantly over the years, which affects which color mode works best for this process. For instance, if you trying to get the S-Cinetone look on your Sony a7III, switch to Movie color mode. It delivers colors surprisingly close to S-Cinetone, with minimal tweaking needed.

On newer models like the a6700 and RX100 VI, the Still color mode is actually the better match for S-Cinetone. This is because Sony has gradually evolved their color science, improving skin tones, reds, and overall color accuracy in later models.

Still vs. Movie Modes - Key Color Differences Across Camera Generations

On older Sony cameras like the a7 III, the two main color modes behave quite differently.

Still mode leans toward magenta hues, often producing:

Pinkish skin tones
Reddish blues

Movie mode, in contrast, offers:

More accurate reds
Vibrant yellows
True blues

However, on newer Sony cameras (post-a7 III era), the behavior of these modes has flipped.

Still mode now produces:

Natural yellows
Accurate reds
Balanced blues

Movie mode tends to introduce:

Pinkish reds
Greenish yellows
Magenta-tinted blues

Why This Matters for S-Cinetone Matching

Movie mode might look closer to S-Cinetone at first glance.

But in practice, it often falls short. Sure, the blues are reasonably accurate. But the reds lean too pink and the yellows shift green, which makes it harder to match S-Cinetone once you start adjusting in-camera.

Still mode, on the other hand, is more accurate—especially with one small tweak.

👉 Dial the Color Phase down to –2.

This rotates the hue wheel slightly counter-clockwise, bringing reds, yellows, and skin tones into much better alignment with S-Cinetone—with very little effort.

Camera Comparisons - What to Expect

Sony RX100 VI

Surprisingly close to the a6700 in color science. Great compact option if you want S-Cinetone-like color straight out of camera.

Sony a7 III

Not perfect, but Movie mode still gets you reasonably close. And the difference is subtle enough that matching it to an a6700 is doable. The main issue with the Sony a7 II is that its yellows and greens are overly saturated and tend to shift toward green. These color differences are much more noticeable when analyzed on a vectorscope than in real-world shooting. So, don’t hold back or feel limited by the a7 III’s color science—in practical use, it still delivers great results, and it helps matching cameras between them much easier

Sony a7S III

Despite having native S-Cinetone, the magenta bias is strong—more similar to the a7 III than the a6700. This likely stems from their shared generation.

So, Which Color Mode Should You Use?

Here’s a general rule of thumb:

Older Sony cameras (like the a7III, a6300, RX100 IV, Sony a7R III and earlier)➤ Use Movie mode to get closer to the S-Cinetone aesthetic.
Newer Sony cameras (like the a7C, RX100 V, RX100 VA, RX100 VI, RX100 VII, Sony a6400, Sony a6600, Sony a7R IV, etc) ➤ Use Still mode, as it better reflects Sony’s updated color science.

How Close Can The Still/Movie Color Mode Get to The Real S-Cinetone

Now, is it identical? Of course not. The true S-Cinetone profile has its magic and unique characteristics:

Highlight desaturation that creates smooth, pleasing overexposure roll-off
Consistent, natural skin tones throughout the tonal range
A filmic roll-off that dynamically responds to changes in light
Distinct color mapping, including desaturated yellows and greens, rich orange-shifted reds, and magentas that lean towards red.

You’re not going to fully mimic that with the Still or Movie color mode. However, by shifting the Color Phase to negative values like -2, you can get very close. It remains the closest match available on older Sony Alpha cameras like the a7III.

Best Gamma Curve to Replicate S-Cinetone on Sony Cameras

If your Sony camera lacks the official S-Cinetone gamma, you can still get close to its look by choosing the right alternative gamma curves.

1. Use Cine4 for the Closest Match

Among all the gamma options, Cine4 comes closest to S-Cinetone’s gamma curve. It offers a good balance of highlight roll-off and contrast, making it ideal for achieving that cinematic look on Sony cameras like the a7III, a6400, or a6600.

2. No Cine4? Use Cine1 (with adjustments)

If your camera doesn’t support Cine4, your next best option is Cine1. However, Cine1 has lower contrast, so to bring it closer to S-Cinetone:

Lower the Black Level
Reduce Black Gamma to a negative value
For example
Black Level -12
Gamma Cine1
Black Gamma Mid -7

These tweaks will restore some of the punch and depth found in S-Cinetone footage.

3. Movie Gamma as a Last Resort

You can also use Movie gamma as an alternative if none of the Cine gammas are available. Be aware, though, that Movie gamma has a higher contrast, which may require more fine-tuning in post-production to achieve a softer, cinematic result.

Why White Balance and Color Cast Matter

Replicating the S-Cinetone look on older Sony cameras isn’t just about adjusting the Picture Profile settings.

Each model has its own color bias. Some run warmer, others lean magenta or green, so you’ll also need to adjust white balance and color filters. Without these tweaks, the colors can still look off, even if you copy the Picture Profile settings exactly.

How to Fix White Balance and Color Cast Issues

Every camera model has a unique native color cast. This is common across all brands. To get accurate colors or match S-Cinetone more closely in-camera (or during color grading), adjusting

the White Balance (WB) shift is essential.

The S-Cinetone recipe will look slightly different on every Sony camera model. Why? Because camera manufacturers keep evolving their their color science every year, so its expected that the a7S III will look different than the a6700.

Adjusting the White Balance color filter this way helps you compensate for your specific camera’s color bias, resulting in more natural and accurate skin tones and colors straight out of the camera.

Here are some simple guidelines:

If your camera tends to produce a magenta cast, try shifting the AWB green filter by +0.25 to +1 (e.g., AWB -G0.5 or G1). This adds green to counterbalance magenta.
If your camera has a yellow-green cast, try shifting the AWB magenta or blue filter by about +0.25 (e.g., AWB M0.25 or B1:M0.25) to neutralize the yellow-green tint.
If your camera is colder than other cameras and has this cold cyan tint, then push the color filter towards A2 (Amber).

The Universal S-Cinetone Recipe

📸 UNIVERSAL S-CINETONE RECIPE

────────────────────────────────

Black Level: -1

Gamma: Cine1-4 (or Movie if unavailable)

Black Gamma: Middle -7

Knee: Manual 80% +4

Color Mode: Still

Saturation: 0

Color Phase: -2

Color Depth

R 0

G +4

B -1

C -3

M +3

Y 0

Camera-Specific Adjustments

To make this easier, I’ve developed adjusted Picture Profile recipes specifically for the RX100 VI and the a7III. These recipes not only address the Picture Profile settings but also include white balance color filter tweaks to neutralize the native color cast of each camera.

The core idea is simple - Identify your camera’s predominant color cast, then compensate for it through white balance and picture profile adjustments. This approach helps match contrast, color depth, and skin tones closer to authentic S-Cinetone footage.

Sony A7III S-Cinetone Recipe

SONY A7III - STRONG MAGENTA CAST

──────────────────────────────────────

Black Level -12

Gamma Cine1

Black Gamma Middle -7

Knee Manual 80% +4

Color Mode Movie

Saturation +2

Color Phase -1

Color Depth

R+1

G +4

B -1

C -3

M +3

AWB: A0.5-G0.5 - This will compensate for the highly magenta tint and match the White balance to the a6700

Sony RX100 S-Cinetone Recipe

📸 SONY RX100 VI - Similar to a6700, just colder and maybe leaning cyan

──────────────────────────────────────

Black Level -12

Gamma Cine1

Black Gamma Middle -7

Knee Manual 80% +4

Color Mode Still

Saturation +8

Color Phase -2

Color Depth

R 0

G +4

B -1

C -2

M +4

AWB: A1 This will compensate for the colder white balance of the RX100 VI

The science behind the technique

Both cameras have a magenta cast, but it’s more pronounced on the Sony A7 III, while the A6700 handles white balance accurately. To bring them closer, I started by adjusting the white balance—adding green to offset the magenta. Since magenta is a cooler tone, I also added warmth by shifting the color filter to A1 (Amber).

Both cameras have a magenta cast, but the A7 III is noticeably stronger, while the A6700 handles white balance accurately. The first step to bringing them closer is adjusting the white balance—adding more green to counteract the magenta. ALso because magenta is a cold color, I added more warmth with he color filter by pushing A1(Amber).

Next, I used Color Phase to align the colors more closely to S-Cinetone, especially for the blues and reds. And finally I adjusted the Color depth to match better the color luminance of the S-Cinetone.

The result isn’t identical, but it gets your footage surprisingly close to S-Cinetone—without upgrading your camera or relying on heavy color grading. It’s especially useful if you're using film recipes on an older camera model and want a more consistent look.

Results Comparison

S-Cinetone vs. Simulation Recipe on the A6700

Let's examine how the simulation recipe performs compared to true S-Cinetone on the A6700. Both images are shot on a6700.

A6700 S-Cinetone vs a6700 S-Cinetone film simulation

This recipe is based on Still color mode it looks almost identical

S-Cinetone (A6700) vs. S-Cinetone Simulation (RX100 VI, A7III)

A6700 vs RX100 VI vs a7 III

The RX100 VI gets surprisingly close to S-Cinetone—only the yellows show slight differences. The a7 III also delivers a strong match overall, but its yellows tend to shift more toward green, whereas true S-Cinetone pushes them toward a warmer amber.

Still, the results are impressively close. Especially considering these cameras are 5–6 years apart. Both offer a solid straight-out-of-camera match for S-Cinetone, making them great options when working with older models.

Real Life Comparison - S-Cinetone Film simmulation

Sony a6700 vs a7IIi vs RX100VI

There are some subtle differences to keep in mind—skies tend to shift slightly teal, and greens appear more desaturated with real S-Cinetone. Highlights are also noticeably softer, especially compared to Cine1, which pushes data output up to 109%. For these compaisons I used CIne1 on both a7III and RX100 VI for a beter match, but if you're looking for a closer match to S-Cinetone, Cine4 is a better starting point.

How to Adapt S-Cinetone Based Recipes for Older Sony Cameras

If you're using any of my film simulation recipes based on S-Cinetone with older Sony cameras, you'll need to make a few key adjustments to compensate.

The Conversion Formula

Switch Color Mode from S-Cinetone to Still or Movie (based on your camera generation)
Reduce Color Phase by -1 or -2 from the original recipe
Increase Saturation by several points to compensate for the different color base

Example

Let's say the original film recipe looks like this:

Black Level: -12

Gamma: Still

Black Gamma: Middle, -7

Knee: Manual, 80%, +4

Color Mode: S-Cinetone

Saturation: +2

Color Phase: +2

Color Depth:

R: -1

G: 0

B: +2

C: +2

M: 0

Y: 0

You will adapt it for an older camera model like this:

Black Level: -12

Gamma: Still

Black Gamma: Middle, -7

Knee: Manual, 80%, +4

Color Mode: Still

Saturation: +6

Color Phase: 0

Color Depth:

R: -1

G: 0

B: +2

C: +2

M: 0

Y: 0

💡 Note: I didn’t include Color Depth adjustments here to keep things simple. You’ll get good enough results by just switching the Color Mode, reducing Color Phase, and increasing Saturation by a few points, and keeping the rest of the settings the same as per original simulation recipe.

Customizing Your Picture Profile Settings

These recipes provide an excellent starting point, but every shooting situation is unique. Feel free to adjust individual settings based on your specific needs.

👉 I've created comprehensive tutorials that cover every aspect of customization. Check out my in-depth Picture Profile guide for complete creative control.

Keep in mind that Sony's color science varies by model. For instance, the A7 III exhibits a noticeable magenta cast in Still color mode, while newer cameras like the A6700 differ.

While perfect color matching between different camera models isn't possible through in-camera settings alone, adjustments to white balance and Picture Profile settings help get close.

Additional Resources

If you work with multiple Sony cameras or simply want your older camera to match newer Sony color science, achieving consistent results requires specific techniques.

👉 I've developed detailed step-by-step guides for color matching different models. These comprehensive tutorials are available on the How To section of the blog and cover specific techniques for learning how to color match.

✅ Takeaway

You can closely replicate the S-Cinetone look on older Sony cameras like the a7III by switching to Still or Movie color mode, using Cine4 gamma, adjusting Color Phase to -1 or -2, and correcting for your camera’s unique color cast with white balance tweaks.

If you camera is highly magenta, start pushing a bit more green into the image, while if it's green casted, start pushing a bit more magenta into the scene. Keep the other settings the same.

It won’t be identical, S-Cinetone and Still/Movie color mode react differently to light, so you won't get the exact same image. But it's the best in-camera match available for older models - that doesn't require any LUT or color grading.

Want More?

If you're interested in exploring 80+ film simulations for Sony cameras, check out my Film Simulation Bundle—designed to give you amazing colors, straight out of camera.

Sony Film Simulation Recipes -PDF