Sony HDR-CX105E User manual

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Handycam Handbook
Table of Contents
HDR-CX100E/CX105E/CX106E
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
 2009 Sony Corporation
4-129-505-11(1)
GB
Using the Handycam Handbook
Searching for information quickly
Table of Contents
You will find information on using your camcorder to its fullest in this Handycam Handbook.
Read the Handycam Handbook in addition to the Operating Guide (a separate volume).
Information on using your camcorder connected to a computer will be found in the
Operating Guide and the PMB Guide that is the Help of the supplied “PMB (Picture Motion
Browser)” software.
Click an item on the right edge of each page, and you will jump to the page for that item.
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Useful Recording Techniques
 Click here.
You can search for an item by keyword using Adobe Reader. Refer to the Help of Adobe Reader for tips
on how to use Adobe Reader.
You can print out the Handycam Handbook.
About this Handycam Handbook

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
Index

The example images used in this Handycam Handbook for illustration purposes are captured using a
digital still camera, and therefore may appear different from images and screen indicators that actually
appear on your camcorder.
In this Handycam Handbook, the internal memory of your camcorder and “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media are called “recording media.”
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media and “Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo” media are both referred to as
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media in this manual.
Design and specifications of your camcorder and accessories are subject to change without notice.
Table of contents
Step 1: Charging the battery pack.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Step 2: Turning the power on, and setting the date and time.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Changing the language setting.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Recording/Playback
21
22
22
24
25
27
28
28
30
32
32
32
33
33
34
35
35
36
38
Index
Five pieces of advice for successful recording.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording and playing movies and photos easily
Easy Handycam Operation).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(
Recording movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Shooting photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playing movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Viewing photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Shooting photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Useful functions for recording movies and photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Zooming.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording high quality photos during movie recording (Dual Rec).. . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording in mirror mode.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recording fast action in slow-motion (SMTH SLW REC).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Switching the screen display, or turning the LCD backlight on/off.. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playback on the camcorder.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playing movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Viewing photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Useful functions for playing movies and photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Useful Recording Techniques
Getting started
Table of Contents
Using the Handycam Handbook.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Searching for information quickly.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Useful recording techniques.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Parts and controls.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Screen indicators.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
“ HOME” and “ OPTION” - Taking advantage of two types of menus.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Using the HOME MENU.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Using the OPTION MENU.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Menu lists.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
List of the HOME MENU.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
List of the OPTION MENU.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Read this before operating your camcorder.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
38
38
39
40
41
42
42
43
44
46
Table of Contents
Searching for desired scene by pinpoint (Film Roll Index).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Searching for desired scene by face (Face Index).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Searching for desired images by date (Date Index).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using PB zoom with photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playing back a series of photos (Slide show).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playing images on a TV.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Connecting a TV using [TV CONNECT Guide].. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Connecting to a high definition TV.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Connecting to a non-high-definition 16:9 (wide) or 4:3 TV.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using “BRAVIA” Sync.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing
47
49
50
50
51
52
53
54
54
55
56
56
Useful Recording Techniques
Deleting movies and photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Capturing a photo from a movie.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dubbing/copying movies and photos from the internal memory to
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dubbing movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Protecting recorded movies and photos (Protect).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dividing a movie.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using the Playlist of movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating the Playlist .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Playing the Playlist.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a disc with a DVD writer, recorder.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a high definition image quality (HD) disc with a DVD writer, etc.
(USB cable connection).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a standard definition image quality (SD) disc with a recorder, etc.
(A/V connecting cable connection).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking the battery information.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
56
59
Utilizing recording media
60
60
60
60
62
63
64
Customizing your camcorder
MOVIE SETTINGS (Items for recording movies).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
PHOTO SETTINGS (Items for recording photos).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
FACE FUNC. SET (Items to set face function).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Index
Changing the recording media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting the recording media for movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting the recording media for photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Inserting “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking the media information.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deleting all movies and photos (Formatting).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preventing data on the internal memory from being recovered.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
74
76
78
80
81
83
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Self-diagnosis display/Warning indicators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Table of Contents
VIEW IMAGES SET (Items to customize the display).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SOUND/DISP SET (Items to adjust the sound and the screen).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
OUTPUT SETTINGS (Items for when connected to a TV).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CLOCK/ LANG (Items to set clock and language).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
GENERAL SET (Other setup items).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Functions set in the OPTION MENU.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additional information
Useful Recording Techniques
Recording time of movies/number of recordable photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Expected time of recording and playback with each battery pack.. . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Expected recording time of movies.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Expected number of recordable photos.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Using your camcorder abroad.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
File/folder structure on the internal memory and “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Maintenance and precautions.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
About the AVCHD format.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
About the “Memory Stick” media.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
About the “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
About x.v.Color.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
About handling of your camcorder.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Index.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Index
Useful recording techniques
Checking your golf
swing
 SMTH SLW REC........................................... 33
 AUTO BACK LIGHT....................................... 69
 BEACH........................................................ 86
 SNOW........................................................ 86
Capturing photos
during movie
recording
Table of Contents
Getting a good shot
of a ski slope or
beach
Capturing smiles
automatically
 Dual Rec..................................................... 32
 SMILE SHUTTER.......................................... 73
Flowers in close-up
 SPOTLIGHT................................................. 86
 PORTRAIT................................................... 86
 FOCUS........................................................ 85
 TELE MACRO............................................... 84
Fireworks with all its
splendor
Focusing on the dog
on the left side of
the screen
 FIREWORKS................................................ 86
 FOCUS........................................................ 85
Useful Recording Techniques
A child on the stage
under a spot light
 FOCUS........................................................ 85
 SPOT FOCUS............................................... 84
 SPOT MTR/FCS............................................ 83
Index
Parts and controls
Figures in ( ) are reference pages.
Table of Contents

Lens (Carl Zeiss lens) (15)
LENS COVER switch (22, 24, 28, 30)
Built-in microphone
While the lamp is lit or flashing, the
camcorder is reading or writing data.
RESET button
Press RESET to initialize all the settings
including the clock setting.
LCD screen/Touch panel (10, 33)
If you rotate the LCD panel 180 degrees, you
can close the LCD panel with the LCD screen
facing out. This is convenient during playback
operations.

Useful Recording Techniques
(DISC BURN) button (see Operating
Guide)
POWER button (19)
DISP (display) button (34)
EASY button (22)
HDMI OUT (mini) jack (43)
 (USB) jack (56)
 (VIEW IMAGES) button (25, 35)
Access lamp (Internal memory, “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media) (60)
“Memory Stick Duo” media slot (60)
(HOME) button (10)
Index
Zoom buttons (32, 40)
You can zoom in or out.
START/STOP button (23, 29)
Upper left
Indicator
Meaning
HOME button (10)
Self-timer recording (89)
MICREF LEVEL low (88)
WIDE SELECT (66)
 60 min
Remaining battery
Return button (10)
Table of Contents
BLT-IN ZOOM MIC (88)
Center
Power zoom lever (32, 40)
Indicator
Meaning
[STBY]/[REC]
Recording status (23, 29)
Photo size (70)
PHOTO button (25, 31)
MODE button (24, 30)
Slide show set (41)


Warning (95)

Playback mode (26, 36)
Upper right
Indicator
Attach a tripod (sold separately) to the
tripod receptacle using a tripod screw (sold
separately: the length of the screw must be less
than 5.5 mm (7/32 in.)).
BATT (battery) release lever (18)
0:00:00
Counter (hour:minute:
second) (26, 36)
[00min]
Estimated recording
remaining time (23, 28)
FADER (88)
Screen indicators
Upper left
Center
Meaning
Recording image quality
(HD/SD) and recording
mode (FH/HQ/SP/LP)
(65)
Recording/playback/
editing media (60)
Useful Recording Techniques
(Movie)/ (Photo) lamps (19)
Battery pack (17)
CHG (charge) lamp (17)
Speaker
DC IN jack (17)
A/V Remote Connector (42, 56)
START/STOP button (23, 29)
Grip belt (22, 28)
Hook for a shoulder belt
Tripod receptacle
9999
9999
Upper right
Bottom
Index
100/112
LCD backlight off (34)
Approximate number of
recordable photos and
recording media (24, 30)
Playback folder (37)
Current playing movie or
photo/Number of total
recorded movies or photos
(25, 35)
Bottom
Indicator
Meaning
FACE DETECTION (72)
DETECTION SET (73)
Manual focus (85)
Table of Contents

SCENE SELECTION (86)

White balance (87)
SteadyShot off (67)
SPOT MTR/FCS (83)/
EXPOSURE (85)/SPOT
METER (83)
TELE MACRO (84)
X.V.COLOR (67)
CONVERSION LENS
(69, 71)
OPTION button (10)
Useful Recording Techniques
VIEW IMAGES button
(25, 35)
Slide show button (41)
101-0005

Data file name (27, 36)
Protected image (52)
VISUAL INDEX button
(27, 36)


Indicators and their positions are approximate
and may differ from what you actually see.
Some indicators may not appear, depending on
your camcorder model.
Index
“
HOME” and “
OPTION” - Taking
advantage of two
types of menus
To see the descriptions on the HOME
MENU, touch (HELP) on the HOME
MENU screen. (The bottom of turns
orange.) Then, touch the item you want to
know about.
HOME MENU
Using the
When you press (HOME), the HOME
MENU appears. You can change the
settings of your camcorder, etc.
OPTION MENU
Table of Contents
Using the
Using the HELP function
The OPTION MENU appears just like
the pop-up window that appears when you
right-click the mouse on a computer. The
menu items you can change in the context
appear.
(HOME)
(HOME) button
(OPTION)
 Touch the desired tab  the
item to change the setting.
Menu item
Menu item
Useful Recording Techniques
 Touch the desired category 
the menu item to be changed.
Category
 Follow the instructions on the
screen.
Tab




When the item is not on the screen, touch
/ .
To return to the previous screen, touch
.
To hide the HOME MENU screen, touch
.
You cannot select the grayed items or
settings.
 Notes
When the item you want is not on the screen,
touch another tab. (There may be no tab.)
 You cannot use the OPTION MENU during
Easy Handycam operation.

10
Index
 After completing the setting,
touch
.
 After completing the setting,
touch
.

The tabs and items that appear on the screen
depend on the recording/playback status of
your camcorder at the time.
Table of Contents
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
11
Menu lists
List of the
DISC BURN
HOME MENU
p. 28
p. 30
p. 33
(VIEW IMAGES) category
VISUAL INDEX*
FILM ROLL*
FACE*
PLAYLIST
(SETTINGS) category
p. 36
p. 38
p. 38
p. 54
MOVIE SETTINGS
/
SET*
(OTHERS) category
p. 65
WIDE SELECT
p. 66
DIGITAL ZOOM
PHOTO CAPTURE
MOVIE DUB
DUB
p. 49
GUIDEFRAME
DUB
p. 50
p. 67
p. 47
AUTO SLW SHUTTR
p. 67
p. 47
X.V.COLOR
p. 67
p. 50
p. 51
p. 51
DELETE
p. 47
DELETE
p. 47
PROTECT
p. 52
PROTECT
p. 52
DIVIDE
p. 53
ADD
ERASE/
ERASE
p. 55
ERASE ALL/
ERASE ALL
MOVE/
MOVE
CONVERSION LENS
p. 69
AUTO BACK LIGHT
p. 69
p. 70
FILE NO.
p. 70
AUTO SLW SHUTTR
p. 70
GUIDEFRAME
p. 71
CONVERSION LENS
p. 71
AUTO BACK LIGHT
p. 71
SMILE SHUTTER**
VIEW IMAGES SET
/
SET
p. 72
p. 73
p. 74
DATA CODE
p. 74
p. 55
SOUND/DISP SET
VOLUME*
p. 26, 36
BEEP*
p. 76
p. 55
LCD BRIGHT
p. 76
LCD BL LEVEL
p. 76
LCD COLOR
p. 77
USB CONNECT
USB CONNECT
p. 56
USB CONNECT
p. 56
OUTPUT SETTINGS
TV TYPE
12
p. 78
Index
p. 54
p. 68
FACE FUNC. SET
FACE DET. SETTING
p. 54
ADD by date/
ADD by date
p. 68
REMAINING SET
PHOTO SETTINGS
IMAGE SIZE*
EDIT
PLAYLIST EDIT
ADD/
p. 66
STEADYSHOT
Useful Recording Techniques
DELETE
COPY by date
p. 65
REC MODE
DELETE*
DELETE
PHOTO COPY
COPY by select
p. 60
p. 60
p. 62
p. 63
p. 93, 95
Table of Contents
MOVIE*
PHOTO*
SMTH SLW REC
p. 42
p. 59
(MANAGE MEDIA) category
MOVIE MEDIA SET*
PHOTO MEDIA SET*
MEDIA INFO
MEDIA FORMAT*
REPAIR IMG.DB F.
(CAMERA) category
Operating Guide
TV CONNECT Guide*
BATTERY INFO
p. 78
COMPONENT
p. 79
SLIDE SHOW
p. 41
HDMI RESOLUTION
p. 79
SLIDE SHOW SET
p. 41
CLOCK/ LANG
CLOCK SET*
SUMMERTIME
LANGUAGE SET*
p. 19
Table of Contents
AREA SET

The tab depends on the situation/no tab
DISP OUTPUT
p. 80
p. 80
p. 80
GENERAL SET
DEMO MODE
p. 81
CALIBRATION
p. 108
A.SHUT OFF
p. 81
POWER ON BY LCD
p. 82
CTRL FOR HDMI
p. 82
[SOUND/DISP SET] is changed to [SOUND
SETTINGS] during Easy Handycam operation.
List of the
Useful Recording Techniques
* You can set this item during Easy Handycam
operation.
**You cannot set [FRAME SETTING] during
Easy Handycam operation.
OPTION MENU
Following items are available on the
OPTION MENU only.
tab
SPOT MTR/FCS
p. 83
SPOT METER
p. 83
SPOT FOCUS
p. 84
TELE MACRO
p. 84
EXPOSURE
p. 85
FOCUS
p. 85
SCENE SELECTION
p. 86
WHITE BAL.
p. 87
FADER
p. 88
BLT-IN ZOOM MIC
p. 88
MICREF LEVEL
p. 88
SELF-TIMER
p. 89
TIMING
p. 33
Index
tab
tab
13
Read this before
operating your
camcorder

The numbers in ( ) are the supplied
quantity.
 AC Adaptor (1)
 Power cord (Mains lead) (1)
 Component A/V cable (1) 
 A/V connecting cable (1) 
 USB cable (1) 
 Rechargeable battery pack NP-FH50 (1)
 CD-ROM “Handycam Application
Software” (1)
 “PMB”

(software, including “PMB Guide”)
Handbook” (PDF)

 “Handycam
“Operating Guide” (1)
Menu items, LCD panel, and lens


See page 60 for the “Memory Stick” media you
can use with this camcorder.

Using the camcorder

Do not hold the camcorder by the following
parts, and also do not hold the camcorder by
the jack covers.
LCD screen
A menu item that is grayed out is not available
under the current recording or playback
conditions.
The LCD screen is manufactured using
extremely high-precision technology, so over
99.99% of the pixels are operational for effective
use. However, there may be some tiny black
points and/or bright points (white, red, blue,
or green in color) that appear constantly on the
LCD screen. These points are normal results of
the manufacturing process and do not affect the
recording in any way.
Useful Recording Techniques

Table of Contents
Supplied items
camcorder” (p. 107).
Do not do any of the following when the
(Movie)/ (Photo) mode lamps (p. 19)
or the access lamp (p. 60) are lit or flashing.
Otherwise, the recording media may be
damaged, recorded images may be lost or other
malfunctions could occur.
 Ejecting the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
from the camcorder
 Removing the battery pack or AC Adaptor
from the camcorder
 Applying mechanical shock or vibration to
the camcorder
When connecting your camcorder to another
device with a cable, be sure to insert the
connector plug in the correct way. Pushing the
plug forcibly into the terminal will damage the
terminal and may result in a malfunction of
your camcorder.
Disconnect the AC Adaptor from the
camcorder, holding both the camcorder and the
DC plug.
Battery pack



The camcorder is not dustproofed, dripproofed
or waterproofed. See “About handling of your
14
Exposing the LCD screen, or the lens to direct
sunlight for long periods of time may cause
malfunctions.
Do not aim at the sun. Doing so might cause
your camcorder to malfunction. Take images
Index
Black points
White, red, blue or green points
of the sun only in low light conditions, such as
at dusk.
Save all your recorded image data

About changing the language setting

Recording




Notes on battery pack/AC Adaptor
Before starting to record, test the recording
function to make sure that the image and sound
are recorded without any problems.
Compensation for the contents of recordings
cannot be provided, even if recording or
playback is not possible due to a malfunction of
the camcorder, storage media, etc.
TV color systems differ depending on the
country/region. To view your recordings on a
TV, you need a PAL system-based TV.
Television programs, films, video tapes,
and other materials may be copyrighted.
Unauthorized recording of such materials may
be contrary to the copyright laws.

When the camcorder is connected to a
computer

Your camcorder is compatible with MPEG-4
AVC/H.264 High Profile for high definition
image quality (HD) recording. Therefore,
you cannot play back images recorded with
high definition image quality (HD) on your
camcorder with the following devices;
 Other AVCHD format compatible devices
which are not compatible with High Profile
 Devices which are not compatible with the
AVCHD format
Even if you perform [
DELETE ALL]/
DELETE ALL], [ DELETE ALL] or
[
[MEDIA FORMAT] (p. 63) or formatting the
media of the camcorder, you may not delete
data from the media completely. When you
transfer the camcorder, it is recommended that
you perform [ EMPTY] (p. 64) to prevent the
recovery of your data. Also, when you dispose
of the camcorder, it is recommended that you
destroy the actual body of the camcorder.
Useful Recording Techniques

If you cannot record/play back images,
perform [MEDIA FORMAT]

Discs recorded with HD image quality
(high definition)

Do not try to format the media of the
camcorder using a computer. If you do so, your
camcorder may not operate correctly.
Note on disposal/transfer
Playing back recorded images on other
devices

Be sure to remove the battery pack or the AC
Adaptor after turning off the camcorder.
Table of Contents
The on-screen displays in each local language
are used for illustrating the operating
procedures. Change the screen language before
using your camcorder if necessary (p. 20).
To prevent your image data from being lost,
save all your recorded images on external media
periodically. It is recommended that you save
the image data on a disc such as a DVD-R using
your computer (see Operating Guide). Also,
you can save your image data using a VCR, or a
DVD/HDD recorder (p. 56).
Carl Zeiss lens
Your camcorder is equipped with a Carl Zeiss
lens, which was developed jointly by Carl Zeiss,
in Germany, and Sony Corporation, and produces
superior images. It adopts the MTF measurement
system for video cameras and offers a quality
typical of a Carl Zeiss lens.
MTF= Modulation Transfer Function. The
number value indicates the amount of light from a
15
Index
This camcorder captures high definition footage
in the AVCHD format. DVD media containing
AVCHD footage should not be used with DVD
based players or recorders, as the DVD player/
recorder may fail to eject the media and may
erase its contents without warning. DVD media
containing AVCHD footage may be played on
a compatible Blu-ray Disc player/recorder or
other compatible device.
If you repeat recording/deleting images for
a long time, fragmentation of data occurs on
the recording media. Images cannot be saved
or recorded. In such a case, save your images
on some type of external media first (p. 56,
see Operating Guide too), and then perform
[MEDIA FORMAT] (p. 63).
subject coming into the lens.
Table of Contents
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
16
Getting started
Step 1: Charging the battery pack
CHG (charge)
lamp
3
Table of Contents
3
1
2
DC plug
DC IN jack
AC Adaptor
Power cord
(Mains lead)
To the wall outlet
(wall socket)
You can charge the “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack (H series) after attaching it to your
camcorder.

You cannot attach any “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack other than the H series to your camcorder.
1
2
3
Turn off your camcorder by closing the LCD screen.
Useful Recording Techniques
Battery pack
Attach the battery pack by sliding it in the direction of the arrow until it
clicks.
Connect the AC Adaptor and the power cord (mains lead) to your
camcorder and the wall outlet (wall socket).

When the battery is charged, disconnect the AC Adaptor from the DC IN
jack of your camcorder.


See page 98 on recording and playing time.
When your camcorder is on, you can check the approximate amount of remaining battery power with the
remaining battery indicator at the upper left on the LCD screen.
17
Index
4
Be sure that the  mark on the DC plug is facing right.
The CHG (charge) lamp lights up and charging starts. The CHG (charge) lamp turns off
when the battery pack is fully charged.
Charging time
Approximate time (min.) required when you fully charge a fully discharged battery pack.

Charging time
135
170
390
When the battery pack is charged at 25 C (77 ˚F) (10 C to 30 C (50 ˚F to 86 ˚F) is recommended)
To remove the battery pack
Close the LCD screen. Slide the BATT (battery) release lever  and remove the battery pack
.
Make the same connections as “Step 1: Charging the battery pack.” Even if the battery pack is
attached, the battery pack is not discharged.
Charging the battery pack abroad
You can charge the battery pack in any countries/regions using the AC Adaptor supplied with
your camcorder within the AC 100 V - 240 V, 50 Hz/60 Hz range.

Do not use an electronic voltage transformer.
Useful Recording Techniques
To use a wall outlet (wall socket) as a power source
Table of Contents
Battery pack
NP-FH50 (supplied)
NP-FH70
NP-FH100
Notes on the battery pack




When you remove the battery pack or disconnect the AC Adaptor, close the LCD screen and make sure
(Movie) lamp/ (Photo) lamp (p. 19) are turned off.
that the
The CHG (charge) lamp flashes during charging under the following conditions:
 The battery pack is not attached correctly.
 The battery pack is damaged.
We do not recommend using an NP-FH30, which only allows short recording and playback times, with
your camcorder.
In the default setting, the power turns off automatically if you leave your camcorder without any
operation for about 5 minutes, to save battery power ([A.SHUT OFF], p. 81).



Use the nearby wall outlet (wall socket) when using the AC Adaptor. Disconnect the AC Adaptor from
the wall outlet (wall socket) immediately if any malfunction occurs while using your camcorder.
Do not use the AC Adaptor placed in a narrow space, such as between a wall and furniture.
Do not short-circuit the DC plug of the AC Adaptor or battery terminal with any metallic objects. This
may cause a malfunction.
18
Index
Notes on the AC Adaptor
Step 2: Turning the power on, and setting the
date and time
Your camcorder is turned on.

To turn on your camcorder when the LCD screen is open, press POWER.
POWER button
Table of Contents
1
Open the LCD screen of your camcorder.
(Movie): To record movies
(Photo): To record photos
/ , then touch [NEXT].
Touch the button on
the LCD screen.

3
Useful Recording Techniques
2
Select the desired geographical area with
To set the date and time again, touch
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [CLOCK/ LANG] 
[CLOCK SET]. When an item is not on the screen, touch / until the item appears.
Set [SUMMERTIME], date and time, then touch
.
The clock starts.

If you set [SUMMERTIME] to [ON], the clock advances 1 hour.
Index
19


To turn off the power
Close the LCD screen. The
off.
(Movie) lamp flashes for a few seconds and the power is turned
Table of Contents

The date and time does not appear during recording, but they are automatically recorded on the
(HOME)
recording media, and can be displayed during playback. To display the date and time, touch
(SETTINGS)  [VIEW IMAGES SET]  [DATA CODE]  [DATE/TIME] 


.

(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [SOUND/DISP
You can turn off the operation beeps by touching


.
SET]  [BEEP]  [OFF] 
If the button you touch does not react correctly, calibrate the touch panel (p. 108).
POWER button


You can turn off your camcorder also by pressing POWER.
When [POWER ON BY LCD] (p. 82) is set to [OFF], turn off your camcorder by pressing POWER.
You can change the on-screen displays to show messages in a specified language.
(SETTINGS)  [CLOCK/ LANG]  [ LANGUAGE SET] 
Touch (HOME) 


.
a desired language 
Useful Recording Techniques
Changing the language setting
Index
20
Recording/Playback
Five pieces of advice for successful recording
Table of Contents
Stabilizing your camcorder
When you hold the camcorder, keep your upper body upright,
and hold your arms close to your body.
The SteadyShot function is effective against camera-shake,
however, it is essential that you not move the camcorder.
Zooming smoothly
Zoom in and out slowly and smoothly. And, use zooming
sparingly. Excessive zooming will make movies that may make
the viewer feel tired when viewing them.
Accentuating movies with narration
Consider the sound to be recorded with your movies. Narrate
the subject, or talk to the subject during shooting.
Aim for a balanced volume of voices, since the recording person
is closer to the microphone than the recorded person.
Useful Recording Techniques
Evoking a feeling of spaciousness
Use the panning technique. Stabilize yourself, move your
camcorder horizontally as you turn your upper body slowly. Stay
still at the end of panning for a while to make the scene look
stable.
Using accessories
21
Index
Make good use of camcorder accessories.
For example, using a tripod, you can make a time-lapse
recording or record subjects in dim light, such as scenes of
fireworks, or night views. By always carrying spare batteries, you
can continue recording without worrying about battery power
shortages.
Recording and playing movies and photos easily
Easy Handycam Operation)
(

When Easy Handycam operation is started, nearly all menu settings are reset to the default settings
automatically. (Some menu items retain the settings that were made before Easy Handycam operation.)
Table of Contents
Simply press EASY. You can record or play movies and photos easily (Easy Handycam
operation).
During Easy Handycam operation, you can set basic options, such as changing the image size
or deleting images, among the setting and adjustment items. Other items are set automatically.
Recording movies
In the default setting, movies are recorded with
high definition image quality (HD) on the internal
memory (p. 60, 65).
Useful Recording Techniques
 Fasten the grip belt.
 Open the lens cover.
 Open the LCD screen of your camcorder.
Your camcorder is turned on.
To turn on your camcorder when the LCD screen is already open, press POWER (p. 19).
22
Index

POWER button
Table of Contents
 Press EASY.
appears on the LCD screen.
Useful Recording Techniques
 Press START/STOP to start recording.
Tips
The [REC MODE] is fixed to [HD SP] or [SD SP] (p. 65).


23
Index
[STBY]  [REC]
To stop recording, press START/STOP again.
Shooting photos
 Open the lens cover.
Table of Contents
 Open the LCD screen of your camcorder.
Your camcorder is turned on.

To turn on your camcorder when the LCD screen is already open, press POWER (p. 19).
Useful Recording Techniques
 Press EASY.
appears on the LCD screen.
 Press MODE to turn on the
(Photo) lamp.
The aspect ratio of the screen becomes 4:3.
Index
24
 Press PHOTO lightly to adjust the focus, then press it fully.
Table of Contents
Flashes  Lights up
When
disappears, the photo is recorded on the internal memory.
 Open the LCD screen of your camcorder.
Your camcorder is turned on.

To turn on your camcorder when the LCD screen is already open, press POWER (p. 19).
 Press
Useful Recording Techniques
Playing movies
(VIEW IMAGES).
The VISUAL INDEX screen appears after some seconds.
Index
25
 Touch the
(or
) tab ()  a desired movie ().
Previous 6 images
Next 6 images
Table of Contents
Searches for images by
date (p. 39)
HOME MENU
Returns to the
recording screen





appears when you select standard definition image quality (SD) movie is selected with [
/
SET] (p. 65).
 appears with the movie or photo that was most recently played or recorded. If you touch the
movie or photo with , you can continue playback from the previous time. ( appears on the
photo recorded on “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.)
Your camcorder starts playing the selected movie.
Volume adjustment
Previous
Useful Recording Techniques
*
: Displays the Film Roll Index screen (p. 38).
: Displays the Face Index screen (p. 38).
: Displays high definition image quality (HD) movies.*
: Displays photos.
Next
To stop
To fast-forward
To fast-reverse
To pause/play
Tips
When playback from the selected movie reaches the last movie, the screen returns to the VISUAL INDEX
screen.
/
during pause.
You can slow down the playback speed by touching
 adjust with
/

during playback.
You can adjust the volume by touching
The setting of [DATA CODE] is fixed to [DATE/TIME] (p. 74).
To change the recording media, select the recording media on [MOVIE MEDIA SET] (p. 60).





26
Index

Viewing photos
On the VISUAL INDEX screen, touch the
().
(Photo) tab ()  a desired photo
Table of Contents
Your camcorder starts playing the selected photo.
Slide show/pause
Next
To the VISUAL
INDEX screen
Tips
The setting of [DATA CODE] is fixed to [DATE/TIME] (p. 74).
To change the recording media, select the recording media on [PHOTO MEDIA SET] (p. 60).



Useful Recording Techniques
Previous
To cancel Easy Handycam operation
After you finish recording, or close menu setting screen, press EASY again.
from the LCD screen.
disappears
Menu settings during Easy Handycam operation
Press (HOME) to display the menu items available for setup changes. See “Menu lists”
(p. 12) on the available menu items.
Invalid buttons during Easy Handycam operation
You cannot use some buttons/functions during Easy Handycam operation since they are
automatically set. If you set an invalid operation, [Invalid during Easy Handycam operation.]
may appear.
27
Index
 Notes
OPTION MENU.
You cannot use the
 Cancel Easy Handycam operation if you want to add effects to images or change settings.

Recording
Table of Contents
Recording movies
In the default setting, movies are recorded with
high definition image quality (HD) on the internal
memory (p. 60, 65).
 Fasten the grip belt.
 Open the lens cover.
Useful Recording Techniques
 Open the LCD screen of your camcorder.
Your camcorder is turned on.

To turn on your camcorder when the LCD screen is already open, press POWER (p. 19).
POWER button
Index
28
 Press START/STOP to start recording.
Table of Contents
[STBY]  [REC]
To stop recording, press START/STOP again.








Useful Recording Techniques

If you close the LCD screen while recording movies, the camcorder stops recording.
See page 98 on the recordable time of movies.
When a movie file exceeds 2 GB, the next movie file is created automatically.
You can change the recording media and the image quality (p. 60, 65).
[ STEADYSHOT] is set to [ON] in the default setting.
It will take several seconds until you can start recording after you turn on the camcorder. You cannot
operate your camcorder during this time.
If the access lamp is lit or flashing after recording is finished, it means that data is still being written onto
the recording media. Do not apply shock or vibration to your camcorder, and do not remove the battery
or AC Adaptor.
(HOME) 
You can check the recordable time and the remaining capacity, etc., by touching
(MANAGE MEDIA)  [MEDIA INFO] (p. 62).
To adjust the angle of the LCD panel, first open the LCD panel 90 degrees to the camcorder (), and
then adjust the angle (). If you rotate the LCD panel 180 degrees to the lens side (), you can record
movies/photos in mirror mode.
 90 degrees (max.)
 90 degrees to the camcorder
 180 degrees (max.)

Tips
You can record photos during movie recording by pressing PHOTO ([Dual Rec], p. 32).
When a face is detected, a white frame appears and the image quality around the face is optimized
automatically ([FACE DET. SETTING], p. 72).
In the default setting, a photo is recorded automatically when the camcorder detects the smile of a person
during movie recording ([SMILE SHUTTER], p. 73). An orange frame appears around a face targeted for
possible smile detection shot.
You can capture photos from recorded movies (p. 49).





29
Index
When you open or close the LCD screen, or adjust the angle, be careful not to press the buttons on the
side of the LCD screen by mistake.

You can switch the shooting mode by touching
(HOME) 
(CAMERA)  [MOVIE].
Data code during recording
Shooting photos
In the default setting, photos are recorded on the internal memory (p. 60).
Table of Contents
The recording date, time and condition are recorded automatically on the recording media.
They are not displayed during recording. However, you can check them as [DATA CODE]
during playback (p. 74).
 Open the lens cover.
Your camcorder is turned on.

To turn on your camcorder when the LCD screen is already open, press POWER (p. 19).
 Press MODE to turn on the
Useful Recording Techniques
 Open the LCD screen of your camcorder.
(Photo) lamp.
The aspect ratio of the screen becomes 4:3.
Index
30
 Press PHOTO lightly to adjust the focus, then press it fully.
Table of Contents
Flashes  Lights up
When



See page 99 on the recordable number of photos.
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [PHOTO SETTINGS] 
To change the image size, touch


(p. 70).
[ IMAGE SIZE]  a desired setting 
You can record photos during movie recording by pressing PHOTO ([Dual Rec], p. 32).
is displayed.
You cannot record photos while
Useful Recording Techniques

disappears, the photo is recorded.
Index
31
Useful functions for recording movies and photos
You can magnify images up to 10 times the original size with the power zoom lever or the
zoom buttons on the LCD frame.
Wider range of view
(Wide angle)
Close view
(Telephoto)
 Notes
Be sure to keep your finger on the power zoom lever. If you move your finger off the power zoom lever,
the operation sound of the power zoom lever may also be recorded.
 You cannot change the zoom speed with the zoom buttons on the LCD frame.
 The minimum possible distance between camcorder and subject while maintaining sharp focus is about 1
cm (about 13/32 in.) for wide angle and about 80 cm (about 31 1/2 in.) for telephoto.

Tips
You can set [DIGITAL ZOOM] (p. 66) if you want to zoom to a greater level.

Useful Recording Techniques
Move the power zoom lever slightly for a slower zoom. Move it further for a faster zoom.

Table of Contents
Zooming
Recording high quality photos during movie recording (Dual Rec)
You can record high quality photos during movie recording by pressing PHOTO.
 Notes
may appear when the capacity of the recording media is not enough or when you record photos
is displayed.
continuously. You cannot record photos while

Tips
When the MODE lamp is set to
(Movie), the size of photos becomes [
2.3M] (16:9 wide) or [1.7M]
(4:3).
(Photo) lamp is turned
You can record photos during recording standby in the same way as when the
on.


32
Index

Recording in mirror mode
Table of Contents
Open the LCD panel 90 degrees to the camcorder , then rotate it 180 degrees to the lens
side .
Tips
A mirror-image of the subject appears on the LCD screen, but the image will be normal when recorded.


Recording fast action in slow-motion (SMTH SLW REC)
 Touch
(HOME) 
(CAMERA)  [SMTH SLW REC].
Useful Recording Techniques
Fast moving subjects and actions, which cannot be captured under the ordinary shooting
conditions, can be shot in smooth moving slow-motion for about 3 seconds.
This is useful to shoot fast actions such as a golf or tennis swing.
 Press START/STOP.
An about-3-second movie is recorded as a 12-second-slow-motion movie.
[Recording…] disappears, when recording is finished.
Touch
to cancel the smooth slow recording.
To change the setting
(OPTION) 
tab, then select the setting you want to change.
[TIMING]
Select the recording start point after START/STOP is pressed. The default setting is [3sec
AFTER].
33
Index
Touch
[3sec BEFORE]
Table of Contents
[3sec AFTER]
 Notes
 You cannot record sound with [SMTH SLW REC].
 Image quality of [SMTH SLW REC] is not as good as that of normal recording.
Switching the screen display, or turning the LCD backlight on/off
Useful Recording Techniques
Each time you press DISP, the screen indicators, such as remaining battery power, etc., turn on
or off. To turn off the LCD backlight, press and hold DISP down for a few seconds until
appears. This setting is practical when you use your camcorder in bright conditions or you
want to save battery power. The recorded image will not be affected by the setting. To turn on
disappears.
the LCD backlight, press and hold DISP down for a few seconds until
Index
34
Playback on the camcorder
Playing movies
 Open the LCD screen of your camcorder.
Table of Contents
In the default setting, movies and photos that are recorded on the internal memory are played
(p. 60).
Your camcorder is turned on.

To turn on your camcorder when the LCD screen is already open, press POWER (p. 19).
 Press
(VIEW IMAGES).

You can display the VISUAL INDEX screen by pressing
as well.
 Touch
(or
(VIEW IMAGES) on the LCD screen
) tab ()  a desired movie ().
Useful Recording Techniques
The VISUAL INDEX screen appears after some seconds.
To the list of recording
dates (p. 39)
Previous
Next
To return to
recording mode
*

: Displays the Film Roll Index screen (p. 38).
: Displays the Face Index screen (p. 38).
: Displays high definition image quality (HD) movies*.
: Displays photos.
appears when the standard definition image quality (SD) movie is selected with [
/
SET] (p. 65).
 appears with the movie or photo that was most recently played or recorded. If you touch the
35
Index




movie or photo with , you can continue playback from the previous time. ( appears on the
photo recorded on “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.)
Your camcorder starts playing the selected movie.
Next
Volume adjustment
OPTION MENU
To stop
Table of Contents
Previous
To fast-forward
To fast-reverse
To pause/play
Tips
When playback from the selected movie reaches the last movie, the screen returns to the VISUAL INDEX
screen.
/
during pause to play back movies slowly.
Touch
/
during playback, movies are played as fast as about 5 times  about
As you repeat touching
10 times  about 30 times  about 60 times.
(HOME) 
(VIEW IMAGES)  [VISUAL
You can display the VISUAL INDEX by touching
INDEX].
The recording date, time, and shooting conditions are recorded automatically during recording. This
information is not displayed during recording, but you can display it during playback by touching
(SETTINGS)  [VIEW IMAGES SET]  [DATA CODE]  a desired setting 
(HOME) 

.






Useful Recording Techniques

To adjust the sound volume of movies
While playing back movies, touch

 adjust with
You can adjust the sound volume from the OPTION MENU.
/

.
Viewing photos
Touch the
screen.
(Photo) tab ()  a desired photo () on the VISUAL INDEX
Index
36
Your camcorder displays the selected photo.
To start/stop slide show
Next
OPTION MENU
To the VISUAL
INDEX screen
Tips
When viewing photos recorded on “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media,
the screen.
Table of Contents
Previous


(playback folder) appears on
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
37
Useful functions for playing movies and photos
Movies can be divided by a set time and the first scene of each division is displayed on the
INDEX screen. You can start playing back a movie from the selected thumbnail.
Select the recording media which contains the movie you want to play back before the
operation (p. 60).
Table of Contents
Searching for desired scene by pinpoint (Film Roll Index)
 Press
(VIEW IMAGES).
The VISUAL INDEX screen appears.
 Touch
(Film Roll Index).
Returns to the VISUAL INDEX screen
 Touch
/
to select the desired movie.
Useful Recording Techniques
Sets the interval at which to create thumbnails of scenes in a movie.
 Touch
/ to search for the desired scene, then touch the scene you want
to play back.
Playback starts from the selected scene.
Tips
You can also display the [Film Roll Index] screen by touching
[ FILM ROLL].


(HOME) 
(VIEW IMAGES) 
The face images detected during movie recording are displayed on the INDEX screen.
You can play back the movie from the selected face image.
Select the recording media which contains the movie you want to play back before the
operation (p. 60).
38
Index
Searching for desired scene by face (Face Index)
 Press
(VIEW IMAGES).
The VISUAL INDEX screen appears.
(Face Index).
Table of Contents
 Touch
Returns to the VISUAL INDEX screen
 Touch
/
to select the desired movie.
 Touch
Playback starts from the beginning of the scene with the selected face image.
 Notes
Faces may not be detected depending on recording conditions.
Example: People wearing glasses or hats, or who do not face towards the camera.
 Make sure that you set [FACE DETECTION] to [ON] (the default setting) prior to recording, to search
movies on the Face Index (p. 72).

Tips
You can also display the [Face Index] screen by touching
[ FACE].
Useful Recording Techniques
/ to search for the desired face image, then touch the desired
face image to view the scene.


(HOME) 
(VIEW IMAGES) 
Searching for desired images by date (Date Index)
You can search for desired images by date efficiently.
Select the recording media which contains the image you want to play back before the
operation (p. 60).
 Press
(VIEW IMAGES).
The VISUAL INDEX screen appears.
 To search for movies, touch the
or
39
tab. To search for photos, touch
Index
 Notes
You cannot use the Date Index function for photos on the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.

the
(Photo) tab.
 Touch date on the screen.
The recording dates of images are displayed on the screen.
Table of Contents
Returns to the VISUAL INDEX screen
 Touch
/
to select the date of the desired image, then touch
.
The images of the selected date are displayed on the VISUAL INDEX screen.
Using PB zoom with photos
You can magnify photos from about 1.1 to 5 times the original size.
Magnification can be adjusted with the power zoom lever or the zoom buttons on the LCD
frame.
Useful Recording Techniques
Tips
On the [Film Roll Index]/[Face Index] screen, you can use the Date Index function by following the steps
3 to 4.


 Play back the photo you want to magnify.
The screen is framed.
 Touch the screen at the point you want to display in the center of the
displayed frame.
40
Index
 Magnify the photo with T (Telephoto).
To cancel, touch
.
Table of Contents
 Adjust the magnification with W (Wide angle)/T (Telephoto).
Playing back a series of photos (Slide show)
The slide show begins from the selected photo.
Useful Recording Techniques
Touch
on the photo playback screen.
To stop the slide show
Touch
.
To restart the slide show
Touch
again.
 Notes
You cannot operate playback zoom during slide show.

Tips
(OPTION) 
tab  [SLIDE SHOW] on the
You can also play back the slide show by touching
VISUAL INDEX screen.
(OPTION) 
tab  [SLIDE SHOW
You can set continuous slide show playback by selecting
SET] while playing photos. The default setting is [ON] (continuous playback).


41
Index

Playing images on a TV
Connecting a TV using [TV CONNECT Guide]
Table of Contents
Connection methods and the image quality (high definition (HD) or standard definition
(SD)) viewed on the TV screen differ depending on what type of TV is connected, and the
connectors used. You can connect your camcorder to the TV easily following the instructions
displayed on the LCD screen, [TV CONNECT Guide].
 Switch the input on the TV to the connected jack.
Refer to the instruction manuals of the TV.
 Turn on your camcorder, and touch
(HOME) 
(OTHERS)  [TV
CONNECT Guide] on the LCD screen.

When an item is not on the screen, touch / until the item appears.
Use the supplied AC Adaptor as the power source (p. 18).
 Connect your camcorder and TV referring to [TV CONNECT Guide].
A/V Remote
Connector
Connectors on your camcorder

Input connectors on
the TV
42
Index
When the A/V connecting cable is used to output movies, movies are output with standard
definition image quality (SD).
 Play back movies and photos on your camcorder (p. 35).
Useful Recording Techniques

Connecting to a high definition TV
High definition image quality (HD) movies are played back with high definition image quality
(HD). Standard definition image quality (SD) movies are played back with standard definition
image quality (SD).
Table of Contents
 (p. 43)
Camcorder
Cable
TV
Component A/V cable
(supplied)
(Green) Y
(Blue) PB/CB
: Signal flow
HOME MENU setting
(SETTINGS) 
[OUTPUT SETTINGS]
 [COMPONENT] 
[1080i/576i] (p. 79)
(Red) PR/CR
(White)
Useful Recording Techniques
Type
 (p. 43)
(Red)
 Notes
If you connect only component video plugs, audio signals are not output. Connect the white and red
plugs to output audio signals.

HDMI cable (sold separately)
Index
 Notes
Use an HDMI cable with the HDMI logo.
 Use an HDMI mini connector on one end (for the camcorder), and a plug suitable for connecting your
TV on the other end.
 Images are not output from the HDMI OUT jack of your camcorder, if copyright protection signals are
recorded in the images.

43


Some TVs may not function correctly (e.g., no sound or image) with this connection.
Do not connect the HDMI OUT jack of your camcorder and HDMI OUT jack of the external device with
the HDMI cable. This may cause a malfunction.
High definition image quality (HD) movies are converted to standard definition image quality
(SD) and played back. Standard definition image quality (SD) movies are played back with
standard definition image quality (SD).
 (p. 45)
 (p. 45)
To set the aspect ratio according to the connected TV (16:9/4:3)
Set [TV TYPE] to [16:9] or [4:3] according to your TV (p. 78).
 Notes
When you play back standard definition image quality (SD) movies on a 4:3 TV that is not compatible
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS) 
with the 16:9 signal, record movies with 4:3 aspect ratio. Touch


(p. 66).
[MOVIE SETTINGS]  [WIDE SELECT]  [4:3] 

Useful Recording Techniques
 (p. 44)
Table of Contents
Connecting to a non-high-definition 16:9 (wide) or 4:3 TV
: Signal flow
Type
Camcorder
Cable
Component A/V cable
(supplied)
TV
(Green) Y
(Blue) PB/CB
(White)
(Red)
(SETTINGS) 
[OUTPUT SETTINGS]
 [COMPONENT] 
[576i] (p. 79)
(SETTINGS) 
[OUTPUT SETTINGS]
 [TV TYPE] 
[16:9]/[4:3]* (p. 78)
 Notes
If you connect only component video plugs, audio signals are not output. Connect the white and red
plugs to output audio signals.

44
Index
(Red) PR/CR
HOME MENU setting
(SETTINGS) 
[OUTPUT SETTINGS]
 [TV TYPE] 
[16:9]/[4:3]* (p. 78)
A/V connecting cable with
S VIDEO (sold separately)
(Red)
(Yellow)
 Notes
When the S VIDEO plug (S VIDEO channel) is connected, audio signals are not output. To output audio
signals, connect the white and red plugs to the audio input jack of your TV.
 This connection produces higher resolution images compared with the A/V connecting cable (Type ).
Table of Contents
(White)

A/V connecting cable
(supplied)
(Yellow)
(White)
* Set [TV TYPE] according to your TV.
When connecting to your TV via a VCR
Connect your camcorder to the LINE IN input on the VCR using the A/V connecting cable.
Set the input selector on the VCR to LINE (VIDEO 1, VIDEO 2, etc.).
When your TV is monaural (When your TV has only one audio input jack)
Useful Recording Techniques
(Red)
(SETTINGS) 
[OUTPUT SETTINGS]
 [TV TYPE] 
[16:9]/[4:3]* (p. 78)
Connect the yellow plug of the A/V connecting cable to the video input jack and connect the
white (left channel) or red (right channel) plug to the audio input jack of your TV or VCR.
If your TV/VCR has a 21-pin adaptor (EUROCONNECTOR)
Use a 21-pin adaptor (sold separately) to view playback pictures.
TV/VCR
Tips
If you connect your camcorder to the TV using more than one type of cable to output images, the order
of priority of the TV input jacks is as follows:
HDMI  component  S VIDEO  video
HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) is an interface to send both video/audio signals. The
HDMI OUT jack outputs high quality images and digital audio.



45
Index
 Notes
When the A/V connecting cable is used to output images, images are output with standard definition
image quality (SD).

Using “BRAVIA” Sync
You can operate your camcorder with the Remote Commander of your TV by connecting
your camcorder to a “BRAVIA” Sync compatible TV launched in 2008 or later with the HDMI
cable.
Table of Contents
HDMI cable
 Connect your camcorder and a “BRAVIA” Sync compatible TV with the HDMI
cable (sold separately).
The TV input is switched automatically, and the image of your camcorder is displayed
on the TV.
 Operate it with the remote commander of the TV.
You can do the following operations.
 To
display
(VIEW IMAGES) of
(HOME) by pressing the SYNC MENU button.
display an index screen, such as the VISUAL INDEX screen, and play back the desired movies
or photos by pressing up/down/left/right/enter buttons on the remote commander of your TV.
Useful Recording Techniques
 Turn on your camcorder.
 To
 Notes
There may be some operations you cannot do with the Remote Commander.
 To set your camcorder, touch
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [GENERAL SET]  [CTRL FOR


.
HDMI]  [ON] (the default setting) 
 Also set your TV. Refer to the instruction manual of the TV for details.

Tips
If you turn off the TV, your camcorder is turned off simultaneously.

46
Index

Editing
2
Deleting movies and
photos
To delete movies, touch
[ DELETE]  [
DELETE] or
[
DELETE].

3
To delete photos, touch [
[ DELETE].
DELETE] 
Touch and display the mark
on the movies or photos to be
deleted.
 Notes
You cannot restore images once they are
deleted.
 Do not remove the battery pack or the AC
Adaptor from your camcorder while deleting
the images. It may damage the recording media.
 Do not eject “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
while deleting images from the “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media.
 You cannot delete protected movies and photos.
Undo the protection of the movies and photos
to delete them, before you try to delete them
(p. 52).
 If the deleted movie is included in the Playlist
(p. 54), the movie added to the Playlist is
deleted also from the Playlist.
 Save important movies and photos in advance
(p. 56).
Table of Contents
You can free media space by deleting
movies and photos from recording media.
Select the recording medium that contains
the movies and photos you want to delete
before starting the operation (p. 60). For
movies, select the image quality (p. 65).

Touch
.



In step 2, touch [ DELETE] 
DELETE ALL]/[
DELETE ALL]
[

.
[YES]  [YES] 

To delete all photos at one time, touch
[ DELETE]  [ DELETE ALL]  [YES]

.
 [YES] 
To delete all the movies/photos
recorded on the same day at one time
You can delete photos by selecting
recording dates only when photos are
recorded on the internal memory.
In step 2, touch [ DELETE] 
DELETE by date]/[
DELETE
[
by date].
(OTHERS)
47
Index
1

To delete all movies/photos at one time
Tips
You can select up to 100 images at one time.
You can delete an image on the playback screen
OPTION MENU.
from
To delete all images recorded in the recording
media, and recover all the recordable space of
the media, format the media (p. 63).
Reduced-size images which enable you to view
many images at the same time on an index
screen are called “thumbnails.”
Touch (HOME) 
 [DELETE].
 [YES] 
Useful Recording Techniques
4


Tips
Press and hold the image down on the
LCD screen to confirm the image. Touch
to return to the previous screen.



To delete all photos on the same day at one
time, touch [ DELETE]  [ DELETE
by date].
Table of Contents
Touch / to select the recording date
of the desired movies/photos, then touch
.
The movies/photos recorded on the
selected date are displayed on the
screen.
Tips
Touch the image down on the LCD screen
to return
to confirm the image. Touch
to the previous screen.


 [YES] 

.
Useful Recording Techniques
Touch
Index
48
Capturing a photo
from a movie
5
Touch

.
Touch (HOME) 
(OTHERS)
 [PHOTO CAPTURE].
The [PHOTO CAPTURE] screen
appears.
Touch the movie to be captured.
The selected movie starts playback.
Touch
at the point where
you want to capture.
The movie pauses. Play and pause
.
toggles as you press
Adjust the capturing point with
more precision after you selected
the point with
.
Useful Recording Techniques
 Notes
The image size is fixed depending on the image
quality of the movie:
2.1M] with high definition image quality
[
(HD)
0.2M] in 16:9 (wide) with standard
[
definition image quality (SD)
 [VGA(0.3M)] in 4:3 with standard definition
image quality (SD)
 The recording medium where you want to save
photos should have enough free space.
 The recording date and time of captured photos
is the same as the recording date and time of
the movies.
 If the movie you are capturing from has no data
code, the recording date and time of the photo
will be the date and time you captured from
the movie.
 You cannot capture a photo from a movie
recorded on “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
(HDR-CX105E/CX106E).

1
Returns to the beginning of the selected
movie
Touch
.
The captured photo is saved on the
recording media selected in [PHOTO
MEDIA SET] (p. 60).
When capturing is finished, the screen
returns to pause.


Index
4
, then repeat steps from step 2.
Table of Contents
Select the recording media which contains
movies and the image quality, and the
recording media where you want to save
photos before the operation (p. 60, 65).
2
3
touch
To continue capturing, touch
, then
repeat steps from step 3.
To capture a photo from another movie,
49
Dubbing/copying
movies and photos
from the internal
memory to “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media
 Touch the image quality of the
movie to be dubbed.
 Touch the type of dubbing.
Dubbing movies
 Notes
When you record a movie on the “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media for the first time, create
(HOME)
the image database file by touching
(MANAGE MEDIA)  [REPAIR IMG.

DB F.]  [MEMORY STICK].
 Connect your camcorder to the wall outlet
(wall socket) using the supplied AC Adaptor to
prevent your camcorder from running out of
power during dubbing.

 Select the movie to be dubbed.
[DUB by select]: Touch the movie to be
dubbed, and mark it with . You can
select multiple movies.
Tips
The original movie will not be deleted after
dubbing.
All included images in a Playlist will be dubbed.
The images recorded by this camcorder and
stored onto the recording media are called
“original.”




 Touch (HOME) 
 [MOVIE DUB].
Useful Recording Techniques
[DUB by select]: To select movies and
dub
[DUB by date]: To dub all movies of a
specified date
DUB ALL]: To dub the high
[
definition image quality (HD) Playlist
DUB ALL]: To dub the standard
[
definition image quality (SD) Playlist
When you select the Playlist as the
source of dubbing, follow the on-screen
instructions to dub the Playlist.
You can dub movies recorded on the
internal memory of your camcorder to
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.
Insert “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
into your camcorder before the operation.
Table of Contents
[
DUB]: To dub the high
definition image quality (HD) movies
DUB]: To dub the standard
[
definition image quality (SD) movies
Remaining capacity of the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
(OTHERS)
Tips
Press and hold the image down on the
LCD screen to confirm the image. Touch
to return to the previous screen.

The [MOVIE DUB] screen appears.

50
Index
[DUB by date]: Select the recording
date of the movie to be dubbed, then
. You cannot select multiple
touch
dates.
 Select the photo to be copied.
 Touch
.
 [YES] 

Tips
To check the dubbed movies after dubbing is
finished, select [MEMORY STICK] on [MOVIE
MEDIA SET] and play them back (p. 60).
Tips
Press and hold the image down on the
to
screen to confirm the image. Touch
return to the previous screen.




You can copy photos from the internal
memory of the camcorder to “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media.
Insert a “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
into your camcorder before the operation.
 Notes
Connect your camcorder to the wall outlet
(wall socket) using the supplied AC Adaptor to
prevent your camcorder from running out of
power during copying.

 Touch (HOME) 
 [PHOTO COPY].
 Touch
.
 [YES] 

Useful Recording Techniques
[COPY by date]: Select the recording
date of the photo to be copied, then
. You cannot select multiple
touch
dates.
Copying photos
Table of Contents
[COPY by select]: Touch the photo to
be copied, and mark with . You can
select multiple photos.
(OTHERS)
Tips
To check the copied photos after copying
is finished, select [MEMORY STICK] on
[PHOTO MEDIA SET] and play them back
(p. 60).

The [PHOTO COPY] screen appears.

Index
 Touch the type of copying.
[COPY by select]: To copy selected
photos
[COPY by date]: To copy all photos of
a specified date
51
4
Protecting recorded
movies and photos
(Protect)
Touch
.
To undo the protection of movies and
photos
Touch the movie or photo marked with 
in step 3.
 disappears.
To protect all the movies and photos
recorded on the same day at one time
Tips
You can protect movies and photos on the
OPTION MENU.
playback screen from


1
Touch (HOME) 
 [EDIT].
You can protect photos recorded on
the internal memory by selecting their
recording date.
(OTHERS)
To protect movies, touch
[ PROTECT]  [
PROTECT]/
[
PROTECT].
3
To protect photos, touch [
 [ PROTECT].

To protect all photos on the same day at
one time, touch [ PROTECT] 
[ PRT. by date].
PROTECT]
Touch the movies and photos to
be protected.
Useful Recording Techniques
In step 2, touch [ PROTECT] 
PRT. by date]/[
PRT. by date].
[
2


Table of Contents
Protect movies and photos to avoid deleting
them by mistake.
Select the recording medium that contains
the movies and photos you want to protect
before starting the operation (p. 60). For
movies, select the image quality (p. 65).
 [YES] 
Touch / to select the recording date
of the desired movies/photos, then touch
.
 is displayed on the selected images.
Tips
Touch the image down on the LCD screen
to return
to confirm the image. Touch
to the previous screen.


Touch


 [ON] 

.
To undo the protection of movies and
photos recorded on the same day at
one time
In step  above, select the recording date
of the desired movies/photos, then touch
 [OFF] 

.
52
Index
Tips
Press and hold the image down on the
LCD screen to confirm the image. Touch
to return to the previous screen.
You can select up to 100 images at one
time.

Dividing a movie


1
Touch (HOME) 
(OTHERS)
 [EDIT]  [ DIVIDE].
2
3
Tips
You can divide a movie on the playback screen
OPTION MENU.
from


Touch the movie to be divided.
Table of Contents
Select the recording media which contains
the movie and the image quality you want
to divide before the operation (p. 60, 65).
A slight difference may occur from the point
and the actual dividing
where you touch
point, as your camcorder selects the dividing
point based on about half-second increments.
If you divide the original movie, the movie
added to the Playlist will also be divided.
The selected movie starts playback.
Touch
at the point where
you want to divide the movie into
scenes.
Useful Recording Techniques
The movie pauses. Play and pause
.
toggles as you press
Adjusts the dividing point with
more precision after you selected
the dividing point with
.
4
Returns to the beginning of the selected
movie
Touch
.
 [YES] 

Index
 Notes
You cannot restore movies once they are
divided.
 Do not remove the battery pack or the AC
Adaptor from your camcorder while dividing
the movie. It may damage the recording media.
Also, do not eject the “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media while dividing movies on the “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media.

53
Using the Playlist of
movies
To add all the movies recorded on the
same day at one time
The Playlist is a list showing thumbnails of
the movies that you have selected.
The original movies are not changed even if
you edit or delete the movies added to the
Playlist.
Select the recording media and the image
quality you want to create, play, or edit a
Playlist before the operation (p. 60, 65).
Touch / to select the recording date
.
of the desired movie, then touch
The movies recorded on the selected
date are displayed on the screen.
Creating the Playlist
 Notes
High definition image quality (HD) movies and
standard definition image quality (SD) movies
are added to an individual Playlist.

 Touch [
ADD] or [
Tips
Touch the image on the LCD screen to
to return to
confirm the image. Touch
the previous screen.


(OTHERS)
Touch
 [YES] 

.
 Notes
Do not remove the battery pack or the AC
Adaptor from your camcorder while adding
movies to the Playlist. It may damage the
recording media. Also, do not eject the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media while editing
movies on the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.
 You cannot add photos to the Playlist.

ADD].
 Touch the movie to be added to
the Playlist.
Tips
You cannot create a Playlist which contains both
high definition image quality (HD) movies and
standard definition image quality (SD) movies.
You can add a maximum of 999 high definition
image quality (HD) movies, or 99 standard
definition image quality (SD) movies to the
Playlist.
You can add a movie on the playback screen or
(OPTION).
the INDEX screen by touching
You can copy the Playlist to a disc as it is, by
using the supplied software.
Useful Recording Techniques
 Touch (HOME) 
 [PLAYLIST EDIT].
Table of Contents
In step 2, touch [
ADD by date]/
ADD by date].
[
The recording dates of movies are
displayed on the screen.



The selected movie is marked with .
 Touch
.
 [YES] 



54
Index
Tips
Press and hold the image down on the
LCD screen to confirm the image. Touch
to return to the previous screen.


Touch
Playing the Playlist
 [YES] 

.
Tips
Even if you erase a movie from a Playlist, the
original movie is not erased.

Select the recording media and the image
quality you want to play a Playlist before
the operation (p. 60).

Touch (HOME)  (OTHERS) 
[PLAYLIST EDIT].
MOVE]/[
MOVE].
Touch [
Select the movie to be moved.
Movies added to the Playlist appear.
 Touch the movie you want to
play back.
Table of Contents
To change the order within the Playlist
(VIEW
 Touch (HOME) 
IMAGES)  [PLAYLIST].
The selected movie is marked with .
Tips
Touch the image on the LCD screen to
to return to
confirm the image. Touch
the previous screen.

The Playlist is played back from the
selected movie to the end, then the
screen returns to the Playlist screen.
Touch
.
Select the destination with
/
.

.
To erase unnecessary movies from the
Playlist
Touch (HOME)  (OTHERS) 
[PLAYLIST EDIT].
ERASE]/[
ERASE].
Touch [
To erase all the movies from the Playlist,
touch [
ERASE ALL]/[
ERASE
.
ALL]  [YES]  [YES] 
Select the movie to be erased from the
list.
Touch
Destination bar
 [YES] 
Useful Recording Techniques

Tips
When you select multiple movies, the movies
are moved following the order appearing in the
Playlist.


Index
The selected movie is marked with .
Tips
Press and hold the image down on the
LCD screen to confirm the image. Touch
to return to the previous screen.


55
Creating a disc with a
DVD writer, recorder
CONNECT] when movies are
recorded on “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media on the camcorder
screen.
 Record movies on the connected
device.

You can save high definition image quality
(HD) movies on a disc by connecting
your camcorder to disc creation devices,
such as a Sony DVD writer, with the USB
cable. Refer also to the instruction manuals
supplied with the devices to be connected.
The method used to create a disc by
connecting your camcorder to a Sony DVD
writer with the USB cable is described here.

 After the operation is completed,
touch [END]  [YES] on the
camcorder screen.
 Disconnect the USB cable.
Connect your camcorder to the wall outlet (wall
socket) using the supplied AC Adaptor for this
operation (p. 18).
Sony DVD writer may not be available in some
countries/regions.
 Notes
The high definition image quality (HD) disc
that you created should not be used in DVD
players/recorders. Because DVD players/
recorders are not compatible with the AVCHD
format, DVD players/recorders may fail to eject
the disc.

 Turn on your camcorder, and
connect a DVD writer, etc. to the
 (USB) jack of your camcorder
with the USB cable (supplied).
Useful Recording Techniques

For details, refer to the instruction
manuals supplied with the device to be
connected.
Table of Contents
Creating a high definition image
quality (HD) disc with a DVD writer,
etc. (USB cable connection)
Creating a standard definition
image quality (SD) disc with a
recorder, etc. (A/V connecting cable
connection)
The [USB SELECT] screen appears on
the camcorder screen.

If the [USB SELECT] screen does
not appear, touch (HOME) 
(OTHERS)  [USB CONNECT].
 Touch [ USB CONNECT] when
movies are recorded on the
internal memory, or [ USB

56
Sony DVD writer may not be available in some
Index
You can dub images played back on your
camcorder on a disc or video cassette,
by connecting your camcorder to a disc
recorder, a Sony DVD writer, etc. with
the A/V connecting cable. Connect the
device in either way of  or . Refer
also to the instruction manuals supplied
with the devices to be connected. Select the
recording media that contains movies and
the image quality you want to dub before
starting the operation (p. 60, 65).
countries/regions.
 Notes
Connect your camcorder to the wall outlet (wall
socket) using the supplied AC Adaptor for this
operation (p. 18).
 High definition image quality (HD) movies
will be dubbed with standard definition image
quality (SD).

A/V connecting cable (supplied)
Connect the A/V connecting cable to the
input jack of another device.
Table of Contents
AV Remote
Connector
A/V connecting cable with S VIDEO
(sold separately)
When connecting to another device
via the S VIDEO jack, by using an A/V
connecting cable with an S VIDEO cable
(sold separately), higher quality images can
be produced than with an A/V connecting
cable. Connect the white and red plug
(left/right audio) and the S VIDEO plug
(S VIDEO channel) of the A/V connecting
cable with an S VIDEO cable. If you
connect the S VIDEO plug only, you will
hear no sound. The yellow plug (video)
connection is not necessary.
Input
S VIDEO
(Yellow)
(White)
AUDIO
(Yellow)
(Red)
Useful Recording Techniques
VIDEO
Signal flow
 Insert the recording media in the
recording device.

If your recording device has an input
selector, set it to the input mode.

57
Connect your camcorder to the input jacks
Index
 Connect your camcorder to the
recording device (a disc recorder,
etc.) with the A/V connecting
cable  (supplied) or an A/V
connecting cable with S VIDEO
 (sold separately).
of the recording device.

Table of Contents
 Start playback on your
camcorder, and record it on the
recording device.
Refer to the instruction manuals supplied
with your recording device for details.
 When dubbing is finished, stop
the recording device, and then
your camcorder.
 Notes
Since dubbing is performed via analog data
transfer, the image quality may deteriorate.
 You cannot dub images to recorders connected
with an HDMI cable.
 To hide the screen indicators (such as a
counter, etc.) on the screen of the monitor
(HOME) 
device connected, touch
(SETTINGS)  [OUTPUT SETTINGS]
 [DISP OUTPUT]  [LCD PANEL] (the


.
default setting) 
 To record the date/time, or camera settings
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)
data, touch
 [VIEW IMAGES SET]  [DATA CODE]


 a desired setting 
. In addition, touch
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [OUTPUT SETTINGS] 
[DISP OUTPUT]  [V-OUT/PANEL] 

.

 When the screen size of display devices
(HOME) 
(TV, etc.) is 4:3 touch
(SETTINGS)  [OUTPUT SETTINGS] 


.
[TV TYPE]  [4:3] 
 When you connect a monaural device, connect
the yellow plug of the A/V connecting cable
to the video input jack, and the white (left
channel) or the red (right channel) plug to the
audio input jack on the device.

Useful Recording Techniques
Index
58
Checking the battery
information
Touch (HOME) 
[BATTERY INFO].
Table of Contents
You can check the estimated remaining
capacity of the battery.
(OTHERS) 
The remaining battery capacity is shown.
Useful Recording Techniques
To close the battery information screen
Touch
.
Index
59
Utilizing recording media
Changing the
recording media
Selecting the recording media for
photos
The [PHOTO MEDIA SET] screen
appears.
 Touch the desired recording
medium.
Internal memory
 Touch [YES] 
Photos
Movies
“Memory Stick” media


You can do recording, playback, and editing
operations on the selected medium.
See page 98 for the recordable time of movies.
See page 99 for the number of recordable
photos.
To check the recording media settings
Light up the (Movie) lamp to check the
recording medium used for movies, or the
(Photo) lamp for photos. The media icon
is displayed at the top right corner of the
screen.
Selecting the recording media for
movies
 Touch (HOME) 
(MANAGE MEDIA)  [MOVIE
MEDIA SET].
: Internal memory
: “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
The [MOVIE MEDIA SET] screen
appears.
Inserting “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media
 Touch the desired medium.
 Touch [YES] 
.
The recording medium is changed.
Useful Recording Techniques

Table of Contents
 Touch (HOME) 
(MANAGE MEDIA)  [PHOTO
MEDIA SET].
You can select the internal memory or
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media as the
recording, playback, or editing medium on
your camcorder. Select the medium to be
used for movies and photos separately. In
the default setting, both movies and photos
are recorded on the internal memory.

.
Set the recording medium to [MEMORY
STICK] to record movies and/or photos on
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media (p. 60).

For recording movies, it is recommended that
you use “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media of 1
GB or larger marked with:

PRO Duo” media)*

60
(“Memory Stick
(“Memory Stick
Index
Types of “Memory Stick” media you can
use with your camcorder
The recording medium is changed.

“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media/“Memory Stick PRO-HG
Duo” media
(This size can be used with your camcorder.)
Access lamp
The [Create a new Image Database
File.] screen appears if you insert new
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media when
the (Movie) lamp is lit.
“Memory Stick” media
(You cannot use it in your camcorder.)
 Touch [YES].




You cannot use any type of memory card other
than those mentioned above.
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media can be
used only with “Memory Stick PRO” media
compatible equipment.
Do not attach a label or the like on “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media or “Memory Stick Duo”
media adaptor.
Insert the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media into
the “Memory Stick Duo” media adaptor when
using “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media with
“Memory Stick” media compatible equipment.
 Notes
If [Failed to create a new Image Database File.
It may be possible that there is not enough
free space.] is displayed in step 2, format the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media (p. 63).

To eject the “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media
Open the “Memory Stick Duo” media cover
and lightly push the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media in once.
 Open the “Memory Stick Duo”
media cover, and insert the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
into the “Memory Stick Duo”
media slot until it clicks.



Confirm the direction of the “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media. If you forcibly
insert the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
in the wrong direction, the “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media, “Memory Stick Duo”
media slot, or image data may be damaged.
Close the “Memory Stick Duo” media
cover after inserting the “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media.
Do not open the “Memory Stick Duo” media
cover during recording.
When inserting or ejecting the “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media, be careful so that the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media does not pop
out and drop.
Index

To record only photos on “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media, touch [NO].
Useful Recording Techniques

Table of Contents
PRO-HG Duo” media)
* Marked with Mark2 or not, either can be
used.
See page 99 for the recordable time of “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media.
61
Checking the media
information
Table of Contents
You can check the remaining recordable
time for each recording mode of the
recording media selected on [MOVIE
MEDIA SET] (p. 60), and the approximate
free and used media space of the recording
media.
 Notes
During Easy Handycam operation, you cannot
check the media information. Cancel Easy
Handycam operation.

Touch (HOME) 
(MANAGE
MEDIA)  [MEDIA INFO].
Useful Recording Techniques
The remaining recordable time for each
recording mode is displayed.
Tips
You can check the recordable free space, etc., by
at the lower right on the screen.
touching


To turn off the display
Touch
.
 Notes
The calculation for recording media space is 1
MB = 1,048,576 bytes. The fractions less than
MB are discarded when the recording media
space is displayed. The displayed size of the
whole internal memory space will be slightly
smaller than 8,000 MB despite displaying both
free and used internal memory space.
 Since there is a management file area, the used
space is not displayed as 0 MB even if you
perform [MEDIA FORMAT] (p. 63).

Index
Tips
Only the information of the medium selected
on [MOVIE MEDIA SET] (p. 60) is displayed.
Change the medium setting if necessary.


62
Deleting all movies
and photos (Formatting)
Table of Contents
Formatting deletes all the movies and
photos to recover recordable free space.
 Notes
Connect your camcorder to the wall outlet (wall
socket) using AC Adaptor supplied for this
operation (p. 18).
 To avoid the loss of important images, you
should save them (p. 56, see Operating Guide
too) before formatting the recording media.
 Protected movies and photos will also be
deleted.

1
Useful Recording Techniques
Touch (HOME) 
(MANAGE MEDIA)  [MEDIA
FORMAT].
2
Touch the recording media to
be formatted ([INT. MEMORY] or
[MEMORY STICK]).
3
Touch [YES]  [YES] 
.
 Notes
While [Executing…] is displayed, do not close
the LCD screen, operate the buttons on the
camcorder, disconnect the AC Adaptor, or eject
the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media from your
camcorder (The access lamp is lit or flashing
while formatting the medium.).

Index
63
4
Preventing data on the
internal memory from
being recovered
Touch [EMPTY].
5
EMPTY] screen appears.
Touch [YES]  [YES] 
 Notes
If you perform [ EMPTY], all the images are
deleted. To avoid the loss of important images,
they should be saved (p. 56, see Operating
Guide too) before performing [ EMPTY].
 You cannot perform [
EMPTY] unless you
connect the AC Adaptor to the wall outlet (wall
socket).
 Disconnect all cables except the AC Adaptor.
Do not disconnect the AC Adaptor during the
operation.
EMPTY], do not apply
 While performing [
any vibrations or shocks to your camcorder.
.
 Notes
The actual performing time for [ EMPTY] is
about 20 minutes.
EMPTY] while
 If you stop performing [
[Executing…] appears, be sure to complete the
operation by performing [MEDIA FORMAT]
or [ EMPTY] when you use the camcorder
next time.

Table of Contents
[ EMPTY] allows you to write
unintelligible data onto the internal
memory of the camcorder. In this way,
it may become more difficult to recover
any original data. When you dispose of or
transfer the camcorder, it is recommended
that you perform [ EMPTY].
The [

Connect the AC Adaptor to the
DC IN jack on the camcorder and
the wall outlet (wall socket).
Useful Recording Techniques
1
2
Open the LCD screen to turn on
your camcorder.
3
The [
Index
Touch (HOME) 
(MANAGE MEDIA)  [MEDIA
FORMAT]  [INT. MEMORY].
FORMAT] screen appears.
64
Customizing your camcorder
MOVIE SETTINGS (Items for recording movies)
The default settings are marked with .
SET
You can select image quality for recording, playback, or editing from high definition image
quality (HD) or standard definition image quality (SD).
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [
setting  [YES] 

/
Table of Contents
/
SET]  a desired
HD QUALITY
Records, plays, or edits high definition image quality (HD) images.
SD QUALITY
Records, plays, or edits standard definition image quality (SD) images.
Tips
You can record, play, or edit movies in the selected image quality only. To record, play, or edit movies in
another image quality, change this setting.


Steps
(HOME) 


(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [REC MODE]  a desired setting

You can select a recording mode to record high definition image quality (HD) movies
from 4 levels. When recording fast moving subject, a high image quality, such as [FH], is
recommended.
HD FH (
Records in the highest quality mode (AVC HD 16M (FH))*1.
)
HD HQ (
Useful Recording Techniques
REC MODE (Recording mode)
)
Records in high quality mode (AVC HD 9M (HQ))*2.
 HD SP (
)
Records in standard quality mode (AVC HD 7M (SP))*2.
HD LP (
)
Increases the recording time (Long Play) (AVC HD 5M (LP))*2.
* Movies are recorded with AVCHD 1920  1080/50i format.
*2Movies are recorded with AVCHD 1440  1080/50i format.
1
SD HQ (
)
Records in high quality mode (SD 9M (HQ)).
 SD SP (
)
Records in standard quality mode (SD 6M (SP)).
SD LP (
)
Increases the recording time (Long Play) (SD 3M (LP)).
*3 Movies are recorded with MPEG2 format.
65
Index
You can select a recording mode to record standard definition image quality (SD)*3 movies
from 3 levels.
 Notes
If you record in the LP mode, the quality of movies may be degraded, or scenes with quick movements
may appear with block noise when you play back the image.

Tips
See page 98 for the expected recording time of each recording mode.
You can select the [REC MODE] for each recording media separately.
Figures such as 16M in the table show the average bit rate. M stands for Mbps.



WIDE SELECT
When recording standard definition image quality (SD) movies, you can select the horizontal
to vertical ratio according to the TV connected. Refer also to the instruction manuals supplied
with your TV.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [WIDE SELECT]  a desired


 16:9 WIDE
Records movies to the full screen on a 16:9 (wide) TV screen.
Records movies to the full screen on a 4:3 TV screen.
)
 Notes
Set [TV TYPE] correctly according to the TV connected for playback (p. 78).
DIGITAL ZOOM
You can select the maximum zoom level up to 10 × in case you want to zoom to a level greater
than following optical zoom during recording. Note that the image quality decreases when
you use the digital zoom.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
Useful Recording Techniques
4:3 (
Table of Contents

(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [DIGITAL ZOOM]  a desired


The right side of the bar shows the digital zooming factor. The
zooming zone appears when you select the zooming level.
Index
HDR-CX100E/CX105E
 OFF
Up to 10 × zoom is performed optically.
20 ×
Up to 10 × zoom is performed optically, and after that, up to 20 × zoom is
performed digitally.
120 ×
Up to 10 × zoom is performed optically, and after that, up to 120 × zoom is
performed digitally.
66
HDR-CX106E
 OFF
Up to 10 × zoom is performed optically.
150 ×
Up to 10 × zoom is performed optically, and after that, up to 150 × zoom is
performed digitally.
STEADYSHOT
You can compensate for camera shake.
Set [ STEADYSHOT] to [OFF] ( ) when using a tripod (sold separately), then the image
becomes natural.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [

 ON
Table of Contents
20 ×
Up to 10 × zoom is performed optically, and after that, up to 20 × zoom is
performed digitally.
STEADYSHOT]  a desired

The SteadyShot function is used.
The SteadyShot function is not used.
)
AUTO SLW SHUTTR (Auto Slow Shutter)
When recording in dark places, the shutter speed is automatically reduced to 1/25 second.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [AUTO SLW SHUTTR] 


a desired setting 
 ON
Useful Recording Techniques
OFF (
The Auto Slow Shutter function is used.
The Auto Slow Shutter function is not used.
OFF
X.V.COLOR
You can capture wider range of colors. Various colors such as the brilliant color of flowers and
turquoise blue of the sea can be more faithfully reproduced. Refer to the instruction manuals
of the TV.


 OFF
ON (
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [X.V.COLOR]  a desired setting

Records in ordinary color range.
)
Records in x.v.Color.
 Notes
Set [X.V.COLOR] to [ON] when the recorded movie will be played back on an x.v.Color-compliant TV.

67
Index
Steps
(HOME) 


If the movie recorded with this function [ON] is played back on a non-x.v.Color-compliant TV, the color
may not be reproduced correctly.
[X.V.COLOR] cannot be set to [ON]:
 When recording standard definition image quality (SD) movies
 While recording a movie.
You can display the frame and check that the subject is horizontal or vertical.
The frame is not recorded. Press DISP to make the frame disappear.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [GUIDEFRAME]  a desired


 OFF
ON
Does not display the guide frame.
Displays the guide frame.
REMAINING SET
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [


a desired setting 
 ON
AUTO
Useful Recording Techniques
Tips
Positioning the subject at the cross point of the guide frame makes a balanced composition.


Table of Contents
GUIDEFRAME
REMAINING SET] 
Always displays the remaining recording media indicator.
 Notes
When the remaining recordable time for movies is less than 5 minutes, the indicator stays on the screen.

68
Index
Displays the remaining recording time of movies for about 8 seconds in
situations such as those described below.
 When your camcorder recognizes the remaining recording media capacity
while the
(Movie) lamp lights up
 When you press DISP to switch the indicator from off to on while the
(Movie) lamp lights up
 When you select the movie recording mode on the HOME MENU
CONVERSION LENS
When using a conversion lens (sold separately), use this function to record using the optimum
compensation for camera shake and focus for each lens.
 OFF
Select this when you do not use a conversion lens.
WIDE CONVERSION
( )
Select this when you use a wide-conversion lens.
TELE CONVERSION
( )
Select this when you use a tele-conversion lens.
Table of Contents
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [CONVERSION LENS] 


a desired setting 
AUTO BACK LIGHT
Your camcorder adjusts the exposure for backlit subjects automatically.
 ON
OFF
(SETTINGS)  [MOVIE SETTINGS]  [AUTO BACK LIGHT]  a desired


Adjusts the exposure for backlit subjects automatically.
Does not adjust the exposure for backlight subjects.
Useful Recording Techniques
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
Index
69
PHOTO SETTINGS (Items for recording photos)
The default settings are marked with .
You can select a photo size to be shot.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
 4.0M (
(SETTINGS)  [PHOTO SETTINGS]  [

1.9M (
Records photos in the high quality (2,304 × 1,728).
)
3.0M (
Records photos in the high quality in the 16:9 (wide) ratio (2,304 × 1,296).
)
Allows you to record more photos in relatively clear quality (1,600 × 1,200).
)
VGA(0.3M) (
IMAGE SIZE]  a desired

Table of Contents
IMAGE SIZE
)
Allows the maximum number of photos to be recorded (640 × 480).
 Notes
(Photo) lamp is lit.
The selected image size is effective when the
 See page 99 for the number of recordable photos.

You can select the way to assign file number of photos.
Steps
(HOME) 


 SERIES
RESET
(SETTINGS)  [PHOTO SETTINGS]  [FILE NO.]  a desired setting

Assigns file numbers of photos in sequence.
file number becomes larger each time you record a photo.
 Even if the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media is replaced with another one,
the file number is assigned in sequence.
 The
Assigns file numbers in sequence, following the largest file number existing
on the current recording medium.
 When the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media is replaced with another one,
the file number is assigned for each “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.
When recording in dark places, the shutter speed is automatically reduced to 1/25 second.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [PHOTO SETTINGS]  [AUTO SLW SHUTTR] 


a desired setting 
OFF
The Auto Slow Shutter function is used.
The Auto Slow Shutter function is not used.
70
Index
AUTO SLW SHUTTR (Auto Slow Shutter)
 ON
Useful Recording Techniques
FILE NO. (File number)
GUIDEFRAME
You can display the frame and check that the subject is horizontal or vertical.
The frame is not recorded. Press DISP to make the frame disappear.
(SETTINGS)  [PHOTO SETTINGS]  [GUIDEFRAME]  a desired


 OFF
ON
Does not display the guide frame.
Table of Contents
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
Displays the guide frame.
Tips
Positioning the subject at the cross point of the guide frame makes a balanced composition.


When using a conversion lens (sold separately), use this function to record using the optimum
focus for each lens.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [PHOTO SETTINGS]  [CONVERSION LENS] 


a desired setting 
 OFF
Useful Recording Techniques
CONVERSION LENS
Select this when you do not use a conversion lens.
WIDE CONVERSION
( )
Select this when you use a wide-conversion lens.
TELE CONVERSION
( )
Select this when you use a tele-conversion lens.
AUTO BACK LIGHT
Your camcorder adjusts the exposure for backlit subjects automatically.
 ON
OFF
Adjusts the exposure for backlit subjects automatically.
Does not adjust the exposure for backlight subjects.
71
Index
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [PHOTO SETTINGS]  [AUTO BACK LIGHT] 


a desired setting 
FACE FUNC. SET (Items to set face function)
The default settings are marked with .
You can adjust the settings for the FACE DETECTION function.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [FACE FUNC. SET]  [FACE DET. SETTING]  [FACE



DETECTION]/[FRAME SETTING]  a desired setting 
Table of Contents
FACE DET. SETTING
FACE DETECTION
Detects the faces of your subjects and adjusts the focus/color/exposure automatically. Also,
it adjusts the image quality of face parts more finely, in the case of the high definition image
quality (HD) movies.
 ON (
)
OFF
Detects faces.
Does not detect faces.
Tips
The detected faces are recorded in Face Index, however, some faces may not be. Also, there is a limit to
the number of faces that can be recorded in Face Index. To play back from the Face Index, see page 38.


Useful Recording Techniques
 Notes
Faces may not be detected depending on recording conditions, subject conditions, and the setting of your
camcorder.
 [FACE DETECTION] may not function properly depending on recording conditions. Set [FACE
DETECTION] to [OFF] in this case.

FRAME SETTING
Sets whether to display the detection frame or not when a face is detected by [FACE
DETECTION] or [DETECTION SET].
Orange frame: A face targeted for possible smile detection shot.
White frame: Detects faces
FACE DETECTION
 ON
OFF
Displays the detection frame.
Does not display the detection frame.
 Notes
The detection frame does not appear while using mirror mode (p. 33).

72
Index
DETECTION SET
SMILE SHUTTER
You can adjust the settings for the SMILE SHUTTER function.




DETECTION SET
The shutter is released when the camcorder detects a smile.
 DUAL CAPTURE (
ALWAYS ON (
)
OFF
)
Table of Contents
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [FACE FUNC. SET]  [SMILE SHUTTER]  [DETECTION
SET]/[SMILE SENSITIVITY]/[SMILE PRIORITY]/[FRAME SETTING]  a desired setting
Only during movie recording, the shutter is released automatically, when the
camcorder detects a smile.
The shutter is released when the camcorder detects a smile whenever the
camcorder is in recording mode.
Smiles are not detected, so photos are not recorded automatically.
 Notes
Smiles may not be detected depending on recording conditions, subject conditions, and the setting of
your camcorder.
appears on the screen in movie recording standby, and
 When [DUAL CAPTURE] is selected,
when movie recording starts.
changes into


SMILE SENSITIVITY
Sets the smile detection sensitivity using the SMILE SHUTTER function.
HIGH
 MEDIUM
LOW
Useful Recording Techniques
Tips
If a smile is not detected, set the [SMILE SENSITIVITY] (p. 73).
You can select the subject that has priority for smile detection with [SMILE PRIORITY] (p. 73).


Detects even a slight smile.
Detects a normal smile.
Detects a big smile.
SMILE PRIORITY
Selects the priority subject for the SMILE SHUTTER function.
 AUTO
Detects and shoots smiling faces automatically.
Detects and shoots with priority on a child’s face.
ADULT PRIORITY
Detects and shoots with priority on an adult’s face.
FRAME SETTING
See page 72.
73
Index
CHILD PRIORITY
VIEW IMAGES SET (Items to customize the display)
The default settings are marked with .
SET
You can select image quality for recording, playback, or editing from high definition image
quality (HD) or standard definition image quality (SD).
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [VIEW IMAGES SET]  [
setting  [YES] 

/
SET]  a desired
HD QUALITY
Records, plays, or edits high definition image quality (HD) image.
SD QUALITY
Records, plays, or edits standard definition image quality (SD) image.
Table of Contents
/
Tips
You can record, play, or edit movies in the selected image quality only. To record, play, or edit movies in
another image quality, perform this setting again.


During playback, your camcorder displays the information (data code) recorded automatically
at the time of recording.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [VIEW IMAGES SET]  [DATA CODE]  a desired

 OFF

Useful Recording Techniques
DATA CODE
Data code is not displayed.
DATE/TIME
Displays the date and time.
CAMERA DATA
Displays camera setting data.
DATE/TIME
Index
 Date
 Time
74
CAMERA DATA
Movie
Photo
Table of Contents
 SteadyShot off
 Brightness
 White balance
 Gain
 Shutter speed
 Aperture value
 Exposure
Tips
The data code is displayed on the TV screen if you connect your camcorder to a TV.
Depending on the recording media condition, bars [--:--:--] appear.


Useful Recording Techniques

Index
75
SOUND/DISP SET (Items to adjust the sound and the screen)
The default settings are marked with .
You can adjust the volume of playback sound.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [SOUND/DISP SET]  [VOLUME] 


(louder) 
(quieter)/
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VOLUME
BEEP
Steps
(HOME) 

(SETTINGS)  [SOUND/DISP SET]  [BEEP]  a desired setting 

A melody sounds when you start/stop recording, or operate the touch panel.
Cancels the melody.
OFF
LCD BRIGHT
You can adjust the brightness of the LCD screen.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [SOUND/DISP SET]  [LCD BRIGHT] 


(brighter) 
(darker)/
Useful Recording Techniques
 ON
Tips
This adjustment does not affect the recorded images in any way.


LCD BL LEVEL (LCD back light level)
You can adjust the brightness of the LCD screen’s backlight.
 NORMAL
BRIGHT
(SETTINGS)  [SOUND/DISP SET]  [LCD BL LEVEL]  a desired


Standard brightness.
Brightens the LCD screen.
 Notes
When you connect your camcorder to the wall outlet (wall socket) using the supplied AC Adaptor,
[BRIGHT] is automatically selected for the setting.
 When you select [BRIGHT], battery life is slightly reduced during recording.

76
Index
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 

If you open the LCD panel 180 degrees to face the screen outside and close the LCD panel to the
camcorder body, the setting becomes [NORMAL] automatically.
Tips
This adjustment does not affect the recorded images in any way.


You can adjust the color of the LCD screen.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [SOUND/DISP SET]  [LCD COLOR] 


(higher intensity) 
intensity)/
(lower
Table of Contents
LCD COLOR
Tips
This adjustment does not affect the recorded images in any way.


Useful Recording Techniques
Index
77
OUTPUT SETTINGS (Items for when connected to a TV)
The default settings are marked with .
You need to convert the signal depending on the TV connected when playing back movies
and photos. The recorded movies and photos are played back as following illustrations.
Steps
(HOME) 


(SETTINGS)  [OUTPUT SETTINGS]  [TV TYPE]  a desired setting
Table of Contents
TV TYPE

Select this to view your movies on a 16:9 (wide) TV. The recorded movies
and photos are played back as shown below.
Movies and photos recorded in 16:9
(wide) mode
Movies and photos recorded in 4:3
mode
 16:9
Movies and photos recorded in 16:9
(wide) mode
Movies and photos recorded in 4:3
mode
4:3
Useful Recording Techniques
Select this to view your movies and photos on a 4:3 standard TV. The
recorded movies and photos are played back as shown below.
 Notes
Horizontal to vertical ratio of high definition image quality (HD) movies is 16:9.

DISP OUTPUT (Display output)
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [OUTPUT SETTINGS]  [DISP OUTPUT]  a desired


78
Index
You can set where the screen displays are to be output.
 LCD PANEL
Shows displays such as the time code on the LCD screen.
Shows displays such as the time code on the LCD screen, and on the TV
screen.
V-OUT/PANEL
Select [COMPONENT] when connecting your camcorder to a TV with the component input
jack.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [OUTPUT SETTINGS]  [COMPONENT]  a desired

Table of Contents
COMPONENT

576i
 1080i/576i
Select this when connecting your camcorder to a TV with the component
input jack.
Select this when connecting your camcorder to a TV that has the component
input jack and is capable of displaying the 1080i signal.
HDMI RESOLUTION
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [OUTPUT SETTINGS]  [HDMI RESOLUTION]  [HD



CONTENTS]/[SD CONTENTS]  a desired setting 
HD CONTENTS
Useful Recording Techniques
Select the output image resolution when connecting your camcorder to a TV with an HDMI
cable.
Set the output image resolution recorded with high definition image quality (HD).
 AUTO
Normal setting (outputs the signal according to the TV automatically).
1080i
Outputs the 1080i signal.
720p
Outputs the 720p signal.
576p
Outputs the 576p signal.
SD CONTENTS
Set the output image resolution recorded with standard definition image quality (SD).
Normal setting (outputs the signal according to the TV automatically).
576p
Outputs the 576p signal.
576i
Outputs the 576i signal.
79
Index
 AUTO
CLOCK/
LANG (Items to set clock and language)
The default settings are marked with .
See page 19.
AREA SET
You can adjust a time difference without stopping the clock. Set your local area when using
your camcorder in other time zones. Refer to the world time difference on page 101.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [CLOCK/


using / 
Table of Contents
CLOCK SET
LANG]  [AREA SET]  set your local area
SUMMERTIME
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [CLOCK/

LANG]  [SUMMERTIME]  a desired

 OFF
Does not set the summertime.
Sets the summertime.
ON
Useful Recording Techniques
You can change this setting without stopping the clock. Set to [ON] to move the time forward
1 hour.
LANGUAGE SET
You can select the language to be used on the LCD screen.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [CLOCK/

LANG]  [
80
Index
Tips
Your camcorder offers [ENG[SIMP]] (simplified English) for when you cannot find your native tongue
among the options.


LANGUAGE SET]  a desired

GENERAL SET (Other setup items)
The default settings are marked with .
When your camcorder is connected to a wall outlet (wall socket), a demonstration movie
appear about 10 minutes after you turn on the (Movie) lamp by pressing MODE.
Steps
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [GENERAL SET]  [DEMO MODE]  a desired setting
Table of Contents
DEMO MODE

 ON
The demonstration appears.
The demonstration does not appear.
OFF
Tips
When you set this item to [ON] and touch
, the demonstration starts playing.
The demonstration will be suspended:
 When you press START/STOP or PHOTO
 When you touch the screen during the demonstration (The demonstration starts again after about 10
minutes.)
 When you turn on the
(Photo) lamp
 When you press
(HOME) or
(VIEW IMAGES)
A movie you have recorded will be registered as the demonstration movie if the movie satisfies the
following conditions.
 The movie is protected
 The movie is the first one displayed on the VISUAL INDEX screen
 The movie is recorded on the internal memory
 The movie is recorded with high definition image quality (HD)



Useful Recording Techniques

CALIBRATION
See page 108.
A.SHUT OFF (Auto shut off )
You can set your camcorder to turn off automatically when you do not operate your
camcorder for more than about 5 minutes.

(SETTINGS)  [GENERAL SET]  [A.SHUT OFF]  a desired setting 

81
Index
Steps
(HOME) 
 5min
The camcorder turns off automatically.
The camcorder does not turn off automatically.
NEVER
 Notes
When you connect your camcorder to a wall outlet (wall socket), [A.SHUT OFF] is automatically set to
[NEVER].

You can set your camcorder to turn on and off when you open and close the LCD screen.
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
(SETTINGS)  [GENERAL SET]  [POWER ON BY LCD]  a desired


 ON
The camcorder turns on and off when the LCD screen opens and closes.
The camcorder does not turn on and off when the LCD screen opens and
closes.
OFF
When connecting your camcorder to a “BRAVIA” Sync compatible TV with the HDMI cable
(sold separately), you can play back movies on your camcorder by aiming the TV’s Remote
Commander at the TV (p. 46).
 ON
OFF
(SETTINGS)  [GENERAL SET]  [CTRL FOR HDMI]  a desired


Useful Recording Techniques
CTRL FOR HDMI (Control for HDMI)
Steps
(HOME) 
setting 
Table of Contents
POWER ON BY LCD
Operates your camcorder using the TV’s Remote Commander.
Does not operate your camcorder using the TV’s Remote Commander.
Index
82
Functions set in the
OPTION MENU
Items you can set only on the
OPTION MENU will be described below.
The default settings are marked with .
You can adjust the brightness and focus for the selected subject simultaneously. This function
enables you to use [SPOT METER] (p. 83) and [SPOT FOCUS] (p. 84) at the same time.
Steps
 [SPOT MTR/FCS]  touch the subject you
In recording mode, (OPTION) 
want to adjust the brightness and focus on  [END] 
 Notes
[EXPOSURE] and [FOCUS] are automatically set to [MANUAL].

SPOT METER (Flexible spot meter)
You can adjust and fix the exposure to the subject, so that it is recorded in suitable brightness
even when there is strong contrast between the subject and the background, such as subjects
in the spotlight on stage.
Useful Recording Techniques
To adjust the brightness and focus automatically, touch [AUTO].
Table of Contents
SPOT MTR/FCS
Steps
 [SPOT METER]  touch the point where
In recording mode, (OPTION) 
you want to fix and adjust the exposure on the screen  [END] 
Index
To return the setting to automatic exposure, touch [AUTO].
 Notes
[EXPOSURE] is automatically set to [MANUAL].

83
SPOT FOCUS
You can select and adjust the focal point to aim it at a subject not located at the center of the
screen.
Table of Contents
Steps
 [SPOT FOCUS]  touch the point to be
In recording mode, (OPTION) 
focused within the frame on the screen  [END] 
To adjust the focus automatically, touch [AUTO].
 Notes
[FOCUS] is automatically set to [MANUAL].

This is useful to shoot small subjects, such as flowers or insects. You can blur out backgrounds
and the subject stands out clearer.
Steps
In recording mode,
(OPTION) 

[TELE MACRO]  a desired setting 

Cancels TELE MACRO. (TELE MACRO is also canceled when you move the
zoom lever to the W side.)
 OFF
ON (
Useful Recording Techniques
TELE MACRO
)
The zoom (p. 32) moves to the top of
the T (telephoto) side automatically
and allows recording subjects at a
close distance down to about 50 cm
(19 3/4 in.).
84
Index
 Notes
When recording a distant subject, focusing may be difficult and can take some time.
 Adjust the focus manually ([FOCUS], p. 85) when it is hard to focus automatically.

EXPOSURE
You can fix the brightness of a picture manually. Adjust the brightness when the subject is too
bright or too dark.
(OPTION) 

[EXPOSURE]  [MANUAL] 
(darker)/

Table of Contents
Steps
In recording mode,
(brighter) 
To adjust the exposure automatically, touch [AUTO].
FOCUS
Steps
 [FOCUS]  [MANUAL] 
In recording mode, (OPTION) 

(focusing on distant subjects) 
close subjects)/
(focusing on
Useful Recording Techniques
You can adjust the focus manually. You can select this function also when you want to focus
on a certain subject intentionally.
To adjust the focus automatically, touch [AUTO].
 Notes
When you set [FOCUS] to [MANUAL],  appears.
 The minimum possible distance between camcorder and subject while maintaining sharp focus is about
1 cm (about 13/32 in.) for wide angle and about 80 cm (about 31 1/2 in.) for telephoto.

Tips
appears when the focus cannot be adjusted any closer, and appears when the focus cannot be
adjusted farther away.
It is easier to focus on the subject by moving the power zoom lever towards T (telephoto) to adjust the
focus, then towards W (wide angle) to adjust the zoom for recording. When you want to record a subject
at close range, move the power zoom lever to W (wide angle), then adjust the focus.
The focal distance information (distance at which the subject is focused on; used as a guide if it is dark
and focus adjustment is difficult) appears for a few seconds in the following cases. (This information will
not display correctly if a conversion lens (sold separately) is being used.)
 When the focus mode is switched from automatic to manual
 When you set focus manually



85
Index

SCENE SELECTION
You can record images effectively in various situations.
(OPTION) 

[SCENE SELECTION]  a desired setting 

Automatically records images effectively without the [SCENE SELECTION]
function.
 AUTO
Maintains the darkening atmosphere of the distant
surroundings in twilight scenes.
CANDLE ( )
Maintains the dim atmosphere of a candlelit scene.
SUNRISE&SUNSET*
(
)
Reproduces the atmosphere of scenes such as sunsets or
sunrises.
FIREWORKS* ( )
Takes spectacular shots of fireworks.
LANDSCAPE*(
)
Brings out the subject such as people or flowers while
creating a soft background.
PORTRAIT (Soft
portrait) ( )
SPOTLIGHT**(
BEACH** (
SNOW** ( )
)
Shoots distant subjects clearly. This setting also prevents
your camcorder from focusing on glass or metal mesh in
windows between the camcorder and the subject.
)
Useful Recording Techniques
TWILIGHT* ( )
Table of Contents
Steps
In recording mode,
Prevents people’s faces from appearing excessively white
when subjects are lit by strong light.
Takes the vivid blue of the ocean or a lake.
Takes bright pictures of a white landscape.
 Notes
If you set [SCENE SELECTION], [WHITE BAL.] setting is canceled.

86
Index
* Adjusted to focus on subjects farther away only.
** Adjusted not to focus on subjects a short distance away.
WHITE BAL. (White balance)
You can adjust the color balance to the brightness of the recording environment.
 AUTO
OUTDOOR (
(OPTION) 

[WHITE BAL.]  a desired setting 

The white balance is adjusted automatically.
)
The white balance is appropriately adjusted for the following recording
conditions:
 Indoors
 At party scenes or studios where the lighting conditions change quickly
 Under video lamps in a studio, or under sodium lamps or incandescentlike color lamps
The white balance will be adjusted according to the ambient light.
)
Touch [ONE PUSH].
Frame a white object such as a piece of paper, to fill the screen under the
Useful Recording Techniques
The white balance is appropriately adjusted for the following recording
conditions:
 Outdoors
 Night views, neon signs and fireworks
 Sunrise or sunset
 Under daylight fluorescent lamps
INDOOR ()
ONE PUSH (
Table of Contents
Steps
In recording mode,
same lighting conditions as you will shoot the subject.
].
flashes quickly. When the white balance has been adjusted and stored in
the memory, the indicator stops flashing.
Touch [
 Notes
Set [WHITE BAL.] to [AUTO] or adjust the color in [ONE PUSH] under white or cool white fluorescent
lamps.
is flashing quickly.
 When you select [ONE PUSH], keep framing white objects while
flashes slowly if [ONE PUSH] could not be set.

 When [ONE PUSH] was selected, if
keeps flashing after touching
, set [WHITE BAL.] to
[AUTO].
 If you set [WHITE BAL.], [SCENE SELECTION] is set to [AUTO].


87
Index
Tips
If you have changed the battery pack while [AUTO] was selected, or taken your camcorder outdoors after
inside use (or vice versa), select [AUTO] and aim your camcorder at a nearby white object for about 10
seconds for better color balance adjustment.
When the white balance has been set with [ONE PUSH], if the lighting conditions changed by bringing
your camcorder outdoors from inside the house, or vice versa, you need to redo the [ONE PUSH]
procedure to readjust the white balance.


FADER
You can record a transition with the following effects adding to the interval between scenes.
Select the desired effect in [STBY] (to fading in) or [REC] (to fading out) mode.
(OPTION) 
 OFF
Does not use an effect.
WHITE FADER
BLACK FADER

[FADER]  a desired setting 

Out
In
Out
In
Table of Contents
Steps
In recording mode,
Fades in/out with the white effect.
Fades in/out with the black effect.
To cancel the fader before starting the operation, touch [OFF].
BLT-IN ZOOM MIC (Built-in zoom microphone)
You can record a movie with directional sound as you zoom in or out.
Steps
In recording mode,
(OPTION) 

[BLT-IN ZOOM MIC]  a desired setting 
Useful Recording Techniques
Tips
When you press START/STOP, the setting is cleared.



 OFF
ON ( )
The microphone does not record sound following zooming in or out.
The microphone records sound following
zooming in or out.
You can select the microphone level for recording sound.
Steps
In recording mode,
(OPTION) 

[MICREF LEVEL]  a desired setting 

88
Index
MICREF LEVEL (Microphone reference level)
 NORMAL
LOW ( )
Records various ambient sounds, converting them into the appropriate level.
Records ambient sound faithfully. Select [LOW] when you want to record
an exciting and powerful sound in a concert hall, etc. (This setting is not
suitable for recording conversations.)
Press PHOTO to start the count down. A photo is recorded after about 10 seconds.
Steps
In recording mode,
(OPTION) 
 OFF
Cancels the self-timer.
ON ( )

[SELF-TIMER]  a desired setting 

Table of Contents
SELF-TIMER
Starts the self-timer recording. To cancel the recording, touch [RESET].
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
89
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting












Overall operations/Easy Handycam operation
............................................................................ p. 90
Batteries/power sources ................................. p. 91
LCD screen....................................................... p. 91
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.................. p. 91
Recording.......................................................... p. 92
Playback............................................................ p. 93
Playing back images stored on “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media on other devices...... p. 94
Editing movies/photos on your camcorder... p. 94
Playback on the TV......................................... p. 94
Dubbing/Connecting to other devices.......... p. 94
Functions that cannot be used simultaneously
............................................................................ p. 94

Buttons do not work.

Notes before sending your camcorder
for repair


During Easy Handycam operation, the
following buttons/functions are not available.
 Playback zoom (p. 40)
 To turn on and off the LCD backlight (p. 34)
The
Your camcorder may be required to initialize
or change the current internal memory of your
camcorder, depending on the problem. In the
event of this, the data stored on the internal
memory will be deleted. Be sure to save the
data on the internal memory on other media
(backup) before sending your camcorder for
repair (p. 56, see Operating Guide too). We
will not compensate you for any loss of internal
memory data.
During repair, we may check a minimum
amount of data stored on the internal memory
in order to investigate the problem. However,
your Sony dealer will neither copy nor retain
your data.

(OPTION) button is not displayed.
The OPTION MENU cannot be used during
Easy Handycam operation.
The menu settings have changed
automatically.




The power does not turn on.

Attach a charged battery pack to the
camcorder (p. 17).
90
During Easy Handycam operation, nearly all
the menu items will be automatically set to the
default settings.
Some menu items, such as [ IMAGE SIZE],
retain the settings that were made before Easy
Handycam operation.
During Easy Handycam operation, some
menu items are fixed as follows.
 [REC MODE]: [HD SP] or [SD SP]
 [FRAME SETTING]: [ON]
 [DATA CODE]: [DATE/TIME]
Some menu items retain the setting made
during Easy Handycam operation even after
Easy Handycam operation is finished.
The following menu items return to the
default settings in more than 12 hours after
you close the LCD screen.
Index
Overall operations/Easy Handycam
operation

It takes a few seconds for your camcorder to
be ready to shoot after the power is turned on.
This is not a malfunction.
Disconnect the AC Adaptor from the wall
outlet (wall socket) or remove the battery
pack, then reconnect it after about 1 minute.
If the functions still do not work, press RESET
(p. 7) using a pointed object. (If you press
RESET, all settings, including the clock setting,
are reset.)
Useful Recording Techniques

The camcorder does not operate even
when the power is set to on.
Table of Contents
If you run into any problems using your
camcorder, use the following list to
troubleshoot the problem. If the problem
persists, disconnect the power source and
contact your Sony dealer.
The plug of the AC Adaptor has been
disconnected from the wall outlet (wall
socket). Connect it to the wall outlet (wall
socket) (p. 17).
 [AUTO
BACK LIGHT]
MTR/FCS]
 [SPOT METER]
 [SPOT FOCUS]
 [EXPOSURE]
 [FOCUS]
 [SCENE SELECTION]
 [WHITE BAL.]
 [BLT-IN ZOOM MIC]
 [MICREF LEVEL]
The remaining battery time indicator does
not indicate the correct time.
 [SPOT


Your camcorder gets warm.

The battery pack is quickly discharged.
Your camcorder may become warm during
operation. This is not a malfunction.

Batteries/power sources

The power abruptly turns off.


Use the AC Adaptor.
In the default setting, when about 5 minutes
have elapsed while you do not operate your
camcorder, the camcorder is automatically
turned off (A.SHUT OFF). Change the setting
of [A.SHUT OFF] (p. 81), or turn on the
power again.
Charge the battery pack (p. 17).
LCD screen
Menu items are grayed out.


The CHG (charge) lamp does not light
while the battery pack is being charged.




You cannot select grayed items in the current
recording/playback situation.
There are some functions you cannot activate
simultaneously (p. 94).
The buttons do not appear on the touch
panel.
Close the LCD screen (p. 17).
Attach the battery pack to the camcorder
correctly (p. 17).
Connect the power cord (mains lead) to the
wall outlet (wall socket) properly.
The battery charge is completed (p. 17).


Touch the LCD screen lightly.
Press DISP on your camcorder (p. 34).
The buttons on the touch panel do not
work correctly or do not work at all.

The CHG (charge) lamp flashes while the
battery pack is being charged.
Attach the battery pack to the camcorder
correctly (p. 17). If the problem persists,
disconnect the AC Adaptor from the wall
outlet (wall socket) and contact your Sony
dealer. The battery pack may be damaged.
Adjust the touch panel ([CALIBRATION])
(p. 108).
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
Operations using the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media cannot be performed.

91
If you use “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
formatted on a computer, format it again on
your camcorder (p. 63).
Index

The ambient temperature is too high or low.
This is not a malfunction.
The battery pack has not been charged
enough. Fully charge the battery again. If the
problem persists, replace the battery pack with
a new one (p. 106).
Useful Recording Techniques

Table of Contents

The ambient temperature is too high or too
low. This is not a malfunction.
The battery pack has not been charged
enough. Fully charge the battery again. If the
problem persists, replace the battery pack with
a new one (p. 106).
The indicated time may not be correct
depending on the environment of use.
Images stored on the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media cannot be deleted.

The maximum number of images that you can
delete on the index screen at one time is 100.
You cannot delete the protected images.

The data file name is not indicated
correctly or flashes.


There is a time difference between the
point when START/STOP is pressed and
the point that the recording movie is
started or stopped actually.
The file is damaged.
The file format is not supported by your
camcorder (p. 105).

Recording
Refer also to “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media (p. 91).



The horizontal to vertical ratio of the
movie (16:9 (wide)/4:3) cannot be
changed.
The playback screen is displayed. Press MODE
to
(Movie) or (Photo) (p. 28, 30).
Your camcorder is recording the image you
have just shot on the recording media. You
cannot make new recording during this
period.
The recording media is full. Delete
unnecessary images (p. 47).
Total number of movie scenes or photos
exceeds the recordable capacity of your
camcorder (p. 98). Delete unnecessary images
(p. 47).





You cannot record photos together with:
 [SMTH SLW REC]
 [FADER]
Set [ STEADYSHOT] to [ON] (p. 67).
Even if [ STEADYSHOT] is set to
[ON], your camcorder may not be able to
compensate for excessive vibrations.
The subjects passing by the screen very
fast appear crooked.
The imaging field may look different
depending on the condition of your
camcorder. This is not a malfunction.
92
This is called the focal plane phenomenon.
This is not a malfunction. Because of the way
the image device (CMOS sensor) reads out
image signals, the subjects passing by the lens
rapidly might appear crooked depending on
the recording conditions.
Index

Your camcorder is recording the scene you
have just shot on the recording media.
The imaging field looks different.

Set [FOCUS] to [AUTO] (p. 85).
The recording conditions are not suitable for
auto focus. Adjust the focus manually (p. 85).
SteadyShot does not function.
The access lamp remains lit or flashing
even if recording was stopped.

The horizontal to vertical ratio of high
definition image quality (HD) movies is 16:9
(wide).
The auto focus does not function.
Photos cannot be recorded.

On your camcorder, there may be a slight
time difference between the point where you
press START/STOP and the actual point that
recording movie starts/stops. This is not a
malfunction.
Useful Recording Techniques
Pressing START/STOP or PHOTO does not
record images.

Depending on the recording conditions, the
time available for recording may be shorter, for
example when recording a fast moving object,
etc. (p. 98).
Table of Contents

The actual recording time for movies is
less than the expected recording time of
the recording media.
pack before the access lamp is turned off after
recording. This may damage your image data
and
is displayed.
The screen image is dark, and the subject
does not appear on the screen.

Press and hold DISP down for a few seconds
to turn on the backlight (p. 34).
Horizontal stripes appear on the images.


This occurs when recording images under a
fluorescent lamp, sodium lamp, or mercury
lamp. This is not a malfunction.
Black bands appear when you record a TV
screen or computer screen.

Set [
No sound or only a quiet sound is heard
during playback.
STEADYSHOT] to [OFF] (p. 67).
[LCD BL LEVEL] cannot be adjusted.





Images cannot be played back.

Left and right sound will be heard
unbalanced when playing back movies on
computers or other devices.
Select the recording media and the image
quality of a movie you want to play back by
touching (HOME) 
(MANAGE
MEDIA)  [MOVIE MEDIA SET]/[PHOTO
MEDIA SET] (p. 60).
Select the image quality of a movie you want
to play back by touching (HOME) 
(SETTINGS)  [VIEW IMAGES SET] 
[
/
SET] (p. 74).



Photos cannot be played back if you have
modified files or folders, or have edited the
data on a computer. (The file name flashes in
that case.) This is not a malfunction.
Photos recorded on other devices may not be
played back. This is not a malfunction.
is indicated on an image on the
VISUAL INDEX screen.


This may appear on an image recorded on
other devices, edited on a computer, etc.
You removed the AC Adaptor or the battery
93
Movies play automatically as a demonstration
movie when the filmed movie fulfills a certain
condition on your camcorder (p. 81). This is
not a malfunction.
Index

Change the sound conversion type (downmix
type) when playing back on 2ch stereo devices.
Refer to the instruction manual supplied with
your playback device for details.
Change the sound to 2ch when creating a disc
using the supplied software “PMB.”
Movies play automatically.
Photos cannot be played back.

Turn up the volume (p. 36).
Sound is not output when the LCD screen is
closed. Open the LCD screen.
When you record sound with [MICREF
LEVEL] (p. 88) set to [LOW], the recorded
sound may be difficult to hear.
Sounds cannot be recorded while shooting
an about-3-second movie using [SMTH SLW
REC].
Useful Recording Techniques
You cannot adjust [LCD BL LEVEL] when:
 The LCD panel is closed on your camcorder
with the LCD screen facing out.
 The power is supplied from the AC Adaptor.
Playback

The image data base file may be damaged.
Check the data base file by touching
(HOME) 
(MANAGE MEDIA) 
[REPAIR IMG.DB F.]  the recording
medium. If it still appears, delete the image
with
(p. 47).
Table of Contents
is indicated on an image on the
VISUAL INDEX screen.

Playing back images stored on
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media on
other devices



You cannot play back high definition image
quality (HD) movies on “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media on a device that is not compatible
with AVCHD format.
The image appears distorted on the 4:3
TV.

Editing movies/photos on your
camcorder
Unable to edit.



There is no free space in the recording media.
You can add no more than 999 high definition
image quality (HD) movies, or 99 standard
definition image quality (SD) movies, to a
Playlist. Erase unnecessary movies from the
Playlist (p. 55).
You cannot add photos in the Playlist.
Dubbing/Connecting to other
devices
Images are not dubbed correctly.


A movie cannot be divided.


A movie that is too short cannot be divided.
A protected movie cannot be divided.
The recording media where you want to save
photos is full.
Neither image nor sound is played on the
connected TV.
When you are using the component A/V
cable, set [COMPONENT] according to the
requirements of the connected device (p. 79).
94
Index
The following list shows examples of
unworkable combinations of functions and
menu items.
Playback on the TV

You cannot dub images using the HDMI cable.
The A/V connecting cable is not connected
properly. Make sure to connect the cable to the
input jack of another device (p. 56).
Functions that cannot be used
simultaneously
A photo cannot be captured from a
movie.

This happens when viewing an image recorded
in the 16:9 (wide) mode on a 4:3 TV. This is
not a malfunction.
Useful Recording Techniques

This happens when viewing an image
recorded in the 16:9 (wide) mode on a 4:3 TV.
Set [TV TYPE] correctly (p. 78) and play back
the image.
Black bands appear at the top and bottom
of the screen of the 4:3 TV.
Unable to edit because of the condition of the
image.
Movies cannot be added in the Playlist.

Table of Contents
Images cannot be played back or the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media is not
recognized.
When you are using the component video
plug, make sure the red and white plugs of the
A/V connecting cable are connected (p. 44,
45).
Images are not output from the HDMI OUT
jack, if copyright protection signals are
recorded in the images.
When you are using the S VIDEO plug,
make sure the red and white plugs of the A/V
connecting cable are connected (p. 45).
Because of following settings
[FACE
DETECTION]
[SMTH SLW REC],
[DIGITAL ZOOM],
[SPOT MTR/FCS], [SPOT
METER], [SPOT FOCUS],
[EXPOSURE], [FOCUS],
[TWILIGHT], [CANDLE],
[SUNRISE&SUNSET],
[FIREWORKS],
[LANDSCAPE],
[SPOTLIGHT], [BEACH],
[SNOW], [WHITE BAL.],
DC IN jack of your camcorder securely (p. 17).
C:13: / C:32:
Remove the power source. Reconnect it and
operate your camcorder again.

E:20: / E:31: / E:61: / E:62: /
E:91: / E:94:
 A malfunction that you cannot service has
occurred. Contact your Sony dealer or local
authorized Sony service facility. Inform them
of the 5-digit code, which starts from “E”.
Table of Contents
Cannot use
101-0001 (Warning indicator pertaining
to files)
[SMTH SLW REC],
[DIGITAL ZOOM],
[FADER], [SELF-TIMER]
[SMILE
SENSITIVITY]
[SMTH SLW REC],
[DIGITAL ZOOM],
[FADER], [SELF-TIMER]
Slow flashing
 The file is damaged.
 The file is unreadable.
[SMILE
PRIORITY]
[SMTH SLW REC],
[DIGITAL ZOOM],
[FADER], [SELF-TIMER]
 (Battery level warning)
[FRAME
SETTING]
[SMTH SLW REC]
[SCENE
SELECTION]
[FADER], [TELE MACRO]
Slow flashing
 The battery pack is nearly used up.
 Depending on the operating environment or
battery conditions,  may flash, even if there
are about 20 minutes remaining.
(Warning indicator pertaining to
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media)
Self-diagnosis display/Warning
indicators
Slow flashing
 Free spaces for recording images are running
out. For the type of “Memory Stick” media you
can use with your camcorder, see page 60.
 No “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media is
inserted (p. 60).
If indicators appear on the LCD screen,
check the following.
If the problem persists even after you
have tried to fix a couple of times, contact
your Sony dealer or local authorized Sony
service facility.
Fast flashing
There are not enough free spaces for recording
images. After storing the images on other
media (p. 56, see Operating Guide too), delete
unnecessary images, or format the “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media (p. 63).
 The image data base file may be damaged.
Check the data base file by touching
(HOME) 
(MANAGE MEDIA) 
[REPAIR IMG.DB F.]  the recording
medium.
 The “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media is
damaged.
Useful Recording Techniques
[DETECTION
SET]

C:04:
 The battery pack is not an “InfoLITHIUM”
battery pack (H series). Use an
“InfoLITHIUM” battery pack (H series)
(p. 106).
 Connect the DC plug of the AC Adaptor to the
95
Index
C:(or E:) : (Self-diagnosis display)
Recording media
(Warning indicators pertaining
to “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
formatting)

The “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media is
damaged.
The “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media is not
formatted correctly (p. 63).
(Warning indicator pertaining to
incompatible “Memory Stick Duo” media)

Data error.

Incompatible “Memory Stick Duo” media are
inserted (p. 60).
Access to the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
was restricted on another device.

The camcorder is unsteady, so camera-shake
easily occurs. Hold the camcorder steady with
both hands and record the image. However,
note that the camera-shake warning indicator
does not disappear.
Inconsistencies found in Image Database
File. Do you want to repair the Image
Database File?
The Image Database File is damaged. Do
you want to repair the Image Database
File?
Inconsistencies found in Image Database
File. Cannot record or play HD movies. Do
you want to repair the Image Database
File?
(Warning indicator pertaining to
photo recording)


The recording media is full.
Photos cannot be recorded during processing.
Wait for a while, then record.
Tips
You may hear a melody when some warning
indicators appear on the screen.


The image management file is damaged. When
you touch [YES], a new image management
file is created. The old recorded images on the
media cannot be played back (Image files are
not damaged). If you execute [REPAIR IMG.
DB F.] after creating new information, playing
back the old recorded images may become
possible. If it does not work, copy the image
using the supplied software.


If messages appear on the screen, follow the
instructions.
Recovering data.

96
Your camcorder tries to recover data
automatically if the data writing was not
performed properly.
Index
Description of warning messages
The image management file is damaged, and
you cannot record movies or photos. Touch
[YES] to repair.
You can record photos on “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media.
Useful Recording Techniques
(Warning indicator pertaining to
camera-shake warning)

An error occurred during reading or writing
the internal memory of the camcorder.
The Image Database File is damaged. Do
you want to create a new file?
HD movie management information is
damaged. Create new information?
 (Warning indicator pertaining to
the write-protect of the “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media)

The internal memory of the camcorder
is set differently from the default format.
Performing [MEDIA FORMAT] (p. 63) may
enable you to use your camcorder. This will
delete all data in the internal memory.
Table of Contents

Internal memory format error.

Other
Cannot recover data.

Writing data onto the media of the camcorder
has failed. Attempts were made to recover the
data, but they were unsuccessful.
No further selection is possible.

Reinsert the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
a few times. If even then the indicator flashes,
the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media could
be damaged. Try with another “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media.

This Memory Stick is not formatted
correctly.

Check the format, then format the “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media with your camcorder if
necessary (p. 63).
Data protected.


You cannot create folders exceeding
999MSDCF. You cannot create or delete
created folders using your camcorder.
Format the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
(p. 63), or delete folders using your computer.
This Memory Stick may not be able to
record or play movies.

You tried to delete protected data. Release the
protection of the data.
Useful Recording Techniques
Still picture folder is full. Cannot record
still pictures.

Table of Contents
Reinsert the Memory Stick.

You can add no more than 999 high definition
image quality (HD) movies, or 99 standard
definition image quality (SD) movies, to a
Playlist.
You can select only 100 images at one time for:
 Deleting movies/photos
 Protecting movies/photos, or releasing the
protection
 Dubbing movies
 Copying photos
 Editing the Playlist of high definition image
quality (HD) movies/photos
Use “Memory Stick” media recommended for
your camcorder (p. 60).
This Memory Stick may not be able to
record or play images correctly.

Use “Memory Stick” media recommended for
your camcorder (p. 60).

Index
Do not eject the Memory Stick during
writing. Data may be damaged.
Reinsert the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media,
and follow the instructions on the LCD screen.
97
Additional information
Recording time of
movies/number of
recordable photos
(unit: minute)
“HD” stands for high definition image
quality, and “SD” stands for standard image
quality.

Expected time of recording and
playback with each battery pack
(unit: hour minute)
Recording mode
[HD FH]
[HD HQ]
[HD SP]
[HD LP]




95
220
235
535
115
265
Standard definition image quality (SD)
(unit: hour minute)
Recording mode
[SD HQ]
[SD SP]
[SD LP]
Each recording time is measured under the
following condition:
 [REC MODE]: SteadyShot
 When the LCD backlight turns on
Typical recording time shows the time when
you repeat recording start/stop, switching the
MODE ramp, and zooming.
Times measured when using the camcorder at
25 C (77 ˚F) (10 C to 30 C (50 ˚F to 86 ˚F) is
recommended.).
The recording and playback time will be
shorter when you use your camcorder in low
temperatures.
The recording and playback time will be shorter
depending on the conditions under which you
use your camcorder.
Recording time
2 h (1 h 45 m)
2 h 50 m (1 h 45 m)
6 h (3 h 50 m)
Tips
You can record movies of a maximum of 3,999
scenes with high definition image quality (HD),
and 9,999 scenes with standard definition image
quality (SD).
Your camcorder uses the VBR (Variable Bit
Rate) format to automatically adjust image
quality to suit the recording scene. This
technology causes fluctuations in the recording
time of the media. Movies containing quickly
moving and complex images are recorded at
a higher bit rate, and this reduces the overall
recording time.
The number in ( ) is the minimum recordable
time.



Playing time
Approximate time available when you use a
fully charged battery pack.

98
Index

195
440
Recording time
55 m (55 m)
1 h 55 m (1 h 20 m)
2 h 25 m (1 h 40 m)
3 h 15 m (2 h 30 m)
Useful Recording Techniques
Image quality
NP-FH50
(supplied)
NP-FH70
NP-FH100
When the LCD backlight turns on.
High definition image quality (HD)
(unit: minute)
Typical recording
time
HD
SD
45
55
330
745
Internal memory
Approximate time available when you use a
fully charged battery pack.
Continuous
recording time
HD
SD
90
110
290
650
Expected recording time of movies
Recording time
Battery pack
LCD panel opened
HD
SD
135
155
Table of Contents
Battery pack
Image quality
NP-FH50
(supplied)
NP-FH70
NP-FH100
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
High definition image quality (HD)
4.0M
2304  1728
(unit: minute)
2GB
4GB
8GB
16GB
AVC HD
9M
(HQ)
10
(9)
25
(20)
55
(40)
115
(80)
230
(165)
AVC HD
7M
(SP)
15
(10)
35
(25)
70
(50)
145
(100)
290
(205)
AVC HD
5M
(LP)
20
(15)
45
(35)
95
(70)
195
(150)
390
(300)
1GB
2GB
4GB
8GB
16GB



1GB
2GB
4GB
8GB
16GB
SD 3M
(LP)
40
(25)
85
(55)
170
(110)
355
(230)
235
(210)
340
(210)
715
(460)
Tips
You can also use “Memory Stick Duo” media
with a capacity of under 1 GB for recording
photos.


 Notes
Numbers in the table are based on using Sony
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.
 The recordable time may vary depending on the
recording and subject conditions, [REC MODE]
(p. 65), and the type of “Memory Stick” media.
 The number in ( ) is the minimum recordable
time.
Useful Recording Techniques
(unit: minute)
SD 6M
(SP)
20
(10)
40
(25)
80
(50)
170
(105)
The selected image size is effective when the
(Photo) lamp is lit.
The number of recordable photos shown is for
the maximum image size of your camcorder.
The actual number of recordable photos is
displayed on the LCD screen during recording
(p. 8).
 Notes
Numbers in the table are based on using Sony
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media. The number
of recordable photos may vary depending
on the recording conditions, and the type of
“Memory Stick” media.
 The unique pixel array of Sony’s ClearVid and
the image processing system (BIONZ) allow
still image resolution equivalent to the sizes
described.
Standard definition image quality (SD)
SD 9M
(HQ)
10
(10)
25
(25)
55
(50)
115
(105)
470
970
1850
3850
7700
Table of Contents
1GB
AVC HD
16M
(FH)
6
(6)
10
(10)
25
(25)
55
(55)
115
(115)

Index
Expected number of recordable
photos
Internal memory
You can record the maximum 9,999 photos.
99
Using your camcorder
abroad
System
PAL-M
PAL-N
NTSC
Power supply
SECAM
Viewing high definition image quality
(HD) movies
Useful Recording Techniques
In countries/regions where 1080/50i is
supported, you can view the movies with
the same high definition image quality
(HD) as that of the recorded movies. You
need a PAL-system-based and 1080/50i
compatible TV (or monitor) with
component and AUDIO/VIDEO input
jacks. A component A/V cable or an HDMI
cable (sold separately) must be connected.
Table of Contents
You can use your camcorder in any
countries/regions using the AC Adaptor
supplied with your camcorder within the
AC 100 V to 240 V, 50 Hz/60 Hz range.
Used in
Brazil
Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay
Bahama Islands, Bolivia,
Canada, Central America,
Chile, Colombia, Ecuador,
Guyana, Jamaica, Japan,
Korea, Mexico, Peru, Surinam,
Taiwan, the Philippines, the
USA, Venezuela, etc.
Bulgaria, France, Guiana, Iran,
Iraq, Monaco, Russia, Ukraine,
etc.
Viewing standard definition image
quality (SD) movies
To view standard definition image quality
(SD) movies, you need a PAL-system-based
TV with AUDIO/VIDEO input jacks. An
A/V connecting cable must be connected.
On TV color systems
Your camcorder is a PAL-system-based
camcorder. If you want to view the playback
image on a TV, it must be a PAL-systembased TV with an AUDIO/VIDEO input
jack.
Used in
Australia, Austria, Belgium,
China, Czech Republic,
Denmark, Finland, Germany,
Holland, Hong Kong, Hungary,
Italy, Kuwait, Malaysia, New
Zealand, Norway, Poland,
Portugal, Singapore, Slovak
Republic, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, Thailand, United
Kingdom, etc.
Index
System
PAL
100
Setting to the local time
You can easily set the clock to the local time by setting a time difference when using your
(SETTINGS)  [CLOCK/ LANG] 
camcorder abroad. Touch (HOME) 
[AREA SET] and [SUMMERTIME] (p. 80).
–11:00
–10:00
Time-zone
differences
–09:00
–08:00
–07:00
–06:00
–05:00
–04:00
–03:30
–03:00
–02:00
–01:00
Lisbon, London
Berlin, Paris
Helsinki, Cairo, Istanbul
Moscow, Nairobi
Tehran
Abu Dhabi, Baku
Kabul
Karachi, Islamabad
Calcutta, New Delhi
Almaty, Dhaka
Yangon
Bangkok, Jakarta
Hong Kong, Singapore,
Beijing
Seoul, Tokyo
Adelaide, Darwin
Melbourne, Sydney
Solomon Is
Fiji, Wellington, Eniwetok,
Kwajalein
Samoa
Hawaii
Area setting
Alaska
Los Angeles, Tijuana
Denver, Arizona
Chicago, Mexico City
New York, Bogota
Santiago
St.John’s
Brasilia, Montevideo
Fernando de Noronha
Azores, Cape Verde Is.
Index
+09:00
+09:30
+10:00
+11:00
+12:00
Area setting
Useful Recording Techniques
Time-zone
differences
GMT
+01:00
+02:00
+03:00
+03:30
+04:00
+04:30
+05:00
+05:30
+06:00
+06:30
+07:00
+08:00
Table of Contents
World time difference
101
File/folder structure on the internal memory and
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
When the capacity of a file number
exceeds 9999, another folder is created
to record new movie files.
The folder name goes up: [101PNV01]
 [102PNV01]
Image management files
When you delete the files, you cannot
record/play back the images correctly.
The files are defaulted as hidden files
and not usually displayed.

SD movie files (MPEG2 files)
The extension of the files is “.MPG”.
The maximum size is 2 GB. When the
capacity of a file exceeds 2 GB, the file
becomes divided.
The file numbers go up automatically.

102
By setting
(HOME)  (OTHERS) 
[USB CONNECT]  [ USB CONNECT]/
[ USB CONNECT], you can access the
recording media from the computer through
USB connection.
Access from the computer using the supplied
software“PMB.” Do not modify the files or
folders on the camcorder from the computer.
Index
Photo files (JPEG files)
The extension of the files is “.JPG”. The
file numbers go up automatically. When
the capacity of a file number exceeds
9999, another folder is created to store
new photo files.
The folder name goes up: [101MSDCF]
 [102MSDCF]
HD movie management information
folder
This folder contains recording data of
high definition image quality (HD)
movies. Do not try to open this folder
or access the contents of this folder from
a computer. Doing so might damage
image files, or prevent image files from
being played back.
Useful Recording Techniques
* Only for the internal memory
Table of Contents
The file/folder structure is shown below. You do not usually need to acknowledge the file/
folder structure, when recording/playing back movies and photos on the camcorder. To enjoy
movies or photos by connecting your camcorder to a computer, see “PMB Guide” then use the
supplied application.



Table of Contents

The image files may be destroyed or may not be
played back.
Operation is not guaranteed, if you perform the
above operation.
When you delete image files, follow the steps
on page 47. Do not delete the image files on the
camcorder directly from the computer.
Do not format the recording media using a
computer. The camcorder may not operate
correctly.
Do not copy the files on the recording
media from the computer. Operation is not
guaranteed.
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
103
Maintenance and
precautions
*1 1080i specification
About the AVCHD format
What is the AVCHD format?
The AVCHD format is a high definition
digital video camera format used to
record a high definition (HD) signal of
either the 1080i specification*1 or the
720p specification*2 using efficient data
compression coding technology. The
MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 format is adopted to
compress video data, and the Dolby Digital
or Linear PCM system is used to compress
audio data.
The MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 format is
capable of compressing images at higher
efficiency than that of the conventional
image compressing format. The MPEG4 AVC/H.264 format enables a high
definition video signal shot on a digital
video camera recorder to be recorded on
8 cm DVD discs, internal hard disk drive,
flash memory, “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media, etc.
Table of Contents
A high definition specification which utilizes
1,080 effective scanning lines and the interlace
system.
*2 720p specification
A high definition specification which utilizes
720 effective scanning lines and the progressive
system.
*3 Data recorded in AVCHD format other than
the above mentioned cannot be played on your
camcorder.
About the “Memory Stick” media
Types of “Memory Stick” media
Recording/Playback
“Memory Stick Duo”
—
media (with MagicGate)
“Memory Stick PRO

Duo” media
“Memory Stick PRO-HG
*
Duo” media
Recording and playback on your
camcorder
Useful Recording Techniques
“Memory Stick” media are a compact,
portable IC recording medium with a large
data capacity.
You can use only “Memory Stick Duo”
media, which are about the half size of
standard “Memory Stick” media, with your
camcorder.
However, we do not guarantee the
operation of all types of “Memory Stick
Duo” media on your camcorder.
* This product does not support 8-bit parallel
Based on the AVCHD format, your
camcorder records with the high definition
image quality (HD) mentioned below.
In addition to high definition image
quality (HD), your camcorder is capable of
recording a standard definition (SD) signal
in the conventional MPEG2 format.
data transfer but it supports 4-bit parallel data
transfer the same as with “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media.



104
Index
Video signal*3: MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 1920
 1080/50i, 1440  1080/50i
Audio signal: Dolby Digital 2ch
Recording media: Internal memory,
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
This product cannot record or play data that
uses “MagicGate” technology. “MagicGate” is
a copyright protection technology that records
and transfers the contents in an encrypted
format.
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media formatted by a
computer (Windows OS/Mac OS) does not have
guaranteed compatibility with your camcorder.
Data read/write speed may vary depending on
the combination of the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media and “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media compliant product you use.











On “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media

On image data compatibility





When using “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
with “Memory Stick” media compliant device,
be sure to insert the “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media into “Memory Stick Duo” media adaptor.
When using “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
with “Memory Stick” media compliant device
105
Image data files recorded on “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media by your camcorder conform
to the “Design rule for Camera File system”
universal standard established by the JEITA
(Japan Electronics and Information Technology
Industries Association).
On your camcorder, you cannot play back
photos recorded on other devices (DCRTRV900E or DSC-D700/D770) that do not
conform to the universal standard. (These
models are not sold in some regions.)
If you cannot use “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media that have been used with another device,
format it with your camcorder (p. 63). Note
that formatting erases all information on the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.
You may not be able to play back images with
your camcorder:
 When playing back image data modified on
your computer
 When playing back image data recorded with
other devices
Index
On the “Memory Stick Duo” media
adaptor

The maximum memory capacity of “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media that can be used with
your camcorder is 16 GB.
Useful Recording Techniques


inserting “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
into “Memory Stick Duo” media adaptor, make
sure the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media are
inserted facing in the correct direction. Note
that improper use may cause a malfunction.
When using “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
inserted into “Memory Stick Duo” media
adaptor on “Memory Stick” media compliant
device, make sure the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media adaptor is inserted into the device
in the correct direction. If inserted in the wrong
direction, the device may be damaged.
Do not insert “Memory Stick Duo” media
adaptor without “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media attached into “Memory Stick” media
compliant device. Doing so may result in
malfunctions of the device.
Table of Contents

Damaged or lost data may occur in the
following cases (the data will not be
compensated for):
 If you eject the “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media, or turn off your camcorder while your
camcorder is reading or writing image files on
the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media (while
the access lamp is lit or flashing)
 If you use the “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media near magnets or magnetic fields
It is recommended that you make a back-up of
important data on the hard disk of a computer.
Be careful not to apply excessive force when
writing a memo area on “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media.
Do not attach a label or the like on “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media or “Memory Stick Duo”
media adaptor.
When you carry or store “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media, put it in its case.
Do not touch, or allow metallic objects to come
into contact with the terminals.
Do not bend, drop or apply strong force to the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media.
Do not disassemble or modify the “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media.
Do not let the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
get wet.
Keep the “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media out
of the reach of small children. There is danger
that a child might swallow it.
Do not insert anything other than “Memory
Stick PRO Duo” media into the “Memory
Stick Duo” media slot. Doing so may cause a
malfunction.
Do not use or keep the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media in the following locations:
 Places subject to extremely high temperature,
such as a car parked outside in the summer
 Places under direct sunlight
 Places with extremely high humidity or
subject to corrosive gases
About the “InfoLITHIUM” battery
pack


What is an “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack?



An “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack is a
lithium-ion battery pack that has functions
for communicating information related to
operating conditions between your camcorder
and an AC Adaptor/charger (sold separately).
The “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack calculates the
power consumption according to the operating
conditions of your camcorder, and displays the
remaining battery time in minutes.
The battery pack NP-FH50 is compatible with
“ActiFORCE.” “ActiFORCE” is a new generation
power system. Battery capacity, boost charge,
and the speed and accuracy of battery time
remaining calculations have been improved
when compared with current “InfoLITHIUM”
P-series batteries.

About the remaining battery time
indicator



Be sure to charge the battery pack before you
start using your camcorder.
We recommend charging the battery pack in an
ambient temperature of between 10 C to 30 C
(50 ˚F to 86 ˚F) until the CHG (charge) lamp
turns off. If you charge the battery pack outside
of this temperature range, you may not be able
to charge it efficiently.
About storage of the battery pack

To use the battery pack effectively

Battery pack performance decreases when the
ambient temperature is 10 C (50 °F) or below,
and the length of time you can use the battery
pack becomes shorter. In that case, do one
of the following to use the battery pack for a
longer time.
 Put the battery pack in a pocket to warm it
up, and install it on your camcorder right
before you start taking shots.
 Use a large capacity battery pack: NP-FH70/
FH100 (sold separately).
Frequent use of the LCD screen or a frequent
playback, fast forward or reverse operation

If the battery pack is not used for a long time,
fully charge the battery pack and use it up on
your camcorder once a year to maintain proper
function. To store the battery pack, remove it
from your camcorder and put it in a dry, cool
place.
To discharge the battery pack on your
(HOME) 
camcorder completely, touch
(SETTINGS)  [GENERAL SET] 
[A.SHUT OFF]  [NEVER], and leave your
camcorder in recording standby until the power
goes off (p. 81).
About battery life

106
Battery capacity decreases over time and
through repeated use. If decreased usage time
between charges becomes significant, it is
probably time to replace it with a new one.
Index

When the power goes off even though the
remaining battery time indicator indicates that
the battery pack has enough power to operate,
charge the battery pack fully again. Remaining
battery time will be indicated correctly. Note,
however, that the battery indication will not be
restored if it is used in high temperatures for
a long time, or if left in a fully charged state,
or when the battery pack is frequently used.
Use the remaining battery time indication as a
rough guide only.
The  mark that indicates low battery flashes
even if there are still 20 minutes of battery
time remaining, depending on the operating
conditions or ambient temperature.
Useful Recording Techniques
To charge the battery pack

Table of Contents
Your camcorder operates only with an
“InfoLITHIUM” battery pack (H series).
“InfoLITHIUM” H series battery packs
mark.
have the
wears out the battery pack faster. We
recommend using a large capacity battery pack:
NP-FH70/FH100 (sold separately).
Be sure to close the LCD screen when not
recording or playing back on your camcorder.
The battery pack is also consumed when your
camcorder is in recording standby or playback
pause.
Have spare battery packs ready for 2 or 3 times
the expected recording time, and make trial
recordings before making the actual recording.
Do not expose the battery pack to water. The
battery pack is not water resistant.

Each battery’s life is governed by storage,
operating and environmental conditions.

About x.v.Color

x.v.Color is a more familiar term for the xvYCC
standard proposed by Sony, and is a trademark
of Sony.
xvYCC is an international standard for color
space in video. This standard can express a
wider color range than the currently used
broadcast standard.




About handling of your camcorder

On use and care






To keep your camcorder in optimum state for a
long time, turn it on and let it run by recording
and playing back images about once a month.
Use up the battery pack completely before
storing it.
Moisture condensation
If your camcorder is brought directly from a cold
place to a warm place, moisture may condense
inside your camcorder. This may cause a
malfunction to your camcorder.
 If moisture condensation has occurred
Leave your camcorder for about 1 hour without
turning it on.
 Note on moisture condensation
Moisture may condense when you bring your
camcorder from a cold place into a warm place
(or vice versa) or when you use your camcorder
in a humid place as follows:
 You bring your camcorder from a ski slope
into a place warmed up by a heating device.
 You bring your camcorder from an air
conditioned car or room into a hot place
outside.
 You use your camcorder after a squall or a
shower.
107
Index

When not using your camcorder for a
long time
Useful Recording Techniques


Do not use or store the camcorder and
accessories in the following locations:
 Anywhere extremely hot, cold or humid.
Never leave them exposed to temperatures
above 60 C (140 °F), such as under direct
sunlight, near heaters or in a car parked in
the sun. They may malfunction or become
deformed.
 Near strong magnetic fields or mechanical
vibration. The camcorder may malfunction.
 Near strong radio waves or radiation. The
camcorder may not be able to record properly.
 Near AM receivers and video equipment.
Noise may occur.
 On a sandy beach or anywhere dusty. If
sand or dust gets in your camcorder, it may
malfunction. Sometimes this malfunction
cannot be repaired.
 Near windows or outdoors, where the LCD
screen, or the lens may be exposed to direct
sunlight. This damages the LCD screen.
Operate your camcorder on DC 6.8 V/7.2 V
(battery pack) or DC 8.4 V (AC Adaptor).
For DC or AC operation, use the accessories
recommended in these operating instructions.
Do not let your camcorder get wet, for example,
from rain or sea water. If your camcorder
gets wet, it may malfunction. Sometimes this
malfunction cannot be repaired.
If any solid object or liquid gets inside the
casing, unplug your camcorder and have it
checked by a Sony dealer before operating it
any further.
Avoid rough handling, disassembling,
Table of Contents

modifying, physical shock, or impact such
as hammering, dropping or stepping on the
product. Be particularly careful of the lens.
Keep the LCD screen closed when you are not
using your camcorder.
Do not wrap your camcorder with a towel, for
example, and operate it. Doing so might cause
heat to build up inside.
When disconnecting the power cord (mains
lead), pull it by the plug and not the cord.
Do not damage the power cord (mains lead)
such as by placing anything heavy on it.
Do not use a deformed or damaged battery
pack.
Keep metal contacts clean.
If the battery electrolytic liquid has leaked:
 Consult your local authorized Sony service
facility.
 Wash off any liquid that may have contacted
your skin.
 If any liquid gets in your eyes, wash with
plenty of water and consult a doctor.
 Notes
If you did not press the right spot, try the
calibration again.
 Do not use a sharp-pointed object for
calibration. Doing so may damage the LCD
screen.
 You cannot calibrate the LCD screen if it is
rotated, or closed with the screen facing out.
 You

use your camcorder in a hot and humid
place.
How to prevent moisture condensation
When you bring your camcorder from a cold
place into a warm place, put your camcorder in
a plastic bag and seal it tightly. Remove the bag
when the air temperature inside the plastic bag
has reached the surrounding temperature (after
about 1 hour).





Do not exert excessive pressure on the LCD
screen, as it may cause uneven color and other
damage.
If your camcorder is used in a cold place, a
residual image may appear on the LCD screen.
This is not a malfunction.
While using your camcorder, the back of
the LCD screen may heat up. This is not a
malfunction.


If fingerprints or dust make the LCD screen
dirty, it is recommended that you use a soft
cloth to clean it.
When you use the LCD Cleaning Kit (sold
separately), do not apply the cleaning liquid
directly to the LCD screen. Use cleaning paper
moistened with the liquid.
About care and storage of the lens

On adjustment of the touch panel
(CALIBRATION)

The buttons on the touch panel may not work
correctly. If this happens, follow the procedure
below. It is recommended that you connect your
camcorder to the wall outlet (wall socket) using
the supplied AC Adaptor during the operation.
Touch
(HOME) 
(SETTINGS) 
[GENERAL SET]  [CALIBRATION].

Wipe the surface of the lens clean with a soft
cloth in the following instances:
 When there are fingerprints on the lens
surface
 In hot or humid locations
 When the lens is exposed to salty air such as
at the seaside
Store in a well-ventilated location subject to
little dirt or dust.
To prevent mold, periodically clean the lens as
described above.
Useful Recording Techniques
To clean the LCD screen

If the casing is soiled, clean the camcorder body
with a soft cloth lightly moistened with water,
and then wipe the casing with a dry soft cloth.
Avoid the following to avoid damage to the
finish:
 Using chemicals such as thinner, benzine,
alcohol, chemical cloths, repellent, insecticide
and sunscreen
 Handling the camcorder with above
substances on your hands
 Leaving the casing in contact with rubber or
vinyl objects for a long period of time
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On handling the casing
LCD screen
On charging the pre-installed
rechargeable battery
Touch “” displayed on the screen with the
corner of “Memory Stick PRO Duo” media or
the like 3 times.
Touch [CANCEL] to cancel calibration.
108
Index
Your camcorder has a pre-installed rechargeable
battery to retain the date, time, and other settings
even when the LCD screen is closed. The preinstalled rechargeable battery is always charged
while your camcorder is connected to the wall
outlet (wall socket) via the AC Adaptor or while
the battery pack is attached. The rechargeable
battery will be fully discharged in about 3 months
if you do not use your camcorder at all. Use
your camcorder after charging the pre-installed
rechargeable battery.
However, even if the pre-installed rechargeable
battery is not charged, the camcorder operation
will not be affected as long as you are not
recording the date.
On trademarks

How to charge the pre-installed
rechargeable battery


Note on disposal/transfer of the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media











109
Index
All other product names mentioned herein may
be the trademarks or registered trademarks of
their respective companies. Furthermore, 
and  are not mentioned in each case in this
Handbook.
Useful Recording Techniques
Even if you delete data in the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media or format the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media on your camcorder or a computer,
you may not delete data from the “Memory Stick
PRO Duo” media completely. When you give the
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media to somebody, it
is recommended that you delete date completely
using data deletion software on a computer. Also,
when you dispose of the “Memory Stick PRO
Duo” media, it is recommended that you destroy
the actual body of the “Memory Stick PRO Duo”
media.
Table of Contents
Connect your camcorder to a wall outlet (wall
socket) using the supplied AC Adaptor, and leave
it with the LCD screen closed for more than 24
hours.
“Handycam” and
are
registered trademarks of Sony Corporation.
“AVCHD” and “AVCHD” logotype are
trademarks of Panasonic Corporation and Sony
Corporation.
“Memory Stick,” “
,” “Memory Stick Duo,”
“
,” “Memory Stick PRO
Duo,” “
,” “Memory
Stick PRO-HG Duo,” “
,”
“Memory Stick Micro,” “MagicGate,”
“
,” “MagicGate Memory
Stick” and “MagicGate Memory Stick Duo” are
trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony
Corporation.
“InfoLITHIUM” is a trademark of Sony
Corporation.
“x.v.Colour” is a trademark of Sony
Corporation.
“BIONZ” is a trademark of Sony Corporation.
“BRAVIA” is a trademark of Sony Corporation.
“Blu-ray Disc” and the logo are trademarks.
Dolby and the double-D symbol are trademarks
of Dolby Laboratories.
HDMI, the HDMI logo and High-Definition
Multimedia Interface are trademarks or
registered trademarks of HDMI Licencing LLC.
Microsoft, Windows, Windows Media,
Windows Vista, and DirectX are either
registered trademarks or trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/
or other countries.
Macintosh and Mac OS are registered
trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and other
countries.
Intel, Intel Core, and Pentium are trademarks
or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation
or its subsidiaries in the United States and other
countries.
Adobe, the Adobe logo, and Adobe Acrobat
are either registered trademarks or trademarks
of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United
States and/or other countries.
ANY USE OF THIS PRODUCT OTHER
THAN CONSUMER PERSONAL USE IN ANY
MANNER THAT COMPLIES WITH THE
MPEG-2 STANDARD FOR ENCODING VIDEO
INFORMATION FOR PACKAGED MEDIA
IS EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED WITHOUT A
LICENSE UNDER APPLICABLE PATENTS IN
THE MPEG-2 PATENT PORTFOLIO, WHICH
LICENSE IS AVAILABLE FROM MPEG LA,
L.L.C., 250 STEELE STREET, SUITE 300,
DENVER, COLORADO 80206.
THIS PRODUCT IS LICENSED UNDER THE
AVC PATENT PORTFOLIO LICENSE FOR THE
PERSONAL AND NON-COMMERCIAL USE
OF A CONSUMER TO
(i) ENCODE VIDEO IN COMPLIANCE WITH
THE AVC STANDARD (“AVC VIDEO”) AND
/OR
(ii) DECODE AVC VIDEO THAT WAS
ENCODED BY A CONSUMER ENGAGED IN A
PERSONAL AND
NON-COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY AND/OR
WAS OBTAINED FROM A VIDEO PROVIDER
LICENSED TO PROVIDE AVC VIDEO.
NO LICENSE IS GRANTED OR SHALL BE
IMPLIED FOR ANY OTHER USE.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION MAY BE
OBTAINED FROM MPEG LA, L.L.C.
SEE <HTTP://MPEGLA.COM>
Table of Contents
access to, modify, and redistribute source code for
these software programs under the conditions of
the supplied GPL/LGPL.
Source code is provided on the web. Use
the following URL to download it. When
downloading the source code, select DCR-SR87 as
the model for your camcorder.
http://www.sony.net/Products/Linux/
We would prefer you do not contact us about the
contents of source code.
Read “license2.pdf ” in the “License” folder on the
CD-ROM. You will find licenses (in English) of
“GPL,” and “LGPL” software.
Notes on the License
To view the PDF, Adobe Reader is needed. If
it is not installed on your computer, you can
download it from the Adobe Systems web page:
http://www.adobe.com/
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
“C Library,” “Expat,” “zlib,” and “libjpeg” software
are provided in your camcorder. We provide
this software based on license agreements with
their owners of copyright. Based on requests
by the owners of copyright of these software
applications, we have an obligation to inform
you of the following. Please read the following
sections.
Read “license1.pdf ” in the “License” folder on the
CD-ROM. You will find licenses (in English) of
“C Library,” “Expat,” “zlib,” and “libjpeg” software.
On GNU GPL/LGPL applied software
The software that is eligible for the following
GNU General Public License (hereinafter referred
to as “GPL”) or GNU Lesser General Public
License (hereinafter referred to as “LGPL”) are
included in the camcorder.
This informs you that you have a right to have
110
Index
Symbols
A
A.SHUT OFF...............................81
A/V connecting cable.................57
Abroad........................................100
AREA SET....................................80
AUTO BACK LIGHT...........69, 71
AUTO SLW SHUTTR..........67, 70
AVCHD format..........................104
B
C
E
Easy Handycam Operation........22
EDIT..............................................47
Empty............................................64
Expected time of recording and
playback with each battery pack
.......................................................98
EXPOSURE..................................85
F
FACE DET. SETTING................72
FACE DETECTION..............72, 95
FACE FUNC. SET.......................72
Face Index.....................................38
FADER..........................................88
FH..................................................65
file................................................102
FILE NO........................................70
Film Roll Index............................38
FIREWORKS...............................86
FOCUS..........................................85
folder...........................................102
Format...........................................63
FRAME SETTING................72, 95
Fully charged................................17
111
H
HD/SD SET............................65, 74
HDMI RESOLUTION................79
HD movie management
information folder.....................102
HELP function.............................10
HOME MENU.......................10, 12
HQ.................................................65
I
Image management files...........102
Image quality................................65
IMAGE SIZE................................70
INDOOR......................................87
“InfoLITHIUM” battery pack
.....................................................106
Internal memory........................102
J
JPEG............................................102
L
LANDSCAPE...............................86
LANGUAGE SET..................20, 80
LCD BL LEVEL...........................76
LCD BRIGHT..............................76
LCD COLOR................................77
LP...................................................65
M
Maintenance...............................104
MANAGE MEDIA......................60
MEDIA FORMAT.................63, 64
MEDIA INFO..............................62
“Memory Stick” media....... 60, 104
“Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo”
media.................................... 60, 104
“Memory Stick PRO Duo” media
.............................................. 60, 104
Menus............................................10
MICREF LEVEL..........................88
Index
CALIBRATION.........................108
CAMERA DATA.........................75
CANDLE......................................86
Capturing a photo from a movie
.......................................................49
Charging the battery pack..........17
Charging the battery pack abroad
.............................................. 18, 100
CLOCK/LANG............................80
CLOCK SET.................................19
COMPONENT............................79
CONVERSION LENS...........69, 71
Copy..............................................51
Creating a disc.............................56
Creating a high definition image
quality (HD) disc.........................56
Creating a standard definition
image quality (SD) disc...............56
CTRL FOR HDMI.......................82
G
GENERAL SET............................81
GUIDEFRAME.....................68, 71
Useful Recording Techniques
BATTERY INFO..........................59
Battery pack..................................17
BEACH.........................................86
BEEP.............................................76
BLACK FADER...........................88
BLT-IN ZOOM MIC...................88
“BRAVIA” Sync............................46
D
DATA CODE...............................74
DATE/TIME..........................20, 74
Date Index....................................39
DELETE........................................47
Deleting data..........................47, 63
DEMO MODE.............................81
Description of warning messages
.......................................................96
DETECTION SET.................73, 95
DIGITAL ZOOM........................66
Disc recorder................................56
DISP OUTPUT............................78
DIVIDE.........................................53
Dual Rec.......................................32
Dubbing........................................50
DVD writer..................................56
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1080i/576i.....................................79
16:9................................................78
4:3..................................................78
576i................................................79
N
NTSC..........................................100
O
P
R
REC MODE..................................65
Recording...............................22, 28
Recording and playback time....98
Recording media.........................60
Recording time of movies/
number of recordable photos.....98
REMAINING SET.......................68
W
Wall outlet (wall socket).............17
WHITE BAL................................87
WHITE FADER...........................88
Wide angle....................................32
WIDE SELECT............................66
X
x.v.Color............................... 67, 107
Z
Zoom.......................................32, 40
T
TELE MACRO.............................84
Telephoto......................................32
Thumbnail....................................47
Tripod.............................................8
Troubleshooting...........................90
TV..................................................42
TV color systems.......................100
TV CONNECT Guide................42
TV TYPE......................................78
TWILIGHT..................................86
U
USB cable......................................56
USB CONNECT..........................56
112
Index
PAL..............................................100
PB zoom........................................40
PHOTO CAPTURE....................49
PHOTO COPY............................51
PHOTO MEDIA SET.................60
Photos........................ 24, 27, 30, 36
PHOTO SETTINGS....................70
Playing....................................25, 35
Playlist...........................................54
PMB Guide.....................................2
PORTRAIT...................................86
Power on.......................................19
POWER ON BY LCD.................82
Precautions.................................104
PROTECT....................................52
S
SCENE SELECTION............86, 95
Screen indicators...........................8
Self-diagnosis display/Warning
indicators......................................95
SELF-TIMER................................89
Shooting..................................24, 30
Slide show.....................................41
SLIDE SHOW SET......................41
SMILE PRIORITY.................73, 95
SMILE SENSITIVITY...........73, 95
SMILE SHUTTER.......................73
SMTH SLW REC.........................33
SNOW...........................................86
SOUND/DISP SET......................76
SP...................................................65
SPOT FOCUS..............................84
SPOTLIGHT................................86
SPOT METER..............................83
SPOT MTR/FCS..........................83
STEADYSHOT............................67
SUMMERTIME...........................80
SUNRISE&SUNSET...................86
Supplied items..............................14
V
VBR...............................................98
VIEW IMAGES SET...................74
Viewing...................................27, 36
VISUAL INDEX..........................35
Volume....................................36, 76
Useful Recording Techniques
ONE PUSH..................................87
OPTION MENU............ 10, 13, 83
Original.........................................50
OTHERS.......................................12
OUTDOOR..................................87
OUTPUT SETTINGS.................78
REPAIR IMG.DB F................93, 95
RESET.............................................7
Table of Contents
Mirror mode................................33
Moisture condensation.............107
MOVIE DUB...............................50
MOVIE MEDIA SET..................60
Movies........................ 22, 25, 28, 35
MOVIE SETTINGS....................65
MPEG..........................................102
MPEG2.......................................102
Table of Contents
Useful Recording Techniques
Index
Additional information on this product and
answers to frequently asked questions can
be found at our Customer Support Website.
http://www.sony.net/
113

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