Sony DSC-F505VSony updates their popular DSC-F505V with a 3 megapixel sensor (2.6 million effective pixels) and all-new electronics!<<Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests :(Previous) | (Next): Camera Modes & Menus>> Page 8:Operation & User InterfaceReview First Posted: 06/01/2000 |
User Interface
The user interface on the
DSC-F505V has a comfortable feel with clear operation, as did the previous
DSC-F505. Buttons and controls are well marked and accessible, although people
with large hands may feel as we did that the right-hand controls are a little
cramped. You could conceivably operate the camera with just one hand, but the
weight of the lens begs for two, and a two-handed grip provides excellent
camera-platform stability. Also, while the user interface was very easy to
understand, we found some of the menu navigation more laborious than we'd have
liked, requiring multiple control actuations to navigate to the desired setting.
Here's a look at the major buttons and controls:
Shutter Button
Located on
the top/front of the camera, this button sets focus and exposure when halfway
pressed and fires the shutter when fully pressed.
Mode Dial
Located on top of
the camera, this dial selects between the following modes:
- Play: puts the camera into playback mode.
- Still: sets the camera for capturing still images.
- Movie: sets the camera for recording short movies with sound.
Power
Switch
Located on top of the camera, directly behind the microphone, this
switch turns the camera on and off.
Pop-Up Flash Switch
Located on the side of the
lens, directly beneath the pop-up flash, this sliding switch pops up the
built-in flash.
Focus Control
Located on the side of the lens, this
sliding switch puts the camera in either Auto or Manual focus mode. In manual
focus mode, the lens is focused via the very standard-looking (and feeling)
focusing ring on its front. Focus is indicated by a small >0< icon in the
LCD viewfinder.
Macro Button
Located on the side of the lens, to the
right of the Focus control, this button turns Macro mode on and off.
White Balance/One-Push
Buttons
Located directly to the right of the Macro button on the side of
the lens, this button selects the white balance mode:
- Auto: lets the camera set the white balance depending on lighting.
- Indoor: sets white balance for indoor, artificial lighting.
- Outdoor: sets white balance for natural lighting.
- One-Push: allows you to set white balance based on specific lighting (using a white surface as a reference). This mode uses the small One Push button (seen in the image above) below and to the right of the white balance button itself. You set the white balance in this mode by pointing the camera at a white surface and pressing the One Push button.
Spot Metering
Button
Located on the side of the lens, directly to the right of the
White Balance button, this button turns the spot metering function on and off.
When spot metering is enabled, a small "+" sign appears in the center of the
viewfinder, centered in the active metering area.
Zoom
Lever
Located on the top/back of the camera, marked with a 'W' and 'T',
this sliding lever controls the optical and digital zoom (when turned
on).
Flash
Button
Located on the back panel of the camera, marked with the
traditional flash symbol, this button controls the following flash modes:
- Auto: puts the camera in control of the flash mode.
- Red-Eye Reduction: fires a small pre-flash before firing the full flash to reduce the Red-Eye occurrence.
- Forced: the flash always fires, regardless of light levels.
- Suppressed: the flash never fires, regardless of lighting conditions.
Program AE
Button
Located on the back panel of the camera, directly beneath the
Flash button, this button accesses the following Program AE modes:
- Aperture Priority: allows you to set the aperture from F/2.8 to F/8.0 in 1/3-stop increments while the camera controls shutter speed.
- Shutter Speed Priority: allows you to set the shutter speed from eight to 1/1000 seconds while the camera controls the aperture.
- Twilight: suppresses the blurring of colors on bright subjects with dark backgrounds. (?? We confess we really didn't understand this one - It sounds as though it's a contrast-reduction to preserve color in bright objects, whilst not underexposing the background too much.)
- Twilight Plus: takes the Twilight setting further. (Actually, it seems like this setting increases the CCD sensitivity somewhat.)
- Landscape: sets focus for far away subjects.
- Panfocus: allows for quick focusing of far away or close-up subjects. (Another function really not explained by the camera's manual - A faster autofocus?)
Menu /
Rocker Toggle Button
Located beneath the Program AE button, this rocker
toggle button has four arrows (up, down, left and right) and a center dot. In
all modes, the arrows navigate through menus and the center dot acts as the �OK�
for menu options. In Play mode, the left and right arrow buttons scroll through
images. Pressing the down arrow dismisses both the play and record menus while
the up arrow recalls them again.
Display Button
Located beneath the rocker
toggle button on the back panel of the camera, this button dismisses and recalls
the information display on the LCD monitor.
LCD Buttons (- and
+)
Located directly beneath the LCD monitor, these buttons no longer
control the brightness of the LCD display as they did in the F505. In order to
control brightness, you must now go to the Setup options under the individual
menus (see more below.) In Shutter and Aperture Priority modes, these buttons
control the shutter speed and aperture settings, in addtion to the sound volume
while in the Play mode.
LCD Back Light
Switch
Also located directly beneath the LCD monitor, this switch turns
the LCD back light on and off to assist in power conservation (albeit only
slightly), or to accommodate varying ambient light levels (a more significant
effect).
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