Sony DSC-S50Sony makes a compact 2.1 megapixel digicam with full movie/sound capability!<<Operation & User Interface :(Previous) | (Next): Image Storage & Interface>> Page 9:Camera Modes & MenusReview First Posted: 4/12/2000 |
Camera Modes and Menus
(NOTE: In most of the
screen shots below, the menus normally appear overlaid on the current live
viewfinder image. For clarity, we've captured the screen images with the camera
lens blocked, producing a black background, making the icons and menus much
easier to see. In practice though, you'd normally see the live image appearing
on-screen along with the menu displays.)
Playback: This mode is accessed via the mode dial on top of the camera.
Playback mode lets the user review images, delete and protect individual images
and movies. Following is a description of the Playback menu, which is accessible
by pressing the up arrow on the rocker toggle button whenever the camera is in
Play mode:
- Index: turns on the six image thumbnail display, for quickly
navigating through large numbers of images on the memory card.
- Delete: deletes the displayed image with an option to cancel.
- File
- Format: formats the MemoryStick.
- Rotate: rotates the still image in 90 degree increments. (Useful for rotating portrait-oriented images shot with the position sensor off, so they'll display properly on your computer).
- Slide Show: brings up the following submenu:
- Interval: sets the interval between successive photos to three, five, 10, 30 or 60 seconds.
- Repeat: turns the slide show repeat function on or off. (If on, the slide show will loop back to the first slide after the last one has been displayed.)
- Start: starts the slide show.
- Cancel: cancels the slide show settings and execution.
- Print Mark: marks still images to be printed.
- Protect: write protects individual images from accidental
erasure.
- Tool
- Copy: copies individual images.
- Resize: changes the recorded still image size to 1600 x 1200,
1024 x 768 or 640 x 480 with an option to cancel.
- Setup
- Video Out: sets the video out signal to NTSC or PAL.
- Language: sets the camera's menu language to English or Japanese.
- Clock Set: sets the camera's internal date and time.
- Beep: turns the camera beep sound on or off.
- LCD Bright: adjusts the brightness of the LCD display.
Still Capture Mode: Accessed by turning the mode dial to the Still
position, this mode lets the user capture still images with the following
exposure mode options, all accessed through the Program AE button. As you cycle
through the various modes, small icons in the upper left-hand corner of the
screen show you which mode you've selected:
- Program AE: (No on-screen icon in this mode.) The default setting
for the camera, putting the camera in charge of all exposure decisions. The
user can control flash, white balance, exposure compensation and
sharpness.
Aperture
Priority: Lets the user choose the lens aperture while the camera selects
the corresponding shutter speed. White balance, flash, exposure compensation,
sharpness and picture effects options are available.
Shutter
Priority: Lets the user select the shutter speed while the camera chooses
the corresponding aperture. White balance, flash, exposure compensation,
sharpness and picture effects options are available.
Twilight: Sets up the camera for bright subjects against dark
backgrounds such as night scenes. White balance, flash, exposure compensation,
sharpness and picture effects options are available.
Twilight
Plus: Performs the same function as Twilight, but takes it a step further.
White balance, flash, exposure compensation, sharpness and picture effects
options are available.
Landscape: Sets the focus at infinity for capturing far away
subjects and landscape scenes. White balance, flash, exposure compensation,
sharpness and picture effects options are available.
Panfocus: Lets the camera move quickly between infinity and
close-up focus settings for capturing moving subjects. White balance, flash,
exposure compensation, sharpness and picture effects options are
available.
Spot
Metering: Adjusts the camera's exposure metering system to take readings
from the direct center of the image. White balance, flash, exposure
compensation, sharpness and picture effects options are available.
Movie Capture
Mode: Accessed by turning the mode dial to the Movie position, this mode
allows the user to record up to 60 second movies with sound. All the same
exposure options are available as in Still capture mode, with the exception that
flash operation is disabled. Standard movie durations of 5, 10, or 15 seconds
can be selected, or movies up to 60 seconds long may be recorded in
low-resolution mode by holding down the shutter button continuously. When recording a movie segment of a preprogrammed length, the
row of dots in the upper right-hand corner of the screen act as a progress
indicator, showing how much of the allotted time has passed. Note that virtually
all exposure options are available in Movie mode: In the screen shot shown,
we've selected incandescent white balance, +1.0EV of exposure compensation, and
the macro focusing option. (Pretty neat, many cameras greatly restrict your
options during movie recording.) 
Record Settings Menu: This menu is accessible in
all record modes and is accessed by pressing the up arrow of the rocker toggle
button if the menu bar isn't already visible at the bottom of the screen.
Following are the five submenus:
Self-Timer: activates the 10 second
self-timer which is triggered by the shutter button.
- Effect
- Picture Effect: sets image special effects with choices of Solarize, Black & White, Sepia and Negative Art.
- Date/Time: sets whether or not to insert the date and time on the
image.
- File
- Format: formats the MemoryStick card.
- Position Sensor: plays back images recorded with the camera on its side (vertical images) as horizontal images. (A handy feature, meaning you won't need to rotate images on your computer after you download them.) Doesn't work for images recorded in Text mode.
- File Number: assigns numbers to files in sequence (Series) or resets the file numbering each time the MemoryStick is changed (Normal).
- Image Size: for still images, selects the size of the final image from 1600 x 1200, 1600 (3:2), 1024 x 768 and 640 x 480; movie options are 320 x 240 and 160 x 112.
- Record Mode: for still images only, sets the type of file to be
recorded with the following options:
- TIFF: records an uncompressed TIFF file in addition to the JPEG file.
- Text: records a GIF file in black and white.
- Voice: records an audio file (with a still image) in addition to the JPEG file.
- E-mail: records a small size (320 x 240) JPEG file in addition to the selected image size.
- Normal: records a JPEG file in the selected image size.
- Record Time Set: for movie images, adjusts the recording time
with options of 15 seconds, 10 seconds and five seconds.
- Camera
- Digital Zoom: turns the 2x digital zoom on or off.
- Sharpness: adjusts the image sharpness from -2 to +2, with zero being normal sharpness level.
- White Balance: sets the camera's white balance at Auto, Indoor, Outdoor or Hold (manual).
- Flash Level: adjusts the flash intensity to High, Normal or Low.
- Exposure: adjusts the exposure compensation value from -2 to +2
in 1/3 EV increments.
- Setup
- Demo: displayed only when the AC adaptor is connected to the camera, this turns the camera's internal demo on or off.
- Video Out: sets the video out signal to NTSC or PAL.
- Language: sets the camera's menu language to English or Japanese.
- Clock Set: sets the camera's date and time.
- Beep: turns the camera beep noises on or off with an option for a shutter noise when the shutter button is pressed.
- LCD Bright: adjusts the brightness of the LCD display.
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