Operating instructions

113
Miscellaneous/ Care of Unit/Options
112
∫ White Balance Adjustment
While most recording with a Movie Camera is
probably done outdoors under sunlight, video
recording is also done very often under artificial
light sources, both indoors and outdoors.
However, each of these light sources gives the
subject slightly different colours.
Human Eyes
Human eyes can easily adjust to different kinds of
lighting and see an object with the same colours
even under different lighting.
Movie Camera
Unlike human eyes, the Movie Camera does not
have the innate ability to adapt to changes in
lighting, and they influence the colours being
recorded. Therefore, depending on the light
source, the picture would be recorded with a
bluish or reddish tint. To minimise the influence of
the lighting on the colours of the subject, an
adjustment called White Balance Adjustment is
necessary.
White Balance Adjustment
The White Balance Adjustment determines the
colour of the light and adjusts the colours so that
white remains pure white. As white is the basic
colour of the entire colour spectrum, if white is
reproduced correctly, the other colours are correct
and natural, too.
Auto White Balance Adjustment
This Movie Camera stores the optimum settings
for several common light sources in memory. The
Movie Camera judges the recording situation by
determining the tint of the light received through
the lens and by the White Balance Sensor (p. 5),
and it selects the setting for the most similar tint.
This function is called Auto White Balance
Adjustment.
However, as the white balance settings for only a
few light sources are stored in memory, the white
balance is not correctly adjusted for other lighting
conditions.
For the range of different types of lighting within
which the Auto White Balance Function can
provide precise adjustment, refer to the chart. For
recording under lighting conditions outside this
range, the Auto White Balance Function does not
work correctly, and the recorded picture has a red
or blue cast. However, the same also applies, if
the subject is lit by more than one light source,
even if these light sources are within this range.
∫ Colour Temperature
Every light source has its own colour temperature
measured in Kelvin (K). The higher the Kelvin
value, the more bluish the light; the lower the
value, the more reddish the light. The Kelvin value
is related to the tint of the light, however not
directly to its brightness.
The range
1 indicated in the illustration below
shows the light sources for which this Movie
Camera can provide precise white balance
adjustment and, therefore, natural colours in the
recorded pictures, when using the Full Auto Mode.
For light sources outside this range, adjust the
white balance manually. (p. 60) Also, additional
lighting may be necessary.
1 Control range of this Movie Camera’s Auto
White Balance Adjustment Mode
2 Blue sky
3 Cloudy sky (Rain)
4 TV screen
5 Sunlight
6 White fluorescent lamp
7 2 hours after sunrise or before sunset
8 1 hour after sunrise or before sunset
9 Halogen light bulb
: Incandescent light bulb
; Sunrise or sunset
< Candlelight
10 000K
9 000K
8 000K
7 000K
6 000K
5 000K
4 000K
3 000K
2 000K
1 000K
Glossary
∫ Focus
If you look at an object through a magnifying glass
and move it closer or further away from your eye,
you will reach a point where the object becomes
clearly visible. Being focused or in focus means
that the subject can be seen with optimum clarity
and sharpness.
Human Eyes
Human eyes have lenses as well, and when we
look at objects at different distances, the shape of
these lenses changes automatically so that we
can always see these objects clearly.
Movie Camera
The image of the subject enters the Movie Camera
through the lens and is converted into an electric
signal (video signal) for recording onto magnetic
tape. The focus is adjusted either manually or
automatically by moving a focusing lens.
Auto Focus Adjustment
The Auto Focus System automatically moves the
internal focusing lens forward or backward and
adjusts the focus so that the subject can be seen
clearly.
The Auto Focus Adjustment has the following
characteristics:
≥It adjusts until the vertical contours of the subject
are as sharp and clean as possible.
≥It adjusts the focus on the subjects with strong
contrast.
≥It adjusts the focus on the subject in the centre of
the LCD Monitor or Viewfinder.
Unlike human eyes, the lens of the Movie
Camera cannot instantaneously change the
focus from a nearby to a distant subject and vice
versa.
Lens Unit
The lens construction used in this Movie Camera
generates some clicking noise if the Movie
Camera is rocked up and down while it is turned
off. This is not a malfunction of the lens unit. This
noise does not occur when the Movie Camera is
turned on.
For the following subjects and recording
situations, the Auto Focus system cannot
provide precise adjustment. Use the Manual
Focus Mode instead. (p. 28)
1 Recording subjects with a part of it near the
Movie Camera and another part far away
from it
As the Auto Focus adjusts on the centre part of
the image, it is often impossible to bring the
nearby and distant parts of the subject into
focus.
When you want to record a person with a
distant mountain in the back, it is not possible
to focus on both.
2 Recording subjects behind glass covered
with dirt or dust
As the focus is adjusted on the dirty glass, the
subject behind the glass is out of focus. When
recording a subject across a street on which
cars are running, the focus may be adjusted on
the cars.
3 Recording subjects in dark surroundings
As the amount of light information entering
through the lens is greatly reduced, the Movie
Camera cannot adjust the focus precisely.
4 Recording subjects surrounded by objects
with shiny surfaces or much light reflection
As the Movie Camera adjusts the focus on
objects with shiny surfaces or much light
reflection, the subject may go out of focus.
Therefore, when recording at a lake or the sea,
evening scenes, fireworks, or under special
types of lighting, the subject may be out of
focus.
5 Recording fast-moving subjects
As the internal focusing lens is moved
mechanically, it cannot follow fast-moving
subjects without delay.
Therefore, subjects like children running back
and forth may temporarily go out of focus.
6 Subjects with weak contrast
As the Movie Camera adjusts the focus based
on vertical contours in the picture, subjects with
little contrast such as a white wall may be out of
focus.