Canon Hf R400 Instruction Manual

							Preparations Š 21
Preparations
This chapter describes basic operations, such as using the 
touch panel, navigating the menus, and first time settings to 
help you learn more about your camcorder.
Getting Started
Charging the Battery Pack
The camcorder can be powered with a battery pack or directly using 
the compact power adapter.
For approximate charging times and recording/playback times with a 
fully charged battery pack, refer to  Charging, Recording and Playback 
Times  (A 182).
1 Plug the power cord into a  power outlet. 
For Asia only: Connect the power 
cord to the compact power 
adapter before plugging the 
power cord into the power outlet.
2 Connect the compact power  adapter to the camcorder’s DC 
IN terminal.
3 Attach the battery pack to the  camcorder.
Press the battery pack softly into 
the battery attachment unit and 
slide it up until it clicks in place.


DC IN terminal
For Asia only:
COPY  
						

							22 Š Preparations
4 Charging will start when the camcorder is turned off.
• If the camcorder was on, the green POWER/CHG indicator 
will go out when you turn off the 
camcorder. After a moment, 
the POWER/CHG indicator will 
turn on in red (battery pack 
charging). The red POWER/
CHG indicator will go out when 
the battery pack is fully 
charged.
• If the indicator flashes, refer to 
Troubleshooting ( A 161).
To remove the battery pack
1Slide  d  in the 
direction of the arrow and hold it 
pressed down.
2 Slide the battery pack and  then pull it out.
IMPORTANT
• Turn off the camcorder before connecting or disconnecting the com- pact power adapter. After turning off the camcorder, important data is 
updated in the memory. Be sure to wait until the green POWER/CHG 
indicator goes out.
• Do not connect to the camcorder’s DC IN terminal or to the compact  power adapter any electrical equipment that is not expressly recom-
mended for use with this camcorder.
• To prevent equipment breakdowns and excessive heating, do not con- nect the supplied compact power adapter to voltage converters for 

POWER/CHG (charge) indicator


BATTERY RELEASE switch
COPY  
						

							Preparations Š 23
overseas travels or special power sources such as those on aircraft and 
ships, DC-AC inverters, etc.
NOTES
• We recommend charging the battery pack in temperatures between  10 °C and 30 °C (50 °F and 86 °F). If either the ambient temperature or 
the battery pack’s temperature is outside the range of approx. 0 °C to 
40 °C (32 °F to 104 °F), charging will not start.
• If the ambient temperature or the battery pack’s temperature is low,  charging may take longer than usual.
• The battery pack will be charged only when the camcorder is off.
• If the power supply was disconnected while charging a battery pack,  make sure the POWER/CHG indicator has gone out before restoring 
the power supply.
• If remaining battery time is an issue, you can power the camcorder  using the compact power adapter so the battery pack will not be con-
sumed.
• Charged battery packs continue to discharge naturally. Therefore,  charge them on the day of use, or the day before, to ensure a full 
charge.
• Battery packs for this camcorder can display the remaining battery time.  The first time you use a battery pack, fully charge it and then use the 
camcorder until the battery pack is completely exhausted. Doing so will 
ensure that the remaining recording time will be displayed accurately.
• We recommend that you prepare battery packs to last 2 to 3 times  longer than you think you might need.
• USA and Canada only : The Lithium ion/polymer battery that 
powers the product is recyclable. Please call 
1-800-8-BATTERY for information on how to recycle this 
battery.
Turning On the Camcorder
You can turn the camcorder on and off by opening and closing the LCD 
panel. The first time you turn on the camcorder, the initial setup 
screens will appear and guide you through the basic settings ( A31).
COPY  
						

							24 Š Preparations
[
NOTES
• You can use the   >  q  >  [Power On Using LCD Panel] setting 
so that you can turn the camcorder on and off only by pressing  .
Using the Grip Belt
Fasten the grip belt.
Adjust the grip belt so that you can reach the 
zoom lever with your index finger, and the 
Y  button with your thumb.
To remove the grip belt
1 Lift the padded handgrip’s flap and detach the strap from the Velcro  pad.
Open the LCD panel to turn on the 
camcorder.
To turn off the camcorder
Close the LCD panel or press  . 
COPY  
						

							Preparations Š 25
2 Pull the strap to remove it first from the front bracket on the camcorder, then to unthread it from the handgrip and finally to 
remove it from the rear bracket on the camcorder.
Opening the Lens Cover and Adjusting the LCD Screen 
Before you start recording, open the lens cover.
Move the lens cover switch 
down to   to open the lens 
cover. 
Rotating the LCD Panel
The first time you open the LCD panel, the initial setup screens will 
appear and guide you through the basic settings ( A31). 
Open the LCD panel 90 degrees.
• You can rotate the panel 90 degrees downward.
• You can rotate the panel 180 degrees toward the lens. Rotating the  LCD panel 180 degrees can be useful to allow the camcorder to include 
yourself in the picture when recording with the self timer.
COPY  
						

							26 Š Preparations
NOTES
• About the LCD screen:  The screen is produced using extremely high-pre-
cision manufacturing techniques, with more than 99.99% of the pixels 
operating to specification. Less than 0.01% of the pixels may occasion-
ally misfire or appear as black, red, blue or green dots. This has no 
effect on the recorded image and does not constitute a malfunction.
• For details about how to take care of the touch screen, refer to 
Handling 
Precautions ( A 175), Cleaning (A 179).
• You can adjust the screen’s brightness using the    >   > [LCD 
Brightness] and [LCD Backlight] settings. When the compact power 
adapter is connected, [LCD Backlight] will automatically change to 
[ H Bright].
180°
90° Subject can monitor the LCD screen180°
COPY  
						

							Preparations Š 27
Using a Memory Card
Memory Cards Compatible for Use with the Camcorder
You can use the following types of commercially available Secure Digi-
tal (SD) cards with this camcorder. 
As of January 2013, the movie recording function has been tested 
using SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards made by Panasonic, Toshiba 
and SanDisk. For the latest information on cards that can be used, visit 
your local Canon Web site.
* When using an SD memory card without a speed class rating, you may not be able to record movies, depending on the memory card used.
** SD memory cards with a capacity of 64 MB or smaller cannot be used to record 
movies.
NOTES
• About the Speed Class:  Speed Class is a standard that indicates the mini-
mum guaranteed data transfer speed of memory cards. When you buy 
a new memory card, look for the Speed Class logo on the package.
When you record movies with a video quality of 60P or 35 Mbps, we 
recommend using memory cards rated SD Speed Class 6 or 10. When 
you record movies with other video quality options, we recommend 
using memory cards rated SD Speed Class 4, 6 or 10.
SDXC Memory Cards
You can use SDXC memory cards with this camcorder. When using 
memory cards with other devices, such as digital recorders, computers 
and card readers,  make sure that the external device is compatible 
with SDXC cards. For more information on compatibility, contact the 
computer, operating system or memory card manufacturer.
Memory card type:.  SD memory card, / SDHC memory card, 0  SDXC memory card
SD Speed Class*:         
Capacity: 128 MB or larger**.
COPY  
						

							28 Š Preparations
IMPORTANT
• If you use an SDXC memory card with a computer OS that is not SDXC- compatible, you may be prompted to format the memory card. In such 
case,  cancel the operation to prevent data loss .
• After repeatedly recording, deleting and editing scenes (fragmented  memory), it will take longer to write data on the memory and recording 
may stop. Save your recordings and initialize the memory.
COPY  
						

							Preparations Š 29
Inserting and Removing a Memory Card
If you plan on using a memory card, turn off the camcorder before per-
forming the initial setup and then insert the memory card. After per-
forming the initial setup, initialize the memory card (A33).
1 Open the LCD panel. If this is your first time to turn on 
the camcorder, the language 
selection screen of the initial 
setup screens will appear. 
2 Press   to turn off the  camcorder.
Make sure the POWER/CHG 
indicator is off.
3 Open the memory card slot  cover.
4 Insert the memory card at a  slight angle, with the label 
facing toward the lens, all the 
way into the memory card slot 
until it clicks.
The memory card slot is at a 
slight angle toward the lens so 
be careful not to damage the 
memory card when inserting it.
5 Close the memory card slot  cover.
Do not force the cover closed if the memory card is not correctly 
inserted.
To remove the memory card
Push the memory card once to release it. When the memory card 
springs out, pull it all the way out.



Memory card Lens
To p  v i e w
COPY  
						

							30 Š Preparations
IMPORTANT
• Memory cards have front and back sides that are not interchangeable.  Inserting a memory card facing the wrong direction can cause a mal-
function of the camcorder. Be sure to insert the memory card as 
described in step 4.
COPY