Panasonic Hdc Sd900 Operating Instructions

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≥There are 3 recording formats that can be  used with this unit: AVCHD that records 
high-definition motion pictures, 1080/50p that records motion pictures in maximum 
quality for this unit and iFrame that records motion pictures suitable for playback 
and editing on Mac (iMovie’11). To change the recording format, change the 
recording mode ( l64) or press and hold the 1080/50p button. ( l53)
≥ Still pictures can be recorded while recording the motion picture. ( l33)
≥ The images recorded between pressing the recording start/stop button to start recording 
and pressing it again to pause recording become one scene.
When you record with the [REC MODE] set to [iFrame], the scenes longer than 
approximately 20 minutes will be automatica lly divided.  (Recording will continue.)
≥ (Maximum recordable scenes of a single SD card, built-in memory or HDD)
≥ Maximum number of recordable scenes and maximum number of different dates will be 
less than above table when there are both AVCHD scenes and 1080/50p scenes recorded 
on an SD card, built-in memory or HDD.
≥ Maximum number of recordable scenes and maximum number of different dates will be 
less than above table when there are both iFrame scenes and still pictures recorded on an 
SD card, built-in memory or HDD.
≥ While recording is in progress, the recording  will not stop even if the LCD monitor is closed 
and the viewfinder is retracted.
≥ Put the unit in pause mode when connecting or  disconnecting an external microphone with 
the MIC terminal.
≥ Please refer to page 157 for detail about the approximate recordable time.
Recording formats[HA]/[HG]/[HX]/[HE][1080/50p][iFrame]
Recordable scenes Approx. 3900 Approx. 3900 Approx. 89100
 Different dates ( l91) Approx. 200 Approx. 200 Approx. 900
About the compatibility of the recorded 
motion picturesPlease refer to page 53 about 
1080/50p
When motion picture is recorded in AVCHD format
≥Only motion pictures recorded with the recording format set to AVCHD are supported 
by AVCHD compatible equipment. Images cannot be played with equipment that does 
not support AVCHD (ordinary DVD recorders). Confirm that your equipment supports 
AVCHD by referring to the operating instructions.
≥ It is not always possible to play back motion pictures recorded with the recording 
format set to AVCHD on AVCHD compatible equipment. In such a case, play back on 
this unit instead.
When motion picture is recorded in iFrame format
≥ You can play back on Mac (iMovie’11).
≥ It is not compatible with motion pictures recorded in AVCHD format.
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1Change the mode to  .
2Open the LCD monitor or 
extend the viewfinder.
3Press the   button halfway. 
(For auto focus only)
4Press the   button fully.
Focus indication:
≥ If you set the optical image stabilizer function ( l52) to   ([MODE1]), then the image 
stabilizer function will be more effective.  (  (MEGA optical image stabilizer) will be 
displayed when the   button is pressed halfway.)
≥ The AF assist lamp lights in dark places.
≥ Focus indication will change to registered focus icon when [FACE RECOG.] is set to [ON]. 
(l 68)
≥ It is recommended using a flash or tripod when recording still pictures in dark places 
because the shutter speed becomes slow.
≥ The screen will become darker when the   bu tton is pressed halfway if the shutter 
speed is 1/25 or slower.
≥ You can also take a picture just by touching the subject to focus. (Touch shutter:  l56)
≥ To print a picture, save the picture to the SD card ( l111) and print using a PC or a printer.
Basic
Recording still pictures
A Focus indication
± (The white lamp flashes.):
Focusing
¥  (The green lamp lights up.):
When in focus
No mark:
When focusing is unsuccessful.
B Focus area (area inside brackets)


MEGA
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∫About the screen indications in still picture recording
: Still picture operation indicator ( l139)
R3000: Remaining number of still pictures  (Flashes in red when [0] appears.)
: Quality of still pictures ( l77)
: Size of still pictures ( l76)
: MEGA optical image stabilizer ( l32)
: Optical image stabilizer ( l52)
: AF assist lamp ( l79)
ß : Flash ( l60)
ß j : Flash level ( l60)
: Red eye reduction ( l60)
∫ About the focus indication
≥The focus indication indicates the status of the auto focus.
≥ The focus indication does not appear in manual focus mode.
≥ The focus indication does not appear or has difficulty focusing in the following cases.
jWhen close subjects and far subjects are included in the same scene
j When the scene is dark
j When there is a bright part in the scene
j When the scene is filled with only horizontal lines
∫ About the focusing area
When there is a contrasting object ahead or behind the subject in the focus area, the subject 
may not be focused. If so, move the contrasting object out of the focus area.
≥Focus area is not displayed in the following conditions.
jWhen the intelligent auto mode (portrait) is used
j When AF/AE tracking is used
j When the Extra optical zoom is used
j When the unit determines that the AF assist lamp is necessary
Recording still pictures in motion picture recording 
mode
You can record still pictures even in motion picture recording mode.¬ Change the mode to  .
Press the   button fully (press to the bottom) to take the picture.
≥It is possible to record still pictur es while recording motion pictures. 
(Simultaneous recording)
≥ Remaining number of recordable pictures is displayed while still pictures 
are being recorded.
≥Built-in flash, Red eye reduction, Self-timer ( l61) do not work.
≥ While recording motion pictures or during the PRE-REC operation, image quality is 
different from ordinary still pictures so that motion picture recording takes preference over 
still picture recording.
≥ If simultaneous recording is used while recording a motion picture, the recordable time 
remaining will shorten. If the unit is turned off or the mode switch operated, the recordable 
time remaining may lengthen.
R3000 R3000
R3000MEGA14.2M
≥Screen display will disappear when 
no function is performed for a 
specific period of time. To display it 
again, touch the screen. (It will not 
display when AF/AE tracking or 
touch shutter is used.)
14.2MMEGA
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The following modes appropriate for the condition are set just by pointing the unit to what you 
want to record.
*1 In motion picture recording mode only
*2 In still picture recording mode only
≥Depending on the recording conditions, the unit may not enter the desired mode.
≥ In the portrait, spotlight and low light mode, the face will be surrounded by white frame 
when detected. In the portrait mode, a subject  that is bigger and close to centre of the 
screen will be surrounded  by an orange frame. (l69)
≥ It is recommended using a tripod in night portrait and night scenery mode.
Basic
Intelligent auto mode
ModeSceneEffect
Portrait When the object is a  person Faces are detected and focused 
automatically, and the brightness is 
adjusted so it is recorded clearly.
Scenery Recording outdoors The whole landscape will be recorded 
vividly without whiting out the 
background sky, which may be very 
bright.
*1Spotlight Under a spotlightVery bright object is recorded clearly.
*1Low light Dark room or twilightIt can record very clearly even in a dark 
room or twilight.
*2Night portrait Recording night 
portrait A person and the background are 
recorded with near real-life brightness.
*2Night scenery Recording night 
scenery You can record night scenery vividly by 
slowing the shutter speed.
*2Macro Recording zooming in 
on a flower etc. This allows recording while going near to 
the object of recording.
*1
*2Normal Other situations
Contrast is adjusted automatically for 
clear image.
Intelligent auto/Manual 
button
Press this button to switch 
intelligent auto mode/manual 
mode.
≥Please refer to page 80 about 
manual mode.
/MANUAL
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≥Faces cannot be detected depending on the recording conditions, such as when faces are 
of certain sizes or at certain tilts or when digital zoom is used.
≥ [MIC SETUP] is set to [SURROUND] in the Intelligent Auto Mode. Also, when [REC 
MODE] is set to [iFrame] in the intelligent auto mode, [MIC SETUP] will be set to [STEREO 
MIC]. (l 72)
∫Intelligent auto mode
When switching to intelligent auto mode, the auto white balance and auto focus operate and 
automatically adjust the colour balance and focusing.
Depending on the brightness of the subject etc., the aperture and shutter speed are 
automatically adjusted for an optimum brightness.
≥Colour balance and focus may not be adjusted automatically depending on light sources or 
scenes. If so, manually adjust these settings. ( l81, 83)
Automatic white balanceThe illustration shows the range over which automatic white balance functions.
1) The effective range of automatic white balance 
adjustment on this unit
2) Blue sky
3) Cloudy sky (rain)
4) Sunlight
5) White fluorescent lamp
6) Halogen light bulb
7) Incandescent light bulb
8) Sunrise or sunset
9) Candlelight
If the automatic white balance is not functioning normally, 
adjust the white balance manually. ( l81)
Auto focusThe unit focuses automatically.
≥Auto focus does not work correctly in the following situations. Record pictures in the 
manual focus mode. ( l83)
j Recording distant and close-up objects at the same time
j Recording a subject behind dirty or dusty window
j Recording a subject that is  surrounded by objects with glossy surfaces or by highly 
reflective objects
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
10 000K 9 000K
8 000K
7 000K
6 000K
5 000K
4 000K
3 000K
2 000K
1 000K2)
1) 3)
9)
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1Change the mode to  .
2Touch the play mode select icon A. ( l25)
3
Select the [VIDEO/PICTURE] you wish 
to play back.
≥ Touch [ENTER].
/
Select the [MEDIA] and [VIDEO/PICTURE] you wish to play back.
4Touch the scene or the still picture to be 
played back.
B is displayed when [1080/50p] is touched,  is 
displayed when [A VCHD] is touched or   is displayed 
when [iFrame] is touched in step 3.
≥ To display the next (previous) page:
jSlide the thumbnail display upward (downward) while touching it.
j Switch the touch menu, and then touch  (up)/ (down) on the thumbnail scroll 
lever.
Basic
Motion picture/Still picture playback
≥Touch [ENTER].
ALL
HDC-SD900
HDC-TM900HDC-HS900
HDC-TM900HDC-HS900
ALL

1080/50p
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5Select the playback operation by touching the operation icon.
∫ Change the thumbnail display
While the thumbnail is displayed, the thumbnail display changes in the 
following order if the zoom lever or zoom buttons are operated to   
side or   side.
20 scenes  () 9 scenes ()  1 scene () Highlight&Time frame 
index* ( l88)
* Highlight&Time frame index can only set in motion picture playback  mode.
Even in motion picture playback mode, [F ACE] and [HIGHLIGHT] cannot be used when 
[iFrame] is selected.
≥ 9 scenes display returns if the unit is turned off or the mode is changed.
≥ By displaying in 1 scene or pressing and holding the thumbnail in the 20 scenes or 9 
scenes display, recording date and time are displayed when playing back motion pictures, 
and recording date and file number when playing back still pictures.
∫ Speaker/Headphone volume 
adjustment
Operate the volume lever or the zoom 
buttons to adjust the speaker/headphone 
volume during motion picture playback 
mode.
To w a r d s  “ r”:
Increases the volume
To w a r d s  “ s”:
Decreases the volume C
Operation icon
≥ Operation icons and screen display will disappear 
when no function is performed for a specific period of 
time. To display them again, touch the screen.
Motion picture playbackStill picture playback
1/ ;: Playback/Pause
6 : Rewind playback
5 : Fast forward playback
∫ : Stops the playback and shows 
the thumbnails. 1/
;: Slide show (playback of the still 
pictures in numerical order) 
start/pause.
2; : Plays back the previous picture.
;1 : Plays back the next picture.
∫ : Stops the playback and shows 
the thumbnails.
0h00m15s 0h00m15s
0h00m15s

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≥Sound will be heard only during normal playback.
≥ If pause play is continued for 5 minutes, the screen returns to the thumbnails.
≥ The elapsed time for playback indication will be reset to 0h00m00s each scene.
≥ When playing back iFrame scenes, the image will pause momentarily and the screen may 
turn black when the scenes are switching.
Motion picture compatibilityPlease refer to page 53 about 
1080/50p.
≥This unit is based on AVCHD format/MPEG-4 AVC file format.
≥ Video signals for the AVCHD that can be played back with this unit are 1920 k1080/50i, 
1920k 1080/25p and 1440k 1080/50i.
≥ Video signals for the iFrame that can be played back with this unit are 960 k540/25p.
≥ This unit may degrade or not play back motion pictures recorded or created on other 
products, and other products may degrade or not play back motion pictures recorded 
on this unit, even if the products support AVCHD or iFrame.
≥ Motion pictures recorded in AVCHD and iFrame are not compatible with each other.
Still picture compatibility
≥This unit is compliant with the unified standard DCF (Design rule for Camera File 
system) established by JEITA (Japan Elec tronics and Information Technology 
Industries Association).
≥ The file format of still pictures supported by  this unit is JPEG. (Not all JPEG formatted 
files will be played back.)
≥ This unit may degrade or not play back still pictures recorded or created on other 
products and other products may degrade or not play back still pictures recorded on 
this unit.
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≥Touch   (left side)/  (right side) of   on the touch menu to display  . ( l25)
1Touch [MENU].
2Touch the top menu  A.
3Touch the submenu B.
≥Next (previous) page can be displayed by 
touching / .
4Touch the desired item to enter 
the setting.
5Touch [EXIT] to exit the menu 
setting.
∫ About  guide display
After touching  , touching the submenus 
and items will cause func tion descriptions 
and settings confirmation messages to 
appear.
≥ After the messages have been displayed, 
the guide display is cancelled.
Basic
Using the menu screen
MENU
Q.
MENU
MENU
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Using the quick menu
This allows quick setting of some of the menus.
≥Touch   (left side)/  (right side) of   on the touch menu to display  . ( l25)
1Touch [Q.MENU].The following menus can be set. Touch the desired menu.
≥The items displayed differ depending on the position of the mode switch or settings.
2Touch the desired item to enter the setting.
3Touch [EXIT] to exit the quick menu.
IconFunctionPage
[REC MODE] l64
/ [PICTURE SIZE]
l76
[POWER LCD] l44
[GUIDE LINES] l62
[MIC LEVEL] l73
[MF ASSIST] l83
[ZEBRA] l74
[LUMINANCE] l75
[HISTOGRAM] l75
Q.
MENU
14.2M13.3M
A
13.3MA
iFrame540p
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