Panasonic Memory Card Camera Recorder AG-HPX255P AG-HPX255EN Operating Instructions

							Shooting
Playback
Editing
Displays
Menu
Reference
M0612MO0 -FJ 
ENGLISH
VQT4K98A (E) 
Operating Instructions Vol.2
Memory Card Camera-Recorder
Model No.AG-HPX255P
Model No.AG-HPX255EN
Note that Operation Instructions Vol. 2 describes advanced 
operations of the Memory Card Camera-Recorder.
For instructions on basic operations of the Memory Card 
Camera-Recorder, refer to Operating Instructions Vol. 1 (printed 
documents) contained in the supplied CD-ROM.
Volume2
Before operating this product, please read the instructions carefully and save 
this manual for future use. 
Register now!!
http{pppanasonic.
						

							2
•	SDHC	Logo	is	a	trademark	of	SD-3C,	LLC.
•	 HDMI,	the	HDMI	logo,	and	High-Definition	Multimedia	Interface	are	trademarks	or	registered	trademarks	
of	HDMI	Licensing	LLC.
•	 Microsoft
®,	Windows®,	and	Windows	Vista®	are	either	registered	trademarks	or	trademarks	of	Microsoft	
Corporation	in	the	United	States	and/	or	other	countries.
•	 Screenshots	are	used	in	accordance	with	Microsoft	Corporation	guidelines.
•	 Apple
®,	Macintosh®,	and	Mac	OS®	are	trademarks	of	
Apple	Inc.,	registered	in	 the	United	States	and	other	
countries.
•	 Other	model	names,	company	names,	and	product	names	listed	in	these	operating	instructions	are	
trademarks	or	registered	trademarks	of	their	respective	companies.
•	 This	product	is	licensed	under	the	
AVC	Patent	Portfolio	License	for	the	personal	and	non-commercial	
use	of	a	consumer,	and	no	license	is	granted	or	shall	be	implied	for	any	use	other	than	the	personal	uses	
detailed	below. -	 To	encode	video	in	compliance	with	the	 AVC	standard	(“AVC	Video”)
-	 	 To	decode	 AVC	Video	that	was	encoded	by	a	consumer	engaged	in	a	personal	and	non-
commercial	activity
-	 To	decode	 AVC	Video	that	was	obtained	from	a	video	provider	licensed	to	provide	 AVC	Video
	 Additional	information	may	be	obtained	from	MPEG	LA,	LLC	(http://www.mpegla.com).
Note concerning illustrations in these instructions•	 Illustrations	(camera-recorder,	menu	screens,	etc.)	in	these	operating	instructions	differ	slightly	from	the	
actual	camera-recorder.
•	 In	order	to	display	the	position	of	terminals	on	the	camera-recorder,	the	protective	caps	included	with	the	
camera-recorder	are	not	noted	except	in	“Description	of	parts”	(Page	16	of	Vol.	1).	
References•	References	are	shown	as	(Page	00).
Terminology•	Both	SD	Memory	Cards	and	SDHC	Memory	Cards	as	referred	to	as	“SD	Memory	Cards”	in	these	
operating	instructions.
•	 Memory	cards	that	have	the	“P2”	logo	(e.g.,	
AJ-P2C064AG,	an	optional	accessory)	are	referred	to	as	“P2	
cards”	in	these	operating	instructions.
•	 Video	that	is	created	during	a	single	recording	operation	is	referred	to	as	a	“clip”	in	these	operating	
instructions.  
						

							3
Contents
Volume	1
Read this first! (For AG-HPX255P)
Read this first! (For AG-HPX255EN)
Read this first! (For AG-HPX255P/ AG-HPX255EN)
Outline of operations
Before use
Operating precautions
Precaution for use
Accessories
Optional units
Description of parts
Description of parts
Preparation
Charging the battery
Power sources
Adjusting the hand strap
Attaching the shoulder strap
Detaching and attaching the lens hood
Detaching and attaching the lens cap
Fitting the eye cup
The remote control
Turn on/off the camera-recorder
Setting the calendar
Charging the built-in battery
Menu
Basic operations of setup menus
Setup menu structure
Reference
Specifications 
						

							4
Contents (continued)
Shooting
Viewfinder ............................................................  6
Using	the	viewfinder 	.......................................... 	6
Using	the	LCD	monitor 	...................................... 	7
Emphasizing	Image	Outlines 	............................. 	7
Adjusting	the	screen	display 	.............................. 	8
Changing	backlight	brightness 	.......................... 	8
Tally lamp  .............................................................  9
Basic shooting operations  ...............................  10
Preparing	to	shoot 	........................................... 	10
Shooting	in	auto	mode 	.................................... 	10
Checking	the	shot	videos	(REC	CHECK) 	........ 	12
P2	card	access	lamps 	..................................... 	12
Protecting	against	a	possible	erasure 	............. 	12
Formatting	P2	cards	 ........................................ 	13
P2	card	recording	times 	.................................. 	14
Remove	the	P2	card 	........................................ 	15
Using SD/SDHC memory cards  ........................  16
Installing	and	removing	the	SD	memory	 	
card	 ............................................................. 	16
Formatting	SD	memory	card 	........................... 	16
Cautions	in	using	SD	memory	cards 	............... 	17
Using the zoom function  ...................................  18
Digital	zoom	function 	....................................... 	19
Shooting in progressive mode  .........................  20
Standard	recording	 	
(pull-down	recording) 	................................... 	20
Native	recording 	.............................................. 	20
Recording with Variable Frame Rate (VFR).....  21
Native	VFR	recording 	...................................... 	21
Standard	VFR	recording	 	
(pulldown	recording) 	.................................... 	22
Using	progressive	mode	and	VFR	recording	 function	 ........................................................ 	23
Flow	effect	shooting ......................................... 	27
Shooting in manual mode  .................................  28
Switching	to	manual	mode 	.............................. 	28
Manual	focusing 	.............................................. 	28
Using	focus	assist	function 	.............................. 	29
Iris	adjustments	 ............................................... 	30
Adjusting	the	gain 	............................................ 	30
Using	super	gain 	............................................. 	31
Light	intensity	adjustments 	.............................. 	31
Adjusting the white balance and black   
balance  ...........................................................  32
Adjusting	the	white	balance 	............................. 	32
Adjusting	the	black	balance 	............................. 	34
Shooting techniques for different targets  .......  35
Low-angle	shooting 	......................................... 	35 Self-portrait	shooting
	....................................... 	35
Scan	reverse	shooting 	..................................... 	35
Zebra	pattern	 ................................................... 	35
Center	marker	display 	..................................... 	36
Safety	zone	markers	 ....................................... 	36
Checking	and	displaying	shooting	status 	........ 	36
Changing	the	image	size 	................................. 	37
Optical	Image	Stabilizer 	.................................. 	37
DRS	(Dynamic	Range	Stretcher)	function 	....... 	37
FBC	(Flash	Band	Compensation) 	................... 	38
Using	the	USER	buttons 	................................. 	39
Backlight	compensation 	.................................. 	40
Color	bars 	........................................................ 	40
Waveform	monitor	function 	.............................. 	40
Adjusting	the	volume	while	shooting 	............... 	40
Backup	recording 	............................................ 	40
2-slot	continuous	recording 	............................. 	41
Shot	mark	function	 .......................................... 	41
Text	memo	recording 	....................................... 	42
Time	stamp	function 	........................................ 	42
LAST 	CLIP	DELETE	function	 ..........................	42
Using special recording modes  .......................  43
Pre-recording	(PRE	REC) 	............................... 	44
Interval	recording	(INTERVAL 	REC)................ 	44
One-shot	recording	(ONE	SHOT 	REC)	........... 	45
Loop	recording	(LOOP 	REC)........................... 	46
One-clip	recording	(ONE	CLIP 	REC)	.............. 	47
Adjusting the shutter speed  .............................  49
Using	SHTR/F.RATE	dial	 .................................	49
Setting	SHUTTER	mode 	................................. 	49
Setting	SYNCHRO	SCAN	mode 	..................... 	50
Setting	FRAME	RATE	mode	 ...........................	51
Switching audio input  .......................................  52
Using	the	built-in	microphone 	.......................... 	52
Using	another	microphone	and	audio	 	
equipment 	.................................................... 	53
Adjusting	the	audio	recording	level	 	
automatically 	............................................... 	53
Adjusting	the	recording	level 	........................... 	54
CH3	and	CH4	recording	levels 	........................ 	55
Audio	level	meter	magnification 	...................... 	55
Using scene files (Scene File Data)  ................. 56
Changing	scene	file	settings 	........................... 	56
Saving	scene	files	and	other	settings	on	SD	 memory	cards	 .............................................. 	58
Configuration	of	setup	data	files 	...................... 	60
Using time data  ..................................................  61
Counter	setting	and	display 	............................. 	61
Time	data	overview 	......................................... 	61
Setting	user	bits	 ............................................... 	62
Volume	2 
						

							5
Precautions	in	1394	connections	.................. 	107
Nonlinear editing with P2 card (PC mode: USB  device)  ..........................................................  109
Procedures	for	making	connections	to	a	 personal	computer 	..................................... 	109
Using a hard disk drive (PC mode: USB   
host)  ..............................................................  111
Switching	to	the	USB	HOST 	mode	................ 	111
Using	the	USB	HOST 	mode	.......................... 	112
Viewing	hard	disk	drive	information 	............... 	112
Formatting	a	hard	disk	drive 	.......................... 	114
Writing	data	on	a	hard	disk	drive 	................... 	115
Writing	data	back	to	P2	cards ........................	116
Direction	for	using	a	hard	disk	drive 	.............. 	117
Warning	and	error	display	for	thumbnail	 operation	and	USB	HOST 	MODE	............. 	117
Displays
Screen displays  ...............................................  120
Viewfinder	screen	status	displays 	................. 	120
Screen	displays 	............................................. 	121
Center	information	display 	............................. 	125
Mode	check	(MODE	CHK)	indication 	............ 	131
Menu
Setup menu list  ................................................  132
SCENE	FILE	screen	 ...................................... 	132
SYSTEM	SETUP 	screen	............................... 	135
SW	MODE	screen	 ......................................... 	138
AUTO	SW	screen	 .......................................... 	140
RECORDING	SETUP 	screen	........................ 	141
AUDIO	SETUP 	screen	.................................. 	143
OUTPUT 	SEL	screen	 .................................... 	145
DISPLAY 	SETUP	screen	............................... 	147
CARD	FUNCTIONS	screen 	.......................... 	150
OTHER	FUNCTIONS	screen	 ........................	151
DIAGNOSTIC	screen	 .................................... 	153
OPTION	MENU	screen	 .................................	154
Reference
Before calling for service ................................ 155
Updating the firmware incorporated into the  unit  ................................................................  158
Cleaning  ...........................................................  159
Storage precautions  ........................................  160
How to handle data recorded on P2 cards  ....  161
Checkpoints for using memory cards  ........... 162
Information on software for this product  ......  163
Recording format list  ......................................  164
Cautions in using the Extension Control   
Unit  ...............................................................  165
Index  .................................................................  166
Entering	the	user	bits 	...................................... 	63
Setting	the	time	code	 ....................................... 	66
Externally	locking	the	time	code 	...................... 	67
Outputting	the	time	code	externally 	................. 	70
Recording	time	codes	and	user	bits 	................ 	71
Playback
Basic playback operations  ............................... 74
Thumbnail operations  .......................................  75
Thumbnail	manipulations	overview 	................. 	76
Thumbnail	screen 	............................................ 	77
Selecting	thumbnails 	....................................... 	79
Playing	back	clips 	............................................ 	79
Switching	the	thumbnail	display 	...................... 	80
Changing	thumbnails 	....................................... 	81
Shot	mark	 ........................................................ 	82
Text	memo	 ....................................................... 	82
Deleting	clips 	................................................... 	84
Restoring	clips 	................................................. 	85
Reconnection	of	incomplete	clips 	.................... 	85
Copying	clips 	................................................... 	86
Setting	of	clip	meta	data	 ..................................	87
Formatting	a	P2	card	 ....................................... 	91
Formatting	SD	memory	cards 	......................... 	92
Setting	the	thumbnail	display	mode 	................ 	92
Properties 	........................................................ 	93
Useful playback functions  ................................ 99
Variable	speed	search 	..................................... 	99
Slow	playback 	................................................. 	99
Fast	forward/rewind	playback 	.......................... 	99
Frame-by-frame	playback 	............................... 	99
Clip	skip 	......................................................... 	100
Adjusting	the	volume 	..................................... 	100
Viewing	images	on	a	 TV/monitor	................... 	100
Checking	the	date	and	time 	........................... 	100
Editing
Connecting external units  ..............................  101
Headphones 	.................................................. 	101
External	microphone 	..................................... 	101
Personal	computer	(non-linear	editing/file	 transfer)	 ..................................................... 	102
Hard	disk	drive	(data	copying) 	....................... 	102
Digital	video	equipment	(Dubbing) 	................ 	103
TV/Monitor	(playback/dubbing) 	..................... 	104
Extension	control	unit	(AG-EC4G) 	................ 	104
Connections to the DVCPRO/DV   
connector  .....................................................  105
Recording	signals	input	to	the	DVCPRO/DV	 connector 	................................................... 	105
Control	of	external	devices	through	1394	 connection 	................................................. 	106  
						

							6
Viewfinder
•	The	pixels	of	the	LCD	monitor	are	controlled	
to	obtain	high	precision	with	99.99	%	of	the	
effective	pixels.	
This	leaves	less	than	0.01	%	
of	pixels	that	may	not	light	or	may	remain	on	
all	the	time.	 These	phenomena	are	normal	and	
will	have	no	effect	on	the	images	you	shoot.
•	 Screen	burn-in	may	occur	in	the	LCD	monitor.	
However,	this	is	not	a	defect.
•	 The	following	are	all	viewfinder	phenomena,	
and	are	not	faults.	Furthermore,	they	have	
no	effect	on	recording	with	this	camera	or	on	
output	signals.
	
· Primary	colors	(green,	blue,	red)	may	be	
seen	in	cases	such	as	moving	your	line	of	
sight	within	the	viewfinder.
	
· At	low	temperatures,	the	screen	may	appear	
with	a	pink	tint.
	
· When	power	is	not	supplied	to	the	camera	
black	lines	may	appear	on	the	screen.	
These	
disappear	when	power	is	supplied.
•	 Image	persistence	may	increase	at	low	
temperatures.	
This	is	not	a	fault.
•	 When	the	camera	recorder	is	very	cold,	the	
LCD
	monitor 	is 	darker 	than 	normal 	immediately	
after	switching	the	power	ON.	 As	the	internal	
temperature	increases	it	returns	to	normal.
Shooting
This	camera	has	two	viewfinders;	one	is	a	
miniature	LCD	in	the	viewfinder	and	the	other	is	a	
retractable	3.45-type	LCD.
Use	the	viewfinder	that	best	suits	the	application	
and	shooting	conditions.
•	 The	brightness	and	hue	may	differ	between	the	
images	appearing	on	the	viewfinder	and	LCD	
monitor	and	those	displayed	on	a	
TV	monitor.		
To	see	how	the	final	images	will	appear,	check	
them	on	a	 TV	monitor.
When	the	LCD	monitor	is	open,	the	viewfinder	
may	not	display	anything.	Close	the	LCD	
monitor.
Using the viewfinder
1 Set the POWER/MODE switch to ON and 
check that images appear in the viewfinder.
2 Adjust the viewfinder’s angle so that the 
screen is positioned where it is easiest to 
see.
•	You	can	move	the	view	finder	out	to	about	
90	degrees	perpendicular	to	the	camera-
recorder.
3 
Adjust the Viewfinder diopter dial so that you 
can see the characters on the viewfinder 
screen clearly.
Viewfinder diopter dial
Eye piece
Do not point the eye piece at the sun or other 
strong light source.
•	Light	concentrated	by	the	lens	could	damage	
internal	components	and	poses	a	fire	hazard. 
						

							7
Shooting
Using the LCD monitor
1 Set the POWER/MODE switch to ON.
(Page	25	of	Vol.	1)
2 Open the LCD monitor.
•	It	can	open	out	to	90	degrees.	Do	not	try	
to	open	it	further	as	this	will	damage	the	
camera-recorder.
3 
Position the LCD monitor where it is easiest 
to see.
•	The	monitor	can	be	rotated	180	degrees	
toward	the	lens	and	90	degrees	toward	you.
•  Do not apply unnecessary force to the 
open LCD. This can damage the camera-
recorder.
Ensure	the	LCD	is	fully	closed.
Emphasizing Image Outlines
Emphasizing	outlines	of	images	in	the	viewfinder	
and	on	the	LCD	monitor	makes	it	easier	to	focus.
This	function	does	not	affect	video	output	from	the	
camera-recorder	or	video	recorded	by	the	camera-
recorder.
Adjust EVF PEAK LEVEL and EVF PEAK FREQ 
in the DISPLAY SETUP screen.
PUSH  MENU  TO  RE\BTURN 
EVF PEAK FREQ
EVF SETTING
EVF B\f LIGHT
EVF COLOR
ZEBRA\b DETECT
ZEBRA2 DETECT 0
LOW >>>
NORMAL
ON
EVF MODE AUTO
\b00% 85%
EVF PEAK LEVEL
D I S P L A Y   S E T U P  
						

							8
Adjusting the screen display
1 Set the POWER/MODE switch to ON.
(Page	25	of	Vol.	1)
2 Press the MENU button.
•	For
	details 	on 	menu 	operation, 	refer 	to 	“Basic	
operations	of	setup	menus”	(Page	28	of	Vol.	
1).	
•	 You	can	also	use	the	corresponding	buttons	
on	the	remote	control.	For	details,	see	
“Description	of	parts”	(Remote	control).	
(Page	19	of	Vol.	1)
3 
Viewfinder adjustments
Select	CHANGE	under	EVF	SETTING	on	the	
setting	menu	DISPLAY 	SETUP	screen.
LCD monitor adjustments
Set	CHANGE	under	LCD	SETTING	on	the	
setting	menu	DISPLAY 	SETUP	screen.
•  When adjusting the viewfinder
PUSH  MENU  TO  RE\BTURN 
EVF PEAK FREQ
EVF SETTING
EVF B\f LIGHT
EVF COLOR
ZEBRA\b DETECT
ZEBRA2 DETECT 0
LOW >>>
NORMAL ON
EVF MODE AUTO
\b00%
85%
EVF PEAK LEVEL
D I S P L A Y   S E T U P
4 
Push the Operation lever in the   or  
direction to select the item.
•  When adjusting the viewfinder
PUSH  MENU  TO  RE\[TURN 
EVF BRIGHTNESS
EVF CONTRAST
E V F   S E T T I N G
[ \f ]   \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f + \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f   [ + ]
[ \f ]   \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f + \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f   [ + ]
5 
Push the Operation lever in the   or  
direction to make adjustment.
•  When adjusting the viewfinder
PUSH  MENU  TO  RE\[TURN 
EVF BRIGHTNESS
EVF CONTRAST E V F   S E T T I N G[ \f ]   \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f + \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f   [ + ]
[ \f ]   \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f + \f \f \f \f \f \f \f \f   [ + ]
6 
Press MENU three times to exit the menus.
•	You	can	return	the	settings	for	EVF	SETTING	
and	LCD	SETTING	to	the	factory	settings	by	
selecting	the	item	and	pressing	COUNTER	
RESET
	(if	it	is	possible	to	change	the	item	at	
that	time).
•	 The	viewfinder	display	can	be	in	color	or	black	
and	white.	(See	the	setup	menus,	DISPLAY
	
SETUP 	screen,	EVF	COLOR.)	 The	resolution	
is	the	same	for	both	of	them.
Changing backlight brightness
The	brightness	of	the	LCD	monitor	backlight	can	
be	adjusted	between	five	different	settings.
1  Select LCD BACKLIGHT from the setup 
menu DISPLAY SETUP screen.
2 Select and set a value in the range of +1 to 
–3.
The	greater	the	value	the	brighter	the	screen.
•	This	setting	will	remain	saved	even	if	the	
camera-recorder’s	power	is	switched	off.
•	 You	can	cycle	through	LCD	BACKLIGHT
	
values	and	switch	backlight	brightness	by	
pressing	a	USER	button	to	which	“LCD	B.L”	
has	been	assigned.
“Using	the	USER	buttons”	(Page	39)
Viewfinder (continued) 
						

							9
Shooting
Tally lamp
Tally lamp 
(Front)
Tally lamp 
(Rear)
The	tally	lamp	can	be	illuminated	during	recording	
by	setting	the	
TALLY	LAMP 	item	on	the	OTHER	
FUNCTIONS 	screen 	(Page 	151) 	to 	any 	setting 	other	
than	OFF.
When 	the 	camera-recorder 	is 	in 	any 	of 	the 	following	
states,	the	tally	lamp	blinks.
•	 When	the	remaining	battery	capacity	runs	out	
(4	blinks/sec.)
•	 When	the	available	recording	space	on	the	P2	
card	or	the	battery	power	is	low	(1	blink/sec.)
•	 When	removing	the	P2	card	during	access	
(4	blinks/sec.)
•	 When	there	is	no	recording	space	left	on	the	P2	
card	(4	blinks/sec.)
•	 When	there	is	a	warning	for	GENLOCK	IN	
terminal	signal	distortion,	system	error,	or	a	
recording	defect.	(4	blinks/sec.) 
						

							10
Basic shooting operations
Preparing to shoot
1 Set the POWER/MODE switch to ON. 
(Page	25	of	Vol.	1)
2 Push the OPEN lever of the P2 card slot 
cover downward ( ) and slide to open ( ).
3 Insert the P2 card securely in the card slot.
4 Raise the P2 card eject button to the 
direction of the arrow, and close the P2 
card/SD memory card slot cover.
•	There	are	two	card	slots.
•	 Be	absolutely	sure	to	close	the	card	slot	
covers	to	keep	the	dust	out.
•	 Do	not	remove	the	P2	card	while	the	P2	card	
access	lamps	are	blinking	orange.	(Page	12)
3 4
1
Lock release button
POWER/MODE 
switch
Shooting in auto mode
1 
Set the POWER/MODE switch to ON. 
(Page	25	of	Vol.	1)
•	Check	that	the	mode	lamp	(CAMERA)	is	
lighted	red.
2 
Switch the AUTO/MANUAL switch to AUTO 
to select auto mode.
•	“	
A	”	appears	on	the	viewfinder	and	LCD	
screens.
•	 The	focus,	gain,	iris	and	white	balance	are	
adjusted	automatically.
3 
Press the START/STOP button (Red) to start 
shooting.
•	Press	again	to	return	to	the	camera-recorder	
to	the	shooting	standby	mode.
•	 Use	
the	handle	 START/STOP 	button	 to	make	
it	easier	to	shoot	from	low	angles.
•	 To	prevent	accidental	operation,	the	handle	
side	START/STOP
	button	includes	a	hold	
mechanism.
1
3
AUTOMANUAL
2Mode lamp 
(CAMERA)
AUTO/MANUAL 
switch START/STOP 
button
 
(handle side)
POWER/MODE 
switchLock release button