[. . . ] Before operating the unit, please read this manual thoroughly, and retain it for future reference. Congratulations on your purchase of this Sony Digital Handycam® camcorder. With your Handycam, you can capture life's precious moments with superior picture and sound quality. Your Handycam is loaded with advanced features, but at the same time it is very easy to use. [. . . ] To increase the exposure to brighten the picture, select a higher level. When you select an exposure level that is too high, the picture may be distorted. Note on iris/gain value indicator The information of the EXPOSURE dial does not appear even if you press EXPOSURE while the camcorder is in PROGRAM AE mode (AEA, AES, or Å). (1) Set HOLD/AUTO LOCK selector to the centre (auto lock release) position while the camcorder is in Standby mode. (2) Press PROGRAM AE repeatedly until AEA, AES, or Å disappears from the display. The speed is locked at the value which was selected automatically at that time. Note on the shutter speed You can set the speed to 1/3, 1/6, 1/12, and 1/25 only when you set the DIGITAL MODE switch to ZOOM/16:9 WIDE. For quick access to the desired shutter speed First press SHUTTER SPEED twice to set to 1/120, then press SHUTTER SPEED again to set to 1/1000. Using the ND filter (correspond to one-tenth the quantity of light), you can record a picture clearly, preventing the picture from going out of focus under bright conditions. You can set the camcorder to display a zebra pattern (diagonal stripes) in the portion of the picture in the viewfinder with a subject whose brightness exceeds a certain level. The portion of the picture where zebra pattern appears is an area of high brightness and overexposure. You can check the picture level of a subject by displaying the zebra pattern. Use the zebra pattern as a guide for adjusting the exposure (iris) and shutter speed so that you can get the desired picture. Note on shooting with the zebra pattern Even though you see the zebra pattern in the viewfinder, the zebra pattern is not recorded. White balance adjustment makes white subjects look white and allows more natural colour balance for camera recording. You can obtain better results by adjusting the white balance manually when lighting conditions change quickly or when recording outdoors: e. Select the appropriate white balance mode under the following conditions. Recording a sunset/sunrise, just after sunset, just before sunrise [b], neon signs, or fireworks [c] (1) Set HOLD/AUTO LOCK selector to the centre (auto lock release) position while the camcorder is in Standby mode. (2) Press WHT BAL repeatedly to select the appropriate white balance mode. Each time you press the button, the indicator inside the viewfinder changes: No indicator (auto) w (outdoor) e (indoor) To return to automatic white balance mode Locking the white balance setting (One-push white balance mode) When you set the white balance to one-push white balance mode, the setting is locked and maintained even if lighting conditions change, and saved for one hour after power sources such as the battery are detached if the lithium battery is inserted. You can achieve recording with natural colours without being affected by ambient light. When the white balance has been adjusted and stored in the memory, the indicator stops flashing. [. . . ] 83) 5 Lights up while cassette is inserted 6 Remaining tape indicator 7 Audio recording level indicator (p. If indicators flash in the viewfinder, or a caution lamp on the camcorder flashes, check the following: : You can hear the beep sound when the BEEP is set to ON. If it remains lit, disconnect the power source and contact your Sony dealer or local authorized facility. 9 The lithium battery is weak or the lithium battery is not installed. [. . . ]