Sanyo VPC-AZ1 - Manual

CONTENTS USING YOUR DIGITAL CAMERA SAFELY AND CORRECTLY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3CHECKING THE INCLUDED ACCESSORIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 PREPARATION USING THE HAND-STRAP AND SOFT CASE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....

USING YOUR DIGITAL CAMERA SAFELY ANDCORRECTLY CONCERNING THE DIGITAL CAMERA WARNING ■ If the digital camera makes a strange noise, emits a strange odor, or ifsmoke comes out from it, immediately turn off the power and removethe batteries œ If the digital camera is used under these conditions, it may...

WARNING ■ Do not use during a storm œ To avoid the risk of being struck by lightning, do not use the digitalcamera during a thunderstorm. In particular, if used in an open field,you have an increased chance of being struck by lightning. Quicklyseek refuge in a place that will protect you from lightn...

WARNING ■ Concerning the Batteries Concerning the supplied nickel metal hydride batteries œ Follow all the warnings indicated below to prevent the batteries from leaking, overheating,exploding, catching fire, or becoming damaged. œ Use only the supplied battery charger forrecharging. œ Do not instal...

General precautions œ Use the nickel metal hydride batteries supplied with the digital camera. Manganese batteriescannot be used, as they have a short battery life and may overheat, causing damage to thedigital camera. œ Do not use a recharged battery together with a discharged battery. Do not use n...

Concerning the supplied battery chargerDANGER Warning! Do not attempt to recharge non-rechargeable batteries.For indoor use only. The appliance is not intended for use by young children or infirm persons withoutsupervision.Young children should be supervised to ensure that they do not play with the ...

CAUTION ■ Unplug the power cord from the power outlet when finished œ If the battery charger is left plugged into the power outlet for a long period oftime, there is a risk of fire. ■ Do not damage the power cord œ Do not place heavy objects on the power cord. Do not place the power cordnear a heat ...

Concerning the accessories CAUTION ■ Cautions concerning the use of the AC adapter œ Use only the separately sold AC adapter (model VAR-G4EX for the VPC-AZ1EX, modelVAR-G4E for the VPC-AZ1E and model VAR-G4U for the VPC-AZ1) with your digital camera.Do not use an AC adapter other than the one indica...

■ Cautions concerning the nickel metal hydride batteries œ Periodically clean with a dry cloth the terminals of the nickel metal hydride batteries ((+) and (–))and the terminals located in the battery compartment of the digital camera. œ Do not touch the battery terminals or the terminals in the bat...

■ Cautions concerning magnetism œ Do not place credit cards, bank cards, floppy disks, or other items that may be damaged bymagnetic fields near the speaker. Data may be lost or the magnetic strips on cards may bedamaged. ■ Cautions concerning data storage œ It is recommended that any important data...

CHECKING THE INCLUDED ACCESSORIES Open the box and check that all the accessories listed below are included. The page numberslisted next to the part names are the page numbers where that part is explained in detail. œ Hand-strap [page 15] œ CompactFlash(16MB) andprotective case œ Soft case [page 15]...

USING THE HAND-STRAP AND SOFT CASE Attach the supplied hand-strap to the digital camera to aid in carrying. Also, when you are notusing the digital camera, put it in the soft case for protection. Attaching the hand-strap Bend the looped extremity of the strap and slip it through the strap holder on ...

Media cards that can be used with this digitalcamera This digital camera stores the captured images and recorded voice memos on the storage mediacard inserted inside the digital camera. The number of images and amount of recording time thatcan be stored on one card depends on the capacity of the car...

QUICK START FOR CAPTURING IMAGES Now that you have purchased a new digital camera, it is time to try and capture some images andthen view them with the LCD monitor. Although your digital camera is packed with many usefuland convenient functions, here is a simple explanation of how to capture and vie...

Installing the batteries and card (see pages 26, 27) 3 Insert the batteries. œ Use the batteries recharged in step 1 above. œ Make sure the polarity ((+) and (–)) of the batteries is asindicated in the battery compartment. 1 Open battery compartment cover on the digital camera bottom. 2 Insert the b...

Capturing images (see page 60) Now that preparation is completed, your digital camera is ready to capture images. Here we willcapture still images, but your digital camera can take sequential shots and even video clips. 5 Set the main switch to Õ . 6 Turn the selector dial to v . 7 Press the power b...

Viewing the image (see pages 96, 98) Now let’s take a look at the images you’ve captured. 11 Set the main switch to Ô . œ The image you captured shows up in the LCD monitor. œ Press d or c on the arrow button to display the images stored before and after the current image. 12 When finished, press th...

PARTS NAMES The page numbers listed next to the part names are the page numbers where that part isexplained in detail. Power button [pages 26 to 30] Batterycompartmentcover [page 26] Tripod stand hole[page 75] Terminal cover [pages 106, 129] DC IN (external DC power input)terminal DIGITAL/AV termina...

MACRO [ £ / ¿ ] button [page 72] MODE button [page 32] Stand-by indicator [pages 29, 61, 74] SET button Selector dial [page 31] Zoom switch[pages 72, 76, 101 to 103, 105] Hand-strap holder[page 15] Viewfinder [page 61] Arrow button [page 45] Jog dial[pages 45, 98, 105] LCD monitor[pages 33, 61, 98] ...

PREPARATION OF BATTERIES Use the supplied (or sold separately) AA nickel metal hydride batteries to power the digitalcamera. You can also use AA Ni-Cd batteries, but they will not last as long as the AA nickel metalhydride rechargeable batteries. However, if you do not have access to these batteries...

INSTALLING AND REMOVING THE CARDS The images and audio recordings recorded by your digital camera are stored on the data storagecard installed in the digital camera. You must install a card before you can capture images. Formore information on handling the cards, see “Cautions when handling the Comp...

TURNING THE POWER ON/OFF Turning the power on Follow the steps indicated below when capturing images or when playing back images on theLCD monitor. To capture images 1 Set the main switch to “MONITOR OFF” or Õ . 2 Press the power button. œ The stand-by indicator turns on and the lens extends. œ If t...

4 Press the MODE button (if the selector dial is set to v , x or w ). œ The setting screen selected in step 3 appears (see pages 33 to 40). œ You can also access the shooting setting screen by turning the jog dial. œ For how to operate the setting screens, see “SETTING SCREEN BASIC OPERATIONS”on pag...

SHOOTING SETTING SCREENS These screens are used for various settings related to capturing pictures. For the operationprocedure for the shooting setting screens, see “SETTING SCREEN BASIC OPERATIONS” onpage 45. Still Image Shooting Setting Screen * All the icons never appear at the same time. 2 4 RES...

SHOOTING SETTING SCREENS Sequential Shot Shooting Setting Screen * All the icons never appear at the same time. 1 2 RESOLUTION SX511/EX, /E, /U (VPC-AZ1EX, VPC-AZ1E, VPC-AZ1 GB) Thu. Nov., 29/2001 35 English

SHOOTING SETTING SCREENS Video Clip Shooting Setting Screen * All the icons never appear at the same time. 0 0 : 4 6 RESOLUTION SX511/EX, /E, /U (VPC-AZ1EX, VPC-AZ1E, VPC-AZ1 GB) Thu. Nov., 29/2001 37 English

SHOOTING SETTING SCREENS Shooting status display area After you exit the Shooting Setting Screen, the status of the digital camera and card are displayedin this shooting status display area. The icons and the positions in which they appear differdepending on the shooting mode. 1 Flicker-reduction in...

PLAYBACK SETTING SCREEN Still Image, Sequential Shot, and Video ClipPlayback Setting Screens 1 Image rotation [page 98] Appears only when auto rotate playbackis not set. 2 Protect icon [page 115] 3 Erase icon [page 116] 4 Edit still image icon [pages 109, 111,114] 5 Print setting icon [page 120] 6 V...

OPTION SETTING SCREEN Shooting Option Setting Screen 1 Audio recording [page 79] 2 Date and time setting [page 46] 3 Operational sound (beep) setting[page 125] 4 Battery discharge function [page 126] 5 Language selection [page 127] 6 TV system selection [page 128] 7 Card reformatting [page 124] Play...

INFORMATION DISPLAY The Information Screen allows you to check the current settings while shooting. Also, duringplayback, you can check what the settings were during shooting. Information Screen during shooting1 Put the digital camera in the shooting/recording status. œ When shooting, turn on the LC...

INFORMATION DISPLAY To exit the Information Screen, press the MODE button again. Displaying the shooting settings duringplayback This screen displays the shooting settings during playback. The Information Screen appears when the MODE button is pressed for at least 2 seconds duringplayback (see pages...

SETTING SCREEN BASIC OPERATIONS At the setting screens, use the jog dial or arrow button and the SET button to perform the desiredsettings. The selected menu or icon will turn orange in color (or reverse video). To enter or exitthe setting screens, see “DISPLAYING THE SETTING SCREEN AND OPTION SETTI...

SETTING THE DATE AND TIME The digital camera will record the date and time an image or audio recording is taken so that youcan display them during playback. Therefore, before capturing images, make sure the correctdate and time are set. Example: To set the clock to August 28, 2002 at 7:30 p.m. 1 Dis...

REMAINING BATTERY CHARGE INDICATION When using nickel metal hydride batteries, the remaining battery charge can be checked on theLCD monitor. Make sure to check this indicator before capturing an image. For an indication of thepossible length of time for battery operation, see “Battery Operation” on...

CONCERNING IMAGE AND AUDIO DATA STORAGE Saving the images captured with your digital camera œ Saving the images to a computer Requires: Included CD-ROM (Sanyo Software Pack) [page 129], commercially availablepersonal computer. Advantages: The images are saved as data on the computer hard disk. They ...

CONCERNING IMAGE AND AUDIO DATA STORAGE Sequential shots data Data format: JPEG format File name structure: SEQTxxyy.jpgThe “xx” represents the folder number where the sequential shots arestored. The “yy” represents a sequential number assigned automatically. Video clip data Data format: QuickTime M...

SETTING THE SHOOTING MODE Before using the digital camera, you must set the desired shooting mode (still image, sequentialshot, video clip, or audio recording). The setting is performed with the selector dial. 1 Turn the selector dial to the desired shooting mode. W Still image shooting mode (see pa...

SETTING THE RESOLUTION If the resolution is increased, the image quality will improve, but the remaining number of imagesthat can be taken will decrease. In the video clip shooting mode, if the resolution is decreased, thelength of time possible for the video clip will increase. It is therefore impo...

SETTING THE COMPRESSION RATIO Use the procedure given below to set the compression ratio. Even if the same resolution is used,you can change the compression setting to decrease the image data size so that you can capturemore images, or increase the image data size for no loss in image quality. Compr...

CAPTURING IMAGES NOTE œ When a picture is taken with the camera held vertically, the image played back on the LCDmonitor screen or on a TV set will be shown on the side. However, images captured in the stillimage shooting mode or sequential shot shooting mode can be rotated when they are playedback ...

Capturing images using the viewfinder Compose the desired image by looking into the viewfinder. Compared to capturing images usingthe LCD monitor, this method saves the battery power. 1 Set the main switch to “MONITOR OFF”. Press thepower button to turn on the camera. œ Set the selector dial to anyt...

CAPTURING IMAGES Capturing images using the LCD monitor This method allows you to view the exact composition of the image on the LCD monitor beforeyou capture it. 1 Set the main switch to Õ . Press the power button to turn on the camera. œ Set the selector dial to anything other than P or Ü . œ When...

SEQUENTIAL SHOT This digital camera allows three types of sequential shots: standard, AE shift sequential shot, andbest select shots. •••• Sequential shot methods •••• Maximum number of sequential shots The maximum possible number of sequential shots depends on the resolution and compressionratio se...

SEQUENTIAL SHOT Best select shot Ä The best select shot captures four sequential images so that you can choose which one to save. 1 Set the shooting mode to the sequential shot shooting mode (see page 31). 2 Select best select shot Ä from the sequential shot method menu, and press the SET button. œ ...

VIDEO CLIP This digital camera allows you to record video clips, which are moving images with audio. 1 Display the Video Clip Shooting Setting Screen (seepage 31). œ The remaining memory on the card is calculated, and theremaining recording time available is displayed. œ Depending on the memory capa...

USING THE AUTOFOCUS The autofocus will work in almost all occasions; however, there are certain conditions that maycause the autofocus function not to work properly. ■ Conditions that may cause incorrect focus The following examples are some of the situations where the autofocus function may notwork...

USING THE VARIOUS SHOOTING FUNCTIONS Macro photography Use the macro photography function when capturing images at close range (10 to 50 cm). 1 Press the MACRO button. œ The current focus mode appears on the LCD monitorscreen. No icon: For photography at normal focus. c : For photography at macro fo...

USING THE VARIOUS SHOOTING FUNCTIONS Using the flash The flash is used not only for taking pictures where there is insufficient light, but also when thesubject is in shade or in backlight conditions. Your camera has four modes of operation (automaticflash mode, forced flash mode, flash off mode, and...

Shooting using the LCD monitor 1 Press the flash button to set the flash mode. œ Each time the flash button is pressed, the flash mode changes as follows: œ This completes the flash setting. œ The flash setting is retained even if the main switch is set to “MONITOR OFF” or Ô , or the digital camera ...

Using the zoom There are two zoom functions (optical zoom and digital zoom). When you first zoom in on thesubject, it is magnified with the optical zoom. When the limit of the optical zoom has beenreached, zooming in further will then magnify the image using the digital zoom. You can setwhether or n...

MONOCHROME PHOTOGRAPHY You can take pictures as black-and-white images with this camera. 1 Display the Shooting Settings Screen (see page 31). 2 Select the monochrome shooting on icon e from the monochrome shooting menu, and press the SET button. e : For black-and-white photography. f : For color ph...

ADDING A VOICE MEMO In the still image shooting mode, you can record approximately 4 seconds of sound (called a“voice memo”) when capturing the image. You can also add a voice memo to an image previouslyrecorded (see “ADDING A VOICE MEMO (ADD AUDIO FUNCTION)” on page 109). 1 Display the Still Image ...

PERFORMING AN AUDIO RECORDING Like a normal tape recorder, your digital camera can record sounds. Since the recording is digital,rewinding to the beginning of the recording is quick and easy. When you add a voice memo to astill image, only 4 seconds of recording time is allowed, but with the audio r...

EXPOSURE CORRECTION Use the exposure correction function when shooting to make the entire image that you capturedarker (underexposed) or lighter (overexposed) as desired. 1 Display the Shooting Setting Screen (see page 31). 2 Select the exposure correction icon Ê . 3 Press [ d ] or [ c ] on the arro...

SETTING THE EXPOSURE CONTROL By setting the shutter speed and aperture size, various exposure controls are possible. Bychanging the settings in accordance with the scene to be photographed, you can create the imagethat you want to express. The exposure controls can be set in the still image shooting...

SETTING THE ISO SENSITIVITY With the normal settings, the ISO sensitivity is set automatically according to the brightness of thesubject. However, in the special mode, you can fix the ISO sensitivity to the equivalent of 100,200, or 400. 1 Display the Shooting Setting Screen (see page 31). 2 Select ...

SETTING THE WHITE BALANCE With the normal settings, this digital camera automatically adjusts the white balance under mostlighting conditions. However, if you want to specify the lighting conditions or change the overalltone of the image, the white balance can be manually set. 1 Display the Shooting...

SETTING THE ZOOM Setting the optical zoom (video clip shootingonly) If the optical zoom is operated during video clip photography, the noise from the zoom movementmay be picked up by the microphone. In this case, change the camera setting so that the opticalzoom does not move. 1 Display the Video Cl...

SETTING THE ZOOM Setting the digital zoom This setting allows you to set whether or not the digital zoom becomes active during magnifiedshooting at a resolution of D or less. 1 Display the Shooting Setting Screen (see page 31). 2 Select a digital zoom setting from the digital zoom menu, and press th...

SETTING THE NOISE REDUCTION Noise which occurs in captured images when the shutter button is pressed during still imageshooting is reduced. The initial setting for noise reduction is off. 1 Display the Still Image Shooting Setting Screen (seepage 31). 2 Select the noise reduction on icon g from the ...

SETTING THE LIGHT MEASURING METHOD You can select from 3 types of light measuring methods. Center light measuring: Light is measured only in the central portion of the shootingscreen. This is the initial setting. Multi-section light measuring: Light is measured by sampling from multiple areas of the...

SETTING THE FOCUS METHOD You can choose from the following 2 types of autofocus: Multi-section focus: Subject distance detected by sampling from multiple areas of the entireshooting screen. This is the initial setting. Spot focus: The camera focuses on the subject in the center of the LCD monitor. 1...

SCENE SELECT FUNCTION You can select from stored settings you have completed for specific shooting conditions. Also, youcan set your custom shooting conditions and then store them. Selecting from stored shooting settings Select from stored shooting settings. The following settings (preset settings) ...

Storing shooting settings You can store your custom settings in the digital camera (original settings). Up to 3 differentcustom settings can be stored. Also, you can edit your stored original settings and save the newsettings. Your original settings are selected using the same procedure as for the p...

SETTING THE PLAYBACK MODE The data of the images and recordings captured with this digital camera are saved as one of fourfollowing types: still image data, sequential shot data, video clip (image and sound) data, or audiodata. Therefore, it is necessary to set the type of data you wish to play back...

SETTING THE PLAYBACK MODE Points concerning the audio recording playback mode œ Turn the selector dial to [ P ] to display the Playback Option Setting Screen with “AUDIO” selected. Then press the SET button to display the audio recording selection screen. On thisscreen, turn the jog dial to select t...

PLAYING BACK STILL IMAGES Use the still image playback mode to play back still images. Playing back the still images one by one Follow this procedure to view the images one by one. 1 Select the still image playback mode (see page 96). œ An image appears on the LCD monitor. 2 Press [ d ] or [ c ] on ...

9-image display playback You can display 9 still images at once on the LCD monitor. 1 Select the still image playback mode (see page 96). œ An image appears on the LCD monitor. 2 Push the zoom switch towards ; . œ The 9-image display appears. œ The number displayed for each image is the number forth...

PLAYING BACK SEQUENTIAL SHOTS Sequential shot images can be played back one image at a time. 1 Select the sequential shot playback mode (see page 96). œ If the 9-image display appears, perform step 4 below and then come back to step 2. 2 Press [ d ] or [ c ] on the arrow button. To play back the pre...

PLAYING BACK VIDEO CLIPS Use the video clip playback mode to view video clips taken in the video clip shooting mode. In thevideo clip playback mode, the sound can also be heard. 1 Select the video clip playback mode (see page 96). œ If the 9-image display appears, perform step 5 below andthen come b...

PLAYING BACK IMAGES ON A TV SET The images and audio recordings saved on the card in the digital camera can also be played backon a television set for viewing and listening. (When connected to a television set, the speaker ofthe digital camera is muted.) Connections Connect the supplied AV cable fro...

LISTENING TO AUDIO RECORDINGS Follow the procedure below to listen to audio recordings taken with the digital camera from thespeaker of the digital camera. 1 Turn the selector dial to P . 2 Set the main switch to Ô . œ The Playback Option Setting Screen appears. œ “AUDIO” is highlighted. 3 Press the...

ENTERING TEXT You can enter characters for titles and the like on still images. 1 Display the still image to which you want to add text (see page 98). œ If there are a great number of still images, it may be quicker to find it using the 9-imagedisplay playback (see page 101). 2 If the Still Image Pl...

RESIZING IMAGES The size of still images that have already been captured at a resolution of D or more can be changed (resized) to 640 x 480 pixels or 320 x 240 pixels. The resized image is saved as adifferent image. This function is convenient for displaying images on a computer monitor, or for decr...

ERASING DATA You can erase data that is stored on the card if you no longer need it. You can erase the images,video clips, and sound recordings one at a time, or all at once. 1 Display the data that you want to erase. œ See “PLAYING BACK STILL IMAGES” on page 98, “PLAYING BACK SEQUENTIALSHOTS” on pa...

COPYING IMAGES You can select one image from a sequential shot or one image (scene) from a video clip and copyit and save it as a still image (the original data remains untouched). 1 Display the desired image from a sequential shot or video clip. œ See “PLAYING BACK SEQUENTIAL SHOTS” on page 102, or...

AUTO ROTATE PLAYBACK SETTING Images captured in the still image shooting mode or sequential shot shooting mode with thecamera held vertically can be rotated automatically 90 degrees when they are played back. 1 Display the Playback Option Setting Screen (see page41). 2 Select “AUTO ROTATE PLAY”. 3 P...

REQUESTING PRINTING You can take your card to shops offering digital print services and have your still images printedout like photographs. This digital camera is DPOF-compatible so that if you take your digitalcamera to shops that handle the DPOF format, you can set the number of printouts and thep...

REQUESTING PRINTING Standard print Printing out one image on one sheet is called a “standard print”. With the standard print, you canspecify how many copies you want to print out and whether you want the date printed out as well. Setting the Number of Printouts 1 Display the Print Setting Screen (se...

Specifying the Printout of the Date 6 Press [ d ] on the arrow button to select the date printout command field and then turn the jog dial tospecify the desired setting. YES: To print out the date. NO: To not print out the date. 7 Press the SET button. œ This completes the setting of the number of p...

REQUESTING PRINTING 3 Press the SET button. œ The Index Print Screen appears. YES: To set the index print settings. NO: To clear the index settings. EXIT: To return to the Print Setting Screen. 4 Select “YES” and press the SET button. œ This completes the setting for the index print. œ You return to...

REFORMATTING THE CARD The data for all images, video clips, and sound files taken by the digital camera are stored on thecard installed inside the digital camera. Therefore, you must first install a card to enable the digitalcamera to be used (see page 27). Before you first use a card with the digit...

DISCHARGING THE BATTERIES Your digital camera is designed not to be affected by voltage fluctuations caused by the “memoryeffect” of nickel metal hydride batteries. However, there may be times when the remaining chargeindicator for the batteries turns to è ç or ê ç early. If this happens, discharge ...

CHANGING THE DISPLAY LANGUAGE You can set the LCD monitor of your digital camera to display messages in Japanese or English. 1 Display the Shooting Option Setting Screen (orPlayback Option Setting Screen) (see page 31). 2 Select “LANGUAGE” and press the SET button. œ The Language Screen appears. : S...

SETTING THE TV SYSTEM This setting is to specify the type of image signal that is output from the camera’s DIGITAL/AVterminal. 1 Display the Shooting Option Setting Screen (orPlayback Option Setting Screen) (see page 31). 2 Select “TV SYSTEM”, and press the SET button. œ The TV System Setting Screen...

USING THE CAMERA WITH A COMPUTER When the supplied Sanyo Software Pack (CD-ROM) is installed in your personal computer, thedata in the camera’s card can be copied to the computer and processed. For more information,please read the Instruction Manual that accompanies the Sanyo Software Pack. 1 Turn o...

TROUBLESHOOTING Problem Cause Action Reference page Power No power. The batteries are dead. Change or recharge the batteries. 23, 26 The batteries have notbeen inserted correctly. Reinsert the batteries,making sure the polarity(+), (–) is as indicated. The batterycompartment cover isnot fully closed...

SPECIFICATIONS Digital Camera Type CCD digital camera (recording and playback) Recording system Digital recording Image file format Still images: JPEG format, TIFF (no compression) format (DCF andDPOF compliant)Note: The DCF (Design rule for Camera File System) is a standard established by the JEIDA...