Minolta Dimage F300A compact, stylish camera with a full five-megapixel sensor and clever autofocus system.<<Operation & User Interface :(Previous) | (Next): Image Storage & Interface>> Page 9:Camera Modes & MenusReview First Posted: 05/22/2003 |
Camera Modes and Menus
Auto: The first setting on the Mode dial (after the Off position), this
mode sets up the camera to capture still images. The camera automatically determines
aperture and shutter speed, as well as white balance, color, metering, and ISO.
It also controls the Digital Subject Program mode, unless you specify a scene.
The settings menu offers the following adjustment options (sorry, no screenshot
of this menu):
- Drive Mode: Lets you select Single, Self-Timer / Remote Control, Continuous Advance, UHS Continuous Advance, or Bracketing drive modes.
- Image Size: Sets the image resolution to 2,560 x 1,920, 2,048 x 1,536, 1,600 x 1,200, or 640 x 480 pixels.
- Quality:Determines the amount of image compression used when saving images to the camera's memory card. Options are Superfine (uncompressed), Fine, Standard, or Economy.
- Digital Zoom: Turns the 4x digital zoom function on or off. (When enabled, the digital zoom activates automatically at the end of the optical zoom range.)
- Date Imprint: Imprints the date and time on the image.
Manual: Enables still image capture, with more exposure options than Auto.
Pressing the Menu button displays three screens of options.
Basic
- Exposure Mode: Sets the exposure control to Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, or Manual modes.
- Drive Mode: Puts the camera into Single, Self-Timer / Remote Control, Continuous Advance, UHS Continuous Advance, or Bracketing drive modes.
- Image Size: Sets the image resolution to 2,560 x 1,920, 2,048 x 1,536, 1,600 x 1,200, or 640 x 480 pixels.
- Quality: Determines the amount of image compression used when saving images to the camera's memory card. Options are Superfine (uncompressed), Fine, Standard, or Economy.
- White Balance: Adjusts the overall color balance of the image.
Choices are Auto, Preset (which includes Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent),
Custom (manual setting), and Custom Recall (recalls the previously set
manual white balance).
Custom
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- Focus Mode: Selects Single AF, Tracking AF, or Manual focusing modes.
- Full-time AF: Tells the camera to adjust focus all the time, or only when the Shutter button is halfway pressed.
- Flash Compensation: Adjusts flash power from -2 to +2 EV in one-third-step increments.
- Metering Mode: Selects either Multi-Segment (default), Center-Weighted, or Spot metering modes.
- Sensitivity: Adjusts the camera's sensitivity to ISO equivalents
of 64, 100, 200, or 400, or lets the camera adjust the ISO as required
by the shooting conditions (the Auto option).
Custom
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- Digital FX Control: Adjusts image attributes, including Color Mode, Sharpness, Contrast, and Saturation.
- Voice Memo: Turns the voice captioning option on or off.
- Date Imprint: Imprints the date and time on the image.
- Digital Zoom: Enables or disables the 2.5x digital zoom.
- Instant Playback: Activates the Instant Playback feature, which
displays the most recently captured image for either two or 10 seconds
after capture.
Playback Mode: Reviews all captured images and movies on the SD card. Users
can view a histogram of each image, enlarge images as much as 6x, or view several
images at a time in the nine-image index display mode. Pressing the Menu button
offers the following options:
Basic
- Delete: Erases the current frame, all frames, or marked frames from the memory card.
- Lock: Write-protects the current image, all images, or marked images on the memory card. Locked images cannot be manipulated or deleted, although they will be erased if the card is reformatted.
- Audio Caption: Records a short audio clip to accompany a previously-captured
still image.
Custom
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- Slide Show: Activates an automated slide show of all captured images.
- Playback: Specifies which frames (all or marked) to play back in the slide show.
- Duration: Designates the interval between each frame in the slide show. Choices range from one to 60 seconds in one-second increments.
- Repeat: Specifies whether the slide show repeats after the final
image is shown.
Custom
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- Print: Designates whether the current frame, all frames, or only marked frames will be printed.
- Index Print: Orders an index print of all images on the card.
- Copy: Lets you copy images from the current memory card to a second one, presumably for sharing with friends. Copies the images into the camera's internal memory, prompts you to change the memory card, and then writes them to the second card.
- Email Copy: Creates a smaller, 640 x 480-pixel copy of the selected
image, suitable for email. Email Copy files are only saved to the current
memory card.
Movie Mode: Indicated by the movie camera icon on the Mode dial, this mode
sets the camera for capturing moving images with sound. Maximum recording time
is approximately 20 minutes per movie at the smallest resolution. The following
basic menu options are available:
Image
Size: Sets the resolution to 320 x 240, or 160 x 120 pixels.
- White Balance: Adjusts the overall color balance of the image. Choices are Auto, Preset (which includes Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent), Custom (manual setting), and Custom Recall (recalls the previously set manual white balance).
- Movie Mode: Sets the Movie recording mode to Standard or
Night modes.
Audio Mode: Records as much as 30 minutes of continuous audio, with no image(s).
No settings menu is available.
Setup Mode: Displays the following Setup menu:
Basic
- LCD Brightness: Adjusts the overall LCD brightness level, with an adjustment bar at the top of the screen.
- Format: Formats the SD memory card, erasing all images.
- Power Save: Specifies the length of the period of inactivity before the camera goes to sleep. Choices are 1, 3, 5, or 10 minutes.
- Language: Sets the menu language to Japanese, English, German,
French, or Spanish.
Custom
1
- File # Memory: Turns the file numbering memory on or off. If on, the camera continuously numbers files, regardless of what SD card is in use. If off, the camera resets its file number counter whenever the SD memory card is changed.
- Folder Name: Designates whether the folder name is based on the date or the standard naming (An example of the latter: 100MLT08).
- Audio Signals: Controls the sound of audio signals that play when buttons are pressed. Option 1 plays a "mechanical" noise (taken from the Minolta CLE film camera), and Option 2 plays an "electrical" noise. There's also an Off setting.
- Shutter FX: Determines whether the shutter makes a noise when firing. Option1, Option 2, and Custom settings are available, with the same sounds as in the Audio Signals above, or the sound can be turned off. A Custom Record option lets you record your own sound.
- Volume: Adjusts the volume of camera sounds as well as audio
playback.
Custom
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- Reset Default: Resets all camera settings to their defaults.
- Noise Reduction: Turns Noise Reduction on or off. If on, Noise Reduction activates for exposures one second or longer, helping to reduce the "hot pixel" noise of long exposures and higher sensitivity settings.
- Date/Time Set: Sets the camera's internal clock and calendar.
- Date Format: Offers a selection of date formats.
- Video Output: Sets the video timing to NTSC or PAL.
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