Spontaneous Cinema for Design Research CCA DESGN-614-03. Spring 2011

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Checklist One: Assembling the Video Production Kit
Media Center hours and policies are posted at technology.cca.edu/mediacenters/ For most purposes equipment checkout is limited to one-day sessions. Equipment checked out on Friday does not have to be returned until Monday. At other times Media Center staff require a letter from your professor or department head in order to grant an exception to this one-day limit. A typical field production kit should include:
! camcorder (Panasonic HDC-HS700P) ! 2 rechargeable lithium-ion camera batteries ! AC adapter and power cord ! DC cable
*IMPORTANT: The Media Center's standard video reservation kit includes a single battery, which is likely to be discharged when you receive it. Although one battery at a time may be charged inside the camera with the AC adapter, it is recommended that you also borrow an external charger and second battery for backup, and make a point to charge both batteries fully before your recording session.

! USB cable

The built-in mic is NOT a consistently reliable source for recording audio. It is recommended that you also check out the following:
! shotgun microphone (Audio Technica AT897 or AT8035, for example) ! foam windscreen for the microphone ! pistol grip, if available ! short mini stereo to female XLR cable with angled mini-jack ! male-female XLR cable, about 10 feet long ! headphones (Sony MDR-7506 recommended)
The kit will NOT include the manual or SDHC memory card. You SHOULD be recording to SDHC card rather than the cameras internal Hard Disk Drive (HDD). Additional items may be reserved from the Media Center as needed, subject to availability:
! SDHC card(16 or 32GB) ! HDC-HS700 Manual ! tripod: For video purposes always request a fluid head. ! additional XLR extension cables in various lengths ! Rycote heavy duty windscreen ! portable lighting kit
Media Center does not stock the following items, so you must furnish your own:
! AA battery for the microphone: Use a fresh one for each recording session; pack a spare. ! lens cleaning fluid, tissues, canned air, head cleaning tape, and gaffer tape ! a sturdy and comfortable bag or backpack

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Checklist Two: Preparations and Camera Setup
Panasonic HDC-HS700P operating manual is available for download on the class web page.
! Charge batteries early and thoroughly. Note that 60 minutes recording time requires 155 minutes of charging. ! Clean the lens gently with air or lens cleaner if necessary.
Before you do anything else, restore menu settings to factory defaults (p.50).

Press [MENU]

choose [SETUP]

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Choose [INITIAL SET]

Choose [YES]

! [CLOCK SET] [WORLD TIME] Set the date and time, if necessary (p.32, p.46).
Spontaneous Cinema for Design Research CCA DESGN-614-03. Spring 2011 In the camera's [MEDIA SELECT] menu ! Select a media for recording, either internal HDD or SD card (p.34).

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If you are recording to SDHC, its speed class must be 4 or higher, and its capacity must not exceed 32 GB (p.27). If you are recording to SDHC, read precautions for inserting and removing the card (p.28). In the camera's [SETUP] menu ! [FORMAT MEDIA] (p.51).
Spontaneous Cinema for Design Research CCA DESGN-614-03. Spring 2011 In the camera's [RECORD SETUP] menu ! [REC MODE] Choose a record mode (p.66). This setting is also available in the QUICK MENU (p.45).

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1080/60i HA is recommended for most purposes. Compared with HA the camera's default 1080/60i HG setting produces an image of inferior quality. Clips recorded with the special 1080/60p setting cannot be ported to a Mac! An external microphone will yield superior sound, and is recommended at all times. When you plug it into the microphone jack, the camera's built-in MIC is automatically disabled. ! [WIND NOISE CANCELER] ON, if using the camera's built-in microphone when recording outside (p.73).
! [MIC SETUP] if using the camera's built-in microphone, usually select STEREO (p.73). ! [MIC LEVEL] when recording with external microphone, you'll get best results with [SET+AGC] (p.74). ! [ZEBRA] ON provides a terrific visual tool for managing exposure (p.76).

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B e s t

B u t t o n s

Automatic or Manual? For maximum control and superior image quality, always choose MANUAL mode by pressing [iA/MANUAL] button or CAMERA FUNCTION button (p.82). *Note that many of the MENU controls are only available when MANUAL mode is selected.
The variables that you desire to INSIST on controlling manually are:
! [FOCUS] p.85. ! [WHITE BALANCE] p.83. ! [SHUTTER] p.84. ! [IRIS] p.84.
Press the [F] button on the lower left corner of the LCD to see these functions. Press the arrow on the right to see more.
! OIS (Optical Image Stabilization), ON for most purposes (p.56).

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More secrets
! Turn off [ALERT SOUND] (p.49) ! Turn off [RECORD LAMP] (p.49) ! Turn on [PRE-REC] (p.60) ! Turn off [ECONOMY] (p.47) ! Turn off [DEMO MODE] (p.52)