JVC GY-HM150U

Viewfinder Microphone for background sound Lens Audio input for interview microphone (plug in the cable here) Right Side On/off Battery

Left Side 2 Video Card Slots Display Monitor Battery Viewfinder Audio inputs

 Always use SDHC cards (cards made for HD video)  Make sure it says “Class 10”  Don’t use cards from still cameras or phones (won’t work) The bigger this number, the more hours of video you can record

Open the display monitor Press down to open the video slot door Insert Video Cards into Slots A & B Insert the Video Cards

Insert Camera Battery (put into slot & slide to the left) Empty Battery inserted To remove the battery, push this button (above & to the right of the battery) & slide battery to the right

On/Off wheel is located on the right side of the camera. Push down on the wheel to turn on the camera. Push down on the wheel to turn on the camera. Turn on the Camera On position

Open the lens Cover Up for open Down for closed Your camera will tell you if the lens cover is closed. You’ll see a message in the viewfinder that says “check lens cover”

Menu Open the door to the display monitor Toggle Toggle moves up, down, right, and left Display monitor

Press the Menu button to access settings Press toggle button to change settings (toggle up or down) Press Menu button again to exit Menus Toggle Menu

Video for PC is.mp4 MP4  Use MP4 if you are editing on a PC Video for Mac is.mov Quicktime  Use Quicktime if you are editing on a MAC

Press the Menu button Press the toggle button (“Record settings is highlighted”) Press the toggle button again (“Record format” is highlighted) Press the toggle button again Toggle down to “File format” Press the toggle button Toggle up or down to choose MP4 or Quicktime. Press the toggle button. “Record Format” Toggle Menu

Press the Menu button Press the toggle button to get to “Record Format” menu Toggle down to “Camera Resolution” Press toggle button. Choose 1920 x 1080 Press toggle button “Camera resolution” *Always shoot at the highest resolution you can, you can always reduce the quality of your video (for youtube, etc), but you can never improve it once it’s been recorded.

System Definition: HD (MPEG2) File format: MP4 Camera Resolution: 1920 x 1080 Frame & Bit rate: 60HQ Aspect ratio: 16 x 9 16 x 9 4 x 3 Typical PC Setting

Press “Full Auto” button (recommended) and your camera will adjust all video settings

A word about light and white …. (or why to keep it simple and just use the “auto” setting) Your camera needs to “balance” the white under different lighting conditions to adjust its colors. Use the “AUTO” setting and the camera will do it for you. Many whites to serve you…. Daylight white is blueish Incandescent white is yellowish Florescent white is greenish

Neutral Density (ND) Filter “Sunglasses for your camera” ND Filter Slide toggle UP to turn on Use in very bright conditions: on sunny days when shooting snow, beaches, water at noon, etc. The ND knocks down the light level.

Stabilizer Turn on OIS button to reduce “shakiness” especially when using the camera without a tripod. OIS Button You’ll see this icon on the display screen

Audio The most CRITICAL Element in video production Good audio + bad video= creative fixes Bad audio + good video= Start over.

Plug the male cable connector into the female audio input on the camera

Plug the other connector into the lavalier microphone Turn on the microphone (top position)

To replace a lavalier mic battery (AA), push the button, then slide the top of the battery casing to open it. TIPS: Turn off the lavalier mic to save battery power. Always have a fresh extra AA battery in your audio case

Use a wind sock to reduce wind noise A mic clip is included in your audio case

Hide the mic wire under your interviewee’s shirt Sloppy—Imagine if his shirt was white! Nicely hidden

Headphone jack For best audio results, use headphones Headphones

Typical audio setting for shooting either background audio (Channel 1 mic on top of camera) Or Top mic AND lavalier mic plugged into Channel 2 Input 2 selected Audio input: MIC Audio select: AUTO If “Auto” is selected, these settings don’t matter

Using the Tripod

Tilt control (up & down ) Tighten to lock down camera. Loosen to allow fluid tilts Telescoping legs Pan Control (side to side) Knob to raise camera height Top of tripod with quick attach- mechanism in place

Flip tab to open pull down leg flip tab to close Raise or lower tripod legs

Mounting plate Bottom of camera Screw in mounting plate to bottom of camera Attaching the Camera to the Tripod

Top of Tripod Slide the camera (with the mounting plate on) into the quick attach slot Automatically grabs and locks the camera into place

To Release: While holding the handle of the camera with one hand, pull the gray tab on the quick attach slot with the other. The camera easily releases. Gray tab

Recording Record button Another Record button on top of camera Zoom buttons

Press Display button Check your settings The info is displayed OVER your video. It does NOT record this info onto your video!

Display Record settings “A” for automatic How much time is left on Card A & B “AF” for automatic focus OIS Icon (stabilizer is ON) Audio levels Battery (red means low) *Press display again to see more info. Keep pressing until the info is gone. I like to keep this particular menu screen ON to monitor audio.

TEST Record ten seconds of video with audio Press the “camera review” button Watch the video on the monitor and listen with headphones on Sound good? You’re ready to roll!

Troubleshooting No video? Is your lens cap open? Are your batteries dead? Are your video cards full? No audio? Are your cables connected? Are your inputs selected (ch. 2 in down position) Is your lavalier mic dead? Are your headphones malfunctioning?

Transferring video to Computer Push on card to remove it from the camera Insert card into a card reader Connect card reader to computer

Computer Removable disk Private JVC BPAV CLIPR You’ll see folders with numbers (these are the video clips you shot. Click on a folder. Each folder contains 5 files in various formats. Right click on the one that ends in.MP4 (or.mov if you shot in the Quicktime format for MAC) “Open with” your editing program Editing path to bring clips into your computer

The Internet is like a straw: Sending Text is like sipping water Sending Photos & Graphics is like sipping a milkshake. You have to work harder. Sending video is like sucking chunky stew. You need a wider straw (more band width) & a lot of patience.

Some final words about video… Video files are LARGE. A video project won’t fit on most flash drives. You need a portable hard drive of 150 GB or more. Video files are too large to e mail.