Sony A900 camera the Preparing

Checking the accessories supplied

The number in parentheses indicates the number of pieces.

•BC-VM10 Battery charger (1)/ Power cord (mains lead) (1)

•Rechargeable battery pack NP- FM500H (1)

•Wireless Remote Commander (Remote Commander) (1)

•Remote Commander clip (1)

•Shoulder strap (1)

•Body cap (1) (Attached on the camera)

•Accessory shoe cap (1) (Attached on the camera)

•Eyecup (1) (Attached on the camera)

•CD-ROM (Application Software for α camera) (1)

•Instruction Manual (This manual)

(1)

camera the Preparing

•USB cable (1)

•Video cable (1)

Contents

Preparing the camera Before your operation Shooting images Using the menu Viewing images on a computer WARNING For Customers in the U.S.A Use Installation Service CAUTION For Customers in the U.S.A. and Canada For the State of California, USA only For Customers in Europe Notice for customers in the United Kingdom Page Preparing the camera Before your operation Using the function on a computer Others Index camera the Preparing Charging the battery pack To use your camera abroad — Power sources Representative plug of power supply cord of countries/regions around the world Page Inserting the charged battery pack To check the remaining battery level What is an “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack Available battery packs The number of images that can be recorded –At an ambient temperature of 25°C (77°F) –The surrounding temperature is low –The camera has been turned on and off many times –Focus mode is set to AF-C(Continuous AF) Effective use of the battery pack Battery life 1 Remove the body cap from the camera and the rear cap from the lens 2 Mount the lens by aligning the orange index marks on the lens and camera To remove the lens 2 Replace the cap on the lens and attach the body cap to the camera Note on changing the lens If dust or debris lands on the image sensor 1 Open the memory card cover 2 Insert a memory card (not supplied) from the terminal part (the terminal side has a number of small holes) To remove the memory card To shoot using a “Memory Stick Duo” Notes on using memory cards Page Setting up the date Adjusting the diopter Attaching the shoulder strap Using the Remote Commander clip How to use the Remote Commander The names of the buttons To change the battery of the Remote Commander WARNING Page The number of images that can be recorded on a memory card “Memory Stick Duo” Cleaning the LCD monitor Cleaning the lens Cleaning the camera surface Cleaning the image sensor 6Use the blower to clean the image 7 Attach the lens and turn the camera off Front side Rear side Sides/Bottom LCD monitor (Recording information display) Press the DISP button to switch between the enlarged display and the detailed display When you rotate the camera to a vertical position, the display automatically rotates Page Display panel Viewfinder Camera shake warning indicator SteadyShot scale indicator Setting the the of approximately 2.5 to 4 increments of shutter speed The operation guide list Selecting the functions on the Quick Navi screen The “AUTO” mode allows you to easily shoot any subject under any conditions 1 Set the mode dial to 2 Hold the camera and look into the viewfinder images Shooting Page Shooting with Program auto Program Shift 1 Press the shutter button halfway down to adjust the focus Shooting with Aperture priority Shooting with Shutter speed priority Shooting with Manual exposure Shooting with BULB 4 Press and hold the shutter button for the duration of the shooting Selecting the focus mode (Auto focus) DMF (Direct Manual Focus) with [AF-Asetup] in the Recording menu (page 63) Focus indicator Subjects that may require special focusing: •A subject that is low in contrast, such as blue sky or a white wall •Two subjects at different distances overlapping in the AF area Selecting the focus area Shooting with focus-lock Shooting with Manual focus Shooting with Direct manual focus Switching the AF/MF easily 1 Remove the accessory shoe cap and attach the flash (not supplied) Selecting the flash mode Shooting with Slow Sync Shooting with High Speed Sync (HSS) Using a flash equipped with a flash sync terminal cord Selecting the Metering mode Compensating the exposure Shooting with fixed brightness (AE Lock) 2 Press the AEL button to lock the exposure To check the exposure of the image Hold down the AEL button and place the spot metering circle on the spot where the lighting is contrasted from the subject Adjusting the amount of flash light (Flash compensation) 2 Select the flash compensation item with v/V/b/B on the multi- selector 3 Select the desired compensation value with the front or rear control dial 1 Press the ISO button to display the ISO screen 2Select the desired value with v/V on the multi-selector You can adjust the range of [AUTO] with [ISO Auto Range] in the Auto/Preset white balance Setting the color temperature and a filter effect Custom white balance Select 5 Select a memory number with b/B, press the center of the multi-selector To call the custom white balance setting In step 3, select the desired number Using the D-RangeOptimizer Using the Creative Style To use image styles other than the default ones 1Select the style box for which you want to change the setting Image styles Parameters Shooting single shot Shooting continuously Using the self-timer Shooting with Exposure bracket In the default setting, the camera shoots in the order The example of the EV scale in bracket shooting Shooting with the white balance bracket Shooting with the DRO advanced bracket Shooting with the mirror lockup function Shooting with the Remote Commander 1 Focus on the subject and press the preview button 2 Release the preview button When you want to activate only the Optical preview function Set [Preview Function] to [Optical Preview] in the Custom menu (page 117) 1 Put the camera on the setting you want to register Items that can be registered To recall the saved settings Set the mode dial to the desired number position 1 Press the button 2Select an image with b/B on the multi-selector To return to the shooting mode To switch the recording data display Displaying the histogram Rotating an image Enlarging images Switching to the display of the image list Basic information display Histogram display Deleting the image that is currently displayed Deleting all the images in the folder Page 1 Turn off both your camera and the TV, and connect the camera to the TV 2 Turn on the TV and switch the input 3Turn on the camera, and press the To use your camera abroad On TV color systems Viewing images higher image quality Operating with the Remote Commander Recording menu (pages 107 to 115) menu the Using Page Image size Aspect ratio Quality D-RangeOptimizer Custom button Creative Style Color Space Flash mode Flash control Flash compens Exposure step AF-Asetup AF area Priority setup AF w/ shutter Long exp.NR High ISO NR Memory Rec mode reset Page AF/MF button AF/MF control AF drive speed AF area disp FocusHoldButton Auto review Preview Function AEL button Ctrl dial setup Dial exp.comp Ctrl dial lock Button ops Release w/oCard Rec.info.disp Exp.comp.set Bracket order Custom reset Delete Format Protect DPOF setup Date imprint Index print PlaybackDisplay Slide show Interval LCD brightness Info.disp.time Power save Video output HDMI output Language Date/Time setup Memory card File number Folder name Select folder New folder USB connection MassStrg.card Menu start Delete confirm Audio signals Cleaning mode AF Micro Adj amount Focusing Screen APS-Csize capt Reset default Custom menu Playback menu Setup menu Recommended computer environment Stage 1: Connecting the camera and your computer Stage 2: Copying images to a computer For Macintosh 2 Drag and drop the image files to the hard disk icon For Windows For Macintosh Deleting the USB connection xFor Windows xFor Macintosh Image file storage destinations and file names Copying images stored on a computer to a memory card and viewing the images ssss 2 Copy the image file to the memory card folder in the following order To utilize images recorded with the camera, the following software is provided: •Sony Picture Utility “PMB” (Picture Motion Browser) Recommended computer environment Display: 1024 × 768 dots or more Installing the software 3Remove the CD-ROMafter the installation is complete x Macintosh 2 Double-clickthe CD-ROMicon 3 Copy the [SIDS_INST.pkg] file in the [MAC] folder to the hard disk icon 4Double-clickthe [SIDS_INST.pkg] file in the copy-tofolder Using “Image Data Converter SR” Using “Image Data Lightbox SR” Using the “Remote Camera Control” 2 Connect the camera and your computer 3 Turn on the camera and the computer, then start the “Remote Camera Control.” To start up/exit “Remote Camera Control” Using “PMB” Stage 1: Setting the camera Stage 2: Connecting the camera to the printer Stage 3: Printing PictBridge menu Printing with the Remote Commander Page Camera BC-VM10Battery charger Rechargeable battery pack NP-FM500H Page Battery pack and power Shooting images Viewing images Deleting/Editing images Computers Remote Commander Printing PictBridge compliant printer Others The setting is reset without the resetting operation The camera does not work properly “--E-”is indicated on the lower-rightcorner of the LCD monitor If the following messages appear, follow the instructions For “InfoLITHIUM” battery only Set date and time Power insufficient No Memory Stick No Memory Stick inserted. Shutter is locked No CF card inserted. Shutter is locked Unable to display No lens attached. Shutter is locked Unable to print Cannot create more folders Printing canceled Unable to mark Printer error Printer busy On moisture condensation On carrying On operating temperatures On the internal rechargeable battery Notes on recording/playback Notes on handling the focusing screen Numerics 41 Microdrive Mirror lockup Number of recordable images 19 49 Remote Commander 114, 122