Sony DSC-F717 Review

Auto record mode screen with its associated onscreen icons. To left is the battery icon (full) along with a digital readout in minutes of remaining time. The green dot indicates a focus lock, below that is the flash icon. The image size (2560 x 1920) and quality (FINE) and the image folder (101). In the upper right is the Memory Stick icon that graphically shows how much space is left as well as showing the approximate number of pictures remaining (47.) The "flower" icon indicates macro focus mode, exposure compensation is 0.0EV and the shutter speed and aperture are shown because the shutter is half-pressed. The AF area is wide as indicated by the four green "[   ]" marks in the center. In the bottom left corner is the realtime histogram display.

Screen display in Program mode. Very much like Auto except you'll see a "P" below the battery icon and below the Memory Stick icon is the AF area selector icon. See the next frame for the possible AF area choices.

In the P, A, M, or S exposure mode you can manually control the auto focus area by pressing the Jog Dial, selecting the "[   ]" icon and then rotating the dial. Here's an animated view of all of the possible AF area selections (center wide, center narrow, right, left, upper, lower.)

Here's an animated look at the various screen displays when in Shutter speed priority, Aperture priority, Manual, Scene, Movie and Auto exposure modes.

When in full Manual mode you change both the shutter speed and aperture value while watching the "EV" readout which tells you if the selected combination is over or under exposed. You press the Jog Dial in and move it up or down to select the shutter speed or aperture and then change them.

Recording options (P/A/M/S modes):

• ISO   Auto or fixed at 100, 200, 400 or 800
• IMAGE SIZE  2560 x 1920, 2560 (3:2), 2048 x 1536, 1280 x 960 or 640 x 480
• PICTURE QUALITY  Fine or Standard
• REC MODE   Normal, Burst3, Exposure Bracketing, E-Mail, Voice or TIFF (when TIFF is selected the camera records a 2560x1920 TIFF image plus a JPEG in the currently selected image size)
• FLASH LEVEL   High, Low or Normal
• PICTURE EFFECT:   Negative art, Sepia or Solarize
• SHARPNESS   +2, +1, 0, -1, -2

SCeNe mode options:

• SCN   Scene mode: Night, Night Portrait, Landscape, Portrait
• IMAGE SIZE  2560 x 1920, 2560 (3:2), 2048 x 1536, 1280 x 960 or 640 x 480
• PICTURE QUALITY  Fine or Standard
• REC MODE   Normal, Burst3, Exposure Bracketing, E-Mail, Voice or TIFF (when TIFF is selected the camera records a 2560x1920 TIFF image plus a JPEG in the currently selected image size)
• FLASH LEVEL   High, Low or Normal
• PICTURE EFFECT:   Negative art, Sepia or Solarize
• SHARPNESS   +2, +1, 0, -1, -2

When using Manual Focus mode the LCD screen image is magnified 2x while you are turning the focus ring to make critical focusing easier. The focus distance is displayed next to the focus "finger" icon.

The F717 has a NightShot mode which is the same as the NightShot mode on Sony camcorders. There are two infrared illuminators mounted on the end of the lens that serve to "light up" your subject in total darkness (up to ~9 feet from the camera). The picture is captured as a green-tinted image as shown above, it is decidedly "hot" in the center due to aiming of the IR LEDs.

The NightFrame mode looks the same but it uses the infrared illuminators to let you frame your subject in total darkness, it then switches back to regular color mode just before capturing the photo. The popup flash is used to illuminate the subject.

The movie mode captures full motion video sequences with audio at 15 frames per second. The 320x240 HQX mode captures full-screen movies and the length is only limited by the available storage space. There are three different movie modes: 320x240 HQX, 320x240 and 160x120. The non-HQX movie clips play back in smaller windows on the LCD or TV screen. The optical and digital zoom can be used during movie recording.

Seconds of motion video storable on various Memory Sticks

Movie record mode options:

Image Size - 320x240HQX, 320x240, 160x120

Picture Effect - None, Negative Art, Sepia, Solarize

The Clip Motion mode lets you record animated 160x120 GIF files. You can capture up to 10 images that will be automatically merged into an animated GIF file. It's small and perfect for emailing to friends.

The MultiBurst mode lets you record sixteen frames at high speed. The capture rate is selectable for 7.5fps, 15fps or 30fps via the menu. These 320x240 images are merged into one 1280x960 finished image. When the image is played in-camera it is animated in sequence.