Canon Legria HF M31

Auto Mode (10.87)

Auto mode is called "Dual Shot" mode on the camcorder.

The Canon HF M31 has a dedicated auto mode called Dual Shot mode. This mode is activated by pushing the switch on the camcorder's right side towards the two green icons of a camera and a camcorder. In this mode stabilisation is activated and all of the camcorder's controls are set to automatic. You also can't get into the menu system when you're in Dual Shot mode, and tapping the LCD will activate the AF/AE tracking system on the camcorder.

Like all Canon camcorders, the HF M31 has two autofocus options: Normal and Instant AF. Normal AF is a gradual focus adjustment, and it is focuses with a similar speed to what we usually see on consumer camcorders. The Instant AF setting produces a more snap-like focus, which may be preferable to some users. Personally, we like the gradual transitions of Normal autofocus, but that's just our preference.

Exposure adjustments were occasionally jarring on the HF M31, particularly when we went from very bright to darker scenes. This wasn't a huge problem with the camcorder, however, as most of the time exposure was adjusted in a smooth, gradual manner. We were impressed with the HF M31's auto white balance system, as it appeared to function very well under all different kinds of lighting.

The AF/AE tracking feature on the HF M31 is exciting, of course, and it works just as well as it does on the HF S21. This is a new feature for Canon now that the company has implemented touch-screens on its mid-range and high-end HD camcorders. Panasonic has a similar tracking feature on its HD camcorders as well. We also like the touch focus and touch exposure options available with the touch-screen interface.

We should say that the Smart Auto feature, which automatically picks a scene mode for the camcorder to shoot in based on lighting conditions, wasn't all that impressive. The camcorder occasionally shifted scene modes too often and created some unwanted changes to the light levels and quality of recording. We think its best to pick your own scene mode to record in if you can.

	Canon HF M31	Panasonic HDC-HS60	JVC GZ-HD620	Canon HF S21
Dedicated Auto Mode	Yes (Dual Shot mode)	Yes	Yes	Yes (Dual Shot mode)
Auto Focus	Normal/Instant AF	Normal AF	Normal AF	Normal/Instant AF
Spot/Touch Focus	Yes	No	No	Yes
AF/AE Tracking	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Face Detection	Yes	Yes (with face recognition and name display)	Yes	Yes
Backlight Compensation	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Low Light Modes	Low Light scene mode	Colour Night Record	Night Eye Scene Mode	Low Light scene mode
Auto Slow Shutter	Yes	Yes	Yes (AGC auto)	Yes
Scene Modes	Portrait, Sports, Night Scene, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Low Light, Spotlight, Fireworks, Underwater, Surface	Sports, Portrait, Spotlight, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Fireworks, Scenery, Low Light, and Night Scenery	Night Eye, Night, Portrait, Sports, Snow, Spotlight	Portrait, Sports, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Night Scene, Low Light, Spotlight, Fireworks
Other Auto Controls	Smart Auto (scene selection)	Intelligent Scene Selection	Auto Record	Smart Auto (scene selection)

Zoom (7.0)

The default setting for the HF M31 is variable zoom speed control. This allows you to control how quickly the camcorder will zoom by simply applying more or less pressure on the top-mounted zoom toggle. You can also set the zoom toggle to one of three constant zoom speeds by going into the camcorder's menu.

The zoom toggle feels good and is easy to use.		The on-screen zoom buttons aren't that bad—and they allow for variable zoom speed control.

A secondary zoom control option is present on the camcorder's touch-screen (you must activate these touch-buttons by selecting zoom from the Function Menu). These buttons—unlike most secondary zoom controls—also allow for variable zoom speed control. If you touch the wider portion of the buttons you will zoom faster, while touching the thinner parts of the buttons will get you a slower zoom. You can also set these buttons to work at a constant zoom speed.

Zoom Ratio (5.29)

The HF M31 has a 15x optical zoom lens, which is the same amount of zoom that Canon offered on its HF20 last year. You can increase the zoom up to 60x or 300x using digital magnification, but we don't recommend doing so. Using digital zoom can severely degrade the image quality of your video.

Surprisingly, the HF M31 doesn't have an intelligent or advanced zoom feature that are popular options on camcorders from other manufacturers. These zoom options allow you to increase magnification without much loss in image quality (by taking advantage of unused pixels on the sensor to magnify the image).

Zoom Comparisons
Wide Angle	Mid Zoom	15x optical Zoom

Focus (5.0)

The HF M31 doesn't have a lens ring or focus dial, so you must use the touch-screen interface to set focus manually. You can do this by pressing two focus buttons (one for focusing more distant objects and the other for bringing the focus closer), or you can use the spot focus feature. Spot focus allows you to tap part of the LCD and the camcorder will bring that portion of the screen into focus. With the regular manual focus system you can turn a magnification focus assist feature on that digitally magnifies the image while you are setting the focus (this magnification won't be part of your recorded video).

Manual focus adjustment on the Canon HF M31

Manual Focus Comparisons
Canon HF M31 Control Type: touch-screen Focus Assist: magnification	Panasonic HDC-HS60 Control Type: touch-screen Focus Assist: peaking
JVC GZ-HD620 Control Type: Laser Touch Focus Assist: peaking	Canon HF S21 Control Type: dial, touch-screen Focus Assist: peaking, magnification

Exposure (8.5)

You can adjust exposure on the HF M31 manually using two different methods. First, there's the classic EV value adjustment that allows you to set the exposure levels from -3 to +3 (in 0.25 EV increments). You can also perform a "spot exposure" by tapping the portion of the screen that you wish to expose correctly. Both of these systems utilise the touch-screen interface, with the regular manual exposure requiring you to slide your finger along a scale to set a specific exposure value.

Exposure control on the Canon HF M31

Exposure Control Comparison Canon HF M31 -3 to +3 in 0.25 EV steps (25 increments overall) Panasonic HDC-HS60 -5 to +5 (11 increments) JVC GZ-HD620 -6 to +6 (13 steps overall) Canon HF S21 -11 to +11 (23 increments overall)

Aperture (6.5)

You can set the aperture on the HF M31 in aperture-priority mode (abbreviated as Av). With this mode activated, you may slide your finger along the bottom of the LCD to pick a specific f-stop—with the camcorder selecting a corresponding shutter speed automatically (so, it's not a full manual mode). The touch-sensitive dragging system is okay, but we found it difficult to select a specific aperture setting this way. You are stuck with using this set-up, however, as the HF M31 does not have a lens ring or control dial for making manual adjustments.

Aperture control on the Canon HF M31

Aperture Control Comparison Canon HF M31 Aperture Priority Mode: f/1.8, f/2, f/2.4, f/2.8, f/3.4, f/4, f/4.8, f/5.6, f/6.7, f/8 Panasonic HDC-HS60 Manual Aperture: f/1.8, f/2.0, f/2.4, f/2.8, f/3.3, f/4.0, f/4.8, f/5.6, f/6.8, f/8.0, f/9.6, f/11, f/14, f/16 JVC GZ-HD620 Manual Aperture: None Canon HF S21 Aperture Priority Mode: f/1.8, f/2.0, f/2.4, f/2.8, f/3.4, f/4.0, f/4.8, f/5.6, f/6.7, f/8.0

Shutter Speed (6.8)

Shutter speed can be set manually in the same way that aperture can: by using shutter priority mode (abbreviated as Tv). The camcorder has a good amount of shutter speed options, including three slow shutter speeds that are under 1/60 of a second. The interface for adjusting shutter speed is the same as aperture. You simply slide your finger along a scale at the bottom of the LCD. Note that the shutter speed options are slightly different when recording in PF25 mode instead of 50i.

Shutter speed control on the Canon HF M31

Shutter Speed Control Comparison Canon HF M31 Shutter Priority Mode: 1/2, 1/3, 1/6, 1/12, 1/25, 1/50, 1/120, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000 Panasonic HDC-HS60 Manual Shutter Speed: 1/25, 1/50, 1/100, 1/120, 1/180, 1/250, 1/350, 1/500, 1/750, 1/1000, 1/1500, 1/2000, 1/3000, 1/4000, 1/8000 JVC GZ-HD620 Shutter Priority Mode: 1/2, 1/3, 1/6, 1/12, 1/50, 1/120, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000 Canon HF S21 Shutter Priority Mode: 1/2, 1/3, 1/6, 1/12, 1/25, 1/50, 1/120, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000

White Balance (9.5)

The HF M31 has six white balance presets along with a manual white balance setting and an automatic option. Manual white balance is easy to set on the camcorder, but you do need to point the device at a white or neutral object first (like a blank sheet of paper). After you do that, you just press the "Set WB" button on the LCD and let the camcorder do the rest.

White Balance options on the Canon HF M31

White Balance Control Comparison Canon HF M31 Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Tungsten, Custom Panasonic HDC-HS60 Sunny, Cloudy, Indoor 1, Indoor 2, Manual, WB Adjust JVC GZ-HD620 Fine, Cloud, Halogen, Manual Canon HF S21 Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Custom

Gain (4.0)

While the HF M31 doesn't have full manual gain control, it does have an AGC Limiter option that allows you to set the maximum amount of gain the camcorder may use. This feature was previously found only on Canon's high-end HD models like the HF S21. You can set the AGC limit from 0dB to 24dB in 1dB steps, which is a generous range. The system for setting the gain limit is the same as aperture and shutter speed—you slide your finger along a touch-sensitive scale on the LCD.

The HF M31 has a new AGC limiter function, just like you see on Canon's flagship models.

Gain Control Comparison Canon HF M31 AGC Limit: 0dB to 24dB in 1dB increments Panasonic HDC-HS60 Only with aperture fully open: 0dB, 3dB, 6dB, 9dB, 12dB, 15dB, 18dB JVC GZ-HD620 AGC on/off Canon HF S21 AGC Limit can be set to: Auto, 0dB - 24dB in 1dB increments

Colour & Image Controls (9.0)

Colour/Image Control	Description
Cine Mode	Cine Mode is meant to produce a more film-like aesthetic by altering exposure and contrast levels on the camcorder. The mode can be used in conjunction with the HF M31's PF25 mode, or it can be used on its own.
Image Effects	The camcorder has four Image Effect presets: Vivid, Neutral, Low Sharpening, and Soft Skin Detail.
Custom Image Effects	You can also make a custom image effect by adjusting colour depth, sharpness, contrast, and brightness (with -1 to +1 incremental adjustment).
x.v. Colour	Allows you to record in the expanded xvYCC colour gamut. Only xvYCC-compatible televisions will be able to display the video with its expanded colours.

Other Manual Controls (1.0)

Most of the HF M31's other manual controls come in the form of audio features, which we discuss in a later section of this review (click here to jump to this part of the review). There is an on-screen marker option, however, which we talk about below.

Control	Description
On-screen Markers	Lines appear on-screen to help frame the image. They can be set to appear white or grey and they can be displayed in the form of a single line with a marker at centre, or as a grid of four intersecting lines.

Manual Controls Summary
Control	Canon HF M31	Panasonic HDC-HS60	JVC GZ-HD620	Canon HF S21
Focus	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Exposure	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Aperture	Aperture-priority	Yes	No	Aperture-priority
Shutter Speed	Shutter-priority	Yes	Shutter-priority	Shutter-priority
White Balance	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Gain	AGC Limiter	Yes (with aperture opened fully)	AGC on/off	AGC Limiter