JVC Everio GZ-HM400

Auto Mode (8.8)

Like all JVC models you can set the GZ-HM400 to be either in Auto mode or Manual mode. In Auto mode, the entire Manual Controls menu is unavailable, so you cannot make adjustments to aperture, shutter speed, exposure, or even choose a scene mode to shoot in. The cool thing about Manual mode is you can still pick and choose what controls you want to adjust manually when you are in the mode. This means, if you only want to turn manual focus on and leave everything else under auto control, you can.

The HM400's main auto controls aren't bad. Autofocus worked well, albeit sometimes it was slow when we moved from close-up shots to wide angle shooting. Still, the camcorder worked quickly with focusing most of the time, and it had no problem making an image crisp as long as it was at least 6.7mm away (the minimum focal length for the camcorder). The camcorder is also equipped with face detection and it works in both video and still image mode.

The auto exposure was even better. The camcorder worked quickly to provide accurate exposure levels and it did so with a smooth response system. The HM400 has a backlight compensation feature that can be turned on to help expose subjects with a strong light illuminating them from behind.

The camcorder's auto white balance was its weakest auto feature. Working with LED lights (used for our low light testing) the camcorder's auto white balance gave the image a cool, bluish tint. The HM400's white balance pre-sets worked a bit better than auto WB in many conditions.

Low Light Modes
The GZ-HM400 doesn't have any dedicated low light modes. It does have a few scene modes that are applicable for low light situations (Twilight and Night), but it doesn't offer a specific low light shooting mode. You can turn the camcorder's auto slow shutter on by setting the AGC to Auto. This allows the HM400 to drop to 1/30 of a second shutter speeds in low light situations. This slow shutter, however, does produce choppy footage and motion trails that may be undesirable.

Scene Modes
In Manual mode you can access a variety of scene modes on the GZ-HM400. The scene mode options include: Portrait, Landscape, Twilight, Night, Snow, Beach, Sports, Spotlight, Fireworks, and Sunset. Oddly, the JVC GZ-X900 had all these scene modes, but they could only be used in still image mode. We applaud JVC for making them available in both video mode and still image mode on the GZ-HM400.

Zoom (8.5)

The GZ-HM400 is equipped with a large, sturdy zoom rocker that is much larger than the traditional zoom controllers you see on most consumer camcorders. The rocker is not as large (or as precise) as what you'd get on a professional camcorder, but it still trumps the zoom toggles found on the rest of the high-end consumer market. The benefit of the rocker is that it allows you to control the tension of the zoom by using two fingers. One finger rests on the back of the rocker, while the other rests on the front—like a see-saw. This enables you to put a precise amount of pressure onto the rocker in order to establish the zoom speed you desire (the camcorder has variable zoom speed control based on how hard you push on the rocker). The only downside of the rocker is the fact that you have to use two fingers in order to maintain precise control over the zoom. Otherwise, JVC's rocker is one of the best zoom controllers we've seen on a consumer camcorder.

The zoom rocker is great for making precise, accurate zooms.

There is an alternate zoom method on the GZ-HM400 and it involves the Laser Touch strip. When you touch the top portion of the strip a 'T' and 'W' appear on the LCD screen. Touching the portion Laser strip next to these letters will zoom in and out. This zoom method can be frustrating to use and, compared to the zoom rocker, is terribly imprecise. We suggest sticking with the zoom rocker for all of your zooming needs.

Zoom Ratio (3.77)

The lens on the HM400 has a 10x optical zoom capability. The camcorder also has something called 'Dynamic zoom', which is capable of zooming up to 15x with no loss of image quality (according to JVC). Dynamic zoom takes advantage of the unused pixels on the camcorder's sensor in order to boost the zoom capability. Similar features are offered on numerous camcorders from other manufacturers.

If you do want to use a digital zoom, which does degrade image quality, the GZ-HM400 has options for 60x and 200x magnification.

Zoom Comparisons
Wide Angle	Mid Zoom	10x Zoom

Focus (8.0)

The adjustment dial makes accurate focus adjustments easy.

With the addition of its new adjustment dial, the GZ-HM400 is capable of far more precise control than any other consumer camcorder from JVC. To use the dial to adjust focus, all you have to do is flick down on the control switch located just behind the dial. Focus controls immediately appear on the LCD screen and you can rotate the dial to manipulate focus. A small icon of a mountain (far) and a person (close) are shown on the LCD so you know which way you are adjusting the focus.

You can still use the Laser Touch strip to adjust focus as well, but it is far more difficult and way less precise than the dial. To use the Laser Touch you simply slide your finger up or down on the strip to control focus. The camcorder has a focus assist feature called peaking that is quite helpful when using manual focus controls. Small, coloured flecks appear on the screen when the focus assist is engaged, and the coloured flecks become more abundant and clearer as the image comes more into focus. You can change the colour of the flecks between red, green, and blue, but you have to go into the camcorder's Basic Settings menu to do so. We're not sure why JVC hid this feature away like that—especially when considering the focus assist option is in an entirely different menu (Display Settings).

Exposure Controls

-6, to +6 in whole number increments

Aperture Controls

f/2.8, f/3.4, f/4, f/5.6

Shutter Speeds

In Shutter Priority mode: 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/80, 1/100, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000

White Balance Controls

Auto, Manual, Fine, Cloud, Halogen

Gain Controls

AGC on/off, ISO control in still image mode

Exposure (7.5)

Exposure can also be controlled using either the adjustment dial or the Laser Touch strip. You turn on exposure adjustment by flicking the control switch by the dial up (the same switch you flick down to start focus control). While scrolling with the dial, a bar display appears on the left side of the LCD that shows you how much of an adjustment you've made to the exposure. Again, using the Laser Touch to adjust exposure is imprecise and can be frustrating depending on your comfort level with the Laser Touch system.

Adjusting exposure

Exposure can be set from -6 to +6 in whole number increments (13 increments in total). The photometry area for determining auto exposure can be set to whole screen or spot (applicable in both video and still mode).

Aperture (5.0)

Aperture can only be controlled in aperture priority mode, which means you can manually set the aperture while the camcorder automatically adjusts the shutter speed accordingly. To adjust aperture, you press the small, round 'A' button near the back of the camcorder. This brings up an aperture display in the top left corner of the LCD. You can then use the dial or the Laser Touch strip to change the aperture settings. There are only four aperture options on the GZ-HM400, which is a rather paltry amount. The widest aperture that the lens can be set to is f/2.8.

The camcorder only has four aperture settings.

Shutter Speed (7.6)

Unlike its limited options for aperture control, the GZ-HM400 features a wide range of manual shutter speed settings (13 options overall). Shutter speed is controlled in the same manner as aperture—you press the small, round button with an 'S' on the back of the camcorder to enter shutter-priority mode, and you use the adjustment dial or Laser Touch to manipulate the setting. Also impressive are the numerous shutter speed options available that are slower than 1/60 of a second. These shutter speeds (which go as low as 1/2 of a second) produce motion trails, choppy footage, and can be fun to play around with if you're trying to capture a unique aesthetic.

There are 13 shutter speed settings overall.

White Balance (7.25)

The GZ-HM400 does have a manual white balance setting, but we found it didn't work all that well. In our low light testing with LED lights, the camcorder produced a slight cool, green hue on its footage (it wasn't as bad as the JVC GZ-X900, however). The manual white balance is also a bit confusing to set. You have to select the option from the menu, then hold down the OK button for a second or two until the camcorder registers a new white balance. The thing is, it is difficult to know whether you've held down the button for long enough or if you just accidentally tapped it for too short a time.

In bright light and outdoor light the manual white balance worked much better. In addition to manual, the camcorder has a few white balance resets: Fine, Cloud, and Halogen.

The manual white balance interface is a bit tricky.

Gain (2.0)

There's no direct gain control on the GZ-HM400, but the camcorder does allow you to turn auto gain boost on and off. Turning AGC off completely eliminates the electronic gain boost that aids the camcorder in low light situations. Even in moderately low light, like indoors under mixed lights, the image captured by the HM400 is incredibly dark without AGC. In low light you get absolutely no picture without AGC. We recommend keeping the gain always set to AGC, unless you are planning on shooting in bright light all day.

There's only a few consumer models out there that offer complete gain control. Panasonic's high-end models let you set gain, but only after the aperture has been opened completely, and the Canon HF S series (HF S100, S10, and S11) let you choose an AGC limit that the camcorder will not exceed.The GZ-HM400 does have ISO control, but only for photos in still mode.

Auto gain control (AGC) can be turned off.

Colour & Image Controls (4.0)

The GZ-HM400 has a new sharpness adjustment option, which was something not found on the GZ-X900. Examples of the sharpness control are shown below:

JVC GZ-HM400 Sharpness Controls 3000 lux at 100% Crop
Auto	Sharpness -5	Sharpness +5

The camcorder's other colour and image controls are listed below:

Colour/Image Control	Description
x.v. Colour	Enables the camcorder to record using the xvYCC expanded colour gamut. The larger colour gamut will only be noticeable when viewed on xvYCC-compatible televisions.
Sharpness	Sharpness can be set from -5 to +5. This is a new feature that is not found on other HD camcorders from JVC.
Tele Macro	Tele Macro allows you to take close up images that the camcorder normally wouldn't be able to focus on. This feature only works with still images—it makes no difference when shooting video (even though it can be turned on and off in video mode).

Other Manual Controls (3.5)

Control	Description
Grid	Divides the screen into nine sections by using two vertical and two horizontal lines. Grid is used to assist with framing and the lines will not appear in the recorded video.
Zebra	This feature displays striped patterns on overexposed portions of the screen. The sensitivity can be set to either 70% or 100%. This feature is commonly found on pro camcorders and is not present on the JVC GZ-X900.

JVC GZ-HM400 Comparisons
JVC GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-HS300	Canon HF S100