D600 external mic question

I have a D600. How do I tell if the external mic is being used/recognized? On my other camera I get a notification but on the D600 nothing seems to happen when I plug in the mic.

Thanks!

You will see the "levels" in live view. If they are moving with voice or other sounds, then your microphone is working. OR - try using headphones; if you can hear, then the microphone's working.

BTW: the levels DO matter, and are adjustable.

Thanks a lot! Levels show up whether the external mic is on or not.

I have figured it out. Once the external mic is plugged in, <L> and <R> icons appear under the levels display, reflecting stereo sound. I am used to far clearer indication on my Panasonic.

I am finding D600 to be an incredibly clumsy camera. I am in for a steep learning curve.

Maybe I am not used to it, but it seems all the buttons are on the wrong side. How do you guys press commonly used buttons like ISO and WB while supporting the lens with your right hand?! Am I missing something?

Yes, those buttons could be better located, and it'd be nice to have a dedicated focus button independent of the shutter release, especially with the tight grouping of the auto focus sensors.

These things are the subject of 1000's of posts, and there are work arounds. Do a search and see what others are doing: I am using the AE-AF button as my focus button so I can focus and recompose and for other reasons - I use the Auto - ISO function sometimes (but have to use the ISO button and command dial to "cycle" this off and on) - at times I re-program the depth of field button (on front of camera) or the function button (also on front) to do things I find awkward with the ISO and WB buttons (do a search to see how - or wade thru the manual - it's online).

You can save all this to U1 or U2, which is a wonderfully useful feature. As an example, I have U1 set to my flash settings with my "dumb down" focus settings so I can pass the camera to a person unfamiliar with D600 or use of separate focus buttons, and U2 is set for sunsets (I shoot lots of these). I use aperture priority and either manually set ISO or use Auto-ISO for most daylight shooting or interiors, manually setting WB at times depending on the light source(s).

I usually use the AF-C & single point with release "modes" and regardless of all these little work around problems think this the best camera I have owned or used, especially for my purposes. YMMV

Just start recording a video and let the autofocus work.
Then playback and if you hear no focusing noise external mic is up.