The instantaneous flow characteristics of a round jet issuing normally into a crossflow has been studied using a flow visualization technique and particle image velocimetry. The effects of parameters such as jet inflow profile and turbulence intensity of the jet are evaluated for various Reynolds numbers in range between 735 and 3150, which are based on the crossflow velocity and jet-pipe diameter. The jet-to-crossflow velocity ratio is fixed at the value of 3.3. Instantaneous later tomographic images of the symmetry plane of the crossflow jet show that there exist very different natures in the flow structures of the near-field of the jet even though the velocity ratio is same. It is found that when the turbulence intensity of jet is elevated, the shear layer becomes much thicker due to the strong entrainment of the ambient fluid by turbulent interaction between the jet and crossflow. The detailed characteristics of instantaneous velocity and vorticity fields are presented to illustrate the effects of the above parameters on the vertical structures of the crossflow jet.