Optura Xi various questions

Jeff Toogood · December 16th, 2004, 09:18 AM

What is the low-light capabilities like? I have read that it does not have manual gain control. That concerns me abit.

The GL2 is far from superior in low-light, but at least I can manage the gain.

Scott Brickert · December 17th, 2004, 08:39 PM

I have both a GL2 and an Xi for back-up/deck use. So far I've used them together for two outdoor weddings and one in a church with a fair amount of stained glass. I'm satisfied with the results.

The original idea was to set-up the Xi wide at the back for B-roll and back-up. Then I liked the images so well I created a low-end package featuring the Xi (www.wonderfulweddingvideos.com).

Since the GL2 is no real performer in low light, I wasn't concerned that the Xi was no better.

One major difference is the batteries on the GL2 last longer. A separate charger for the Xi would be helpful, but have not pursued it yet. The package I bought came with a cheap wide angle lense, which I've found works well.

Scott

Eric Drennan · January 23rd, 2005, 02:17 AM

I just bought a brand new Optura Xi, and I have to say I'm quite pleased with the picture quality. The question I have is about the low light performance. My outdoor footage looks great but when I'm indoors the video appears to smudge. It almost looks like video you'll see on a webcam. Even though there is enough light in the room there's still a slight blur.

I had to buy the clip-on light for my camera because without it my indoor video is almost worthless. I'm just wondering if my camera is defective, and if not, does anyone else see this as a problem. I am no newbie when it comes to video I just think the picture should be better. I'd rather see more grain in my video then a change in the shudder speed. I always have my camera setting on AV Mode because the others make the picture even worse.

With all that aside it's still a pretty good camera.

Chris Hurd · January 23rd, 2005, 12:44 PM

As far as Canon is concerned, high quality video and low light shooting are mutually exclusive terms. You can have one but not the other. Canon places a higher priority on the image quality and not so much on low light performance.

Try using the TV shooting mode. This way you can force the shutter speed you want, which will probably be 1/60. Then you can press the Exp. button to force exposure lock, and adjust the exposure level manually to suit your taste. I don't have an Xi handy to test myself, but this should work. Try it and see.

Michael Wisniewski · February 6th, 2005, 01:34 AM

Thanks to Kevin Sturges I managed to use up a whole day playing with the Vegas auto-levels plug-in and my Optura Xi. Click here to see some of the results.

Kevin A. Sturges · February 8th, 2005, 09:01 AM

Hey Michael,

Thanks for posting those. Very good stuff! Yeah, I wish I had more days to "waste" playing with all these options :)

Have you tried the "Smart Smoother" yet? It slows the rendering down pretty much, and it may not make a huge difference if you are seeing your video on an SD monitor, but, boy oh boy, on my HDTV, does it ever make the Xi's video look clean...

Earon Kavanagh · February 9th, 2005, 12:20 PM

Michael,
Great work with thge XI and Vegas. Very scientific presentation too.

Earon

Scott Brickert · February 14th, 2005, 09:22 PM

Wow, Michael,
thanks for the work. Very Helpful.

I overdrove Smart Smoother to get a sort of cartoon look, which I liked, but after crashing the first time, it did not render out as the preview showed.

Have a current project where I have to color balance between an Xi and a Sony. Maybe Auto Level will be a good tool. We'll soon see.

Kevin,
I've been debating between getting a calibrated NTSC monitor vs a 17-20" LCD HDTV/PC screen. Had some trouble with accurate coloring lately. What is your HDTV, have you calibrated it at all, and how is it connected to your PC, if at all?

Scott

Kevin A. Sturges · February 15th, 2005, 09:20 AM

Yes, I have my HDTV calibrated. There are DVD’s you can get that help with that. Otherwise, if you can control all the levels in a menu, just make sure everything is zeroed out. I have a 38” RCA CRT HDTV. It works great as a monitor for seeing my timeline in real-time. I use Vegas Video which allows me to send the video preview out through firewire. So, my computer is connected via the DV cable to my camcorder, and the camcorder is connected via SVideo to the HDTV. I would say this setup has made a 90 percent improvement in the quality of my work. It’s amazing what a difference a good monitor makes. I even shoot better now because of it, because I have gotten very sensitive to all the settings in the camera.

I think the auto level plugin would be perfect to help match shots between the two cameras - -especially if you can use it to balance out all the footage. Just be careful of that flickering effect when it sometimes gets tripped up on footage with changing light levels.

Scott Brickert · February 22nd, 2005, 07:41 PM

Anyone else experiencing trouble connecting to a computer using firewire. i would say 40% of the time I can't get WinXP to recognize the camera. "DV IN" shows up on the LCD, solid not flashing, but neither XP or Vegas 5 recognize it.

Scott

Michael Wisniewski · February 23rd, 2005, 01:01 AM

That is odd. XP Pro never fails to recognize any camcorders I fire up on the firewire connection. In fact it's notoriously stable in that respect, I always have to keep closing the extra copies of Vegas that keep opening whenever I turn on the camcorder. 80% of the time I'm using the Optura Xi.

Vegas VidCap gives me some disturbing error messages when I'm futzing around with a camcorder, but it always recovers quite nicely.

I'm using XP Pro with whatever the latest and greatest updates are + Vegas 5 version 5.0b

Kevin A. Sturges · February 24th, 2005, 09:15 AM

I just found the guy who created the fantastic Auto-Level plugin for Vegas. I wrote to him and let him know what a stir it’s caused in this forum. I asked him if it would be possible to add a “freeze values” function to it to eliminate the occasional flickering effect. He wrote back and said, yes, he’s been meaning to do that, but is very limited for time right now and doesn’t know when he’ll be able to get to it.

I asked him to please let me know when it’s been updated, and that I will definitely be sending him a donation for his great freeware programming.

Kevin

Andriy Zolotoiy · February 24th, 2005, 09:23 AM

XP always recognizes my Xi with action box pop-up. If I choose 'Capture using Vegas' from that box capture process fails on occasion. But if I close that box, open Vegas and start capture that always works.

Davis Lee · March 10th, 2005, 11:14 PM

Hi,

Im on a VERY limted budget and i was wondering if theres a good, solid, fluid head tripod for a cheap price that i could use with my Optura XI. Im also looking for a dolly to go with the tripod.

Michael Wisniewski · March 11th, 2005, 02:58 AM

Davis,

What's your budget?

December 16th, 2004, 09:18 AM	#31
Jeff Toogood Major Player Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: St.Thomas, Ontario, CANADA Posts: 428	What is the low-light capabilities like? I have read that it does not have manual gain control. That concerns me abit. The GL2 is far from superior in low-light, but at least I can manage the gain. __________________ Toogood Studios

January 23rd, 2005, 02:17 AM	#33
Eric Drennan Tourist Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Parker, AZ United States Posts: 1	Optura Xi Question I just bought a brand new Optura Xi, and I have to say I'm quite pleased with the picture quality. The question I have is about the low light performance. My outdoor footage looks great but when I'm indoors the video appears to smudge. It almost looks like video you'll see on a webcam. Even though there is enough light in the room there's still a slight blur. I had to buy the clip-on light for my camera because without it my indoor video is almost worthless. I'm just wondering if my camera is defective, and if not, does anyone else see this as a problem. I am no newbie when it comes to video I just think the picture should be better. I'd rather see more grain in my video then a change in the shudder speed. I always have my camera setting on AV Mode because the others make the picture even worse. With all that aside it's still a pretty good camera.

January 23rd, 2005, 12:44 PM	#34
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,368 Images: 513	As far as Canon is concerned, high quality video and low light shooting are mutually exclusive terms. You can have one but not the other. Canon places a higher priority on the image quality and not so much on low light performance. Try using the TV shooting mode. This way you can force the shutter speed you want, which will probably be 1/60. Then you can press the Exp. button to force exposure lock, and adjust the exposure level manually to suit your taste. I don't have an Xi handy to test myself, but this should work. Try it and see. __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

February 6th, 2005, 01:34 AM	#35
Michael Wisniewski Wrangler Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Makati, Metro Manila Posts: 2,706 Images: 32	Vegas Auto-Levels and the Optura Xi Thanks to Kevin Sturges I managed to use up a whole day playing with the Vegas auto-levels plug-in and my Optura Xi. Click here to see some of the results. __________________ "Ultimately, the most extraordinary thing, in a frame, is a human being." - Martin Scorsese

February 22nd, 2005, 07:41 PM	#40
Scott Brickert Major Player Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Crested Butte, CO Posts: 576	Xi-firewire hit or miss? Anyone else experiencing trouble connecting to a computer using firewire. i would say 40% of the time I can't get WinXP to recognize the camera. "DV IN" shows up on the LCD, solid not flashing, but neither XP or Vegas 5 recognize it. Scott

December 17th, 2004, 08:39 PM	#32
Scott Brickert Major Player Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Crested Butte, CO Posts: 576	I have both a GL2 and an Xi for back-up/deck use. So far I've used them together for two outdoor weddings and one in a church with a fair amount of stained glass. I'm satisfied with the results. The original idea was to set-up the Xi wide at the back for B-roll and back-up. Then I liked the images so well I created a low-end package featuring the Xi (www.wonderfulweddingvideos.com). Since the GL2 is no real performer in low light, I wasn't concerned that the Xi was no better. One major difference is the batteries on the GL2 last longer. A separate charger for the Xi would be helpful, but have not pursued it yet. The package I bought came with a cheap wide angle lense, which I've found works well. Scott

February 8th, 2005, 09:01 AM	#36
Kevin A. Sturges Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 167	Hey Michael, Thanks for posting those. Very good stuff! Yeah, I wish I had more days to "waste" playing with all these options :) Have you tried the "Smart Smoother" yet? It slows the rendering down pretty much, and it may not make a huge difference if you are seeing your video on an SD monitor, but, boy oh boy, on my HDTV, does it ever make the Xi's video look clean...

February 9th, 2005, 12:20 PM	#37
Earon Kavanagh Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 65	Michael, Great work with thge XI and Vegas. Very scientific presentation too. Earon

February 14th, 2005, 09:22 PM	#38
Scott Brickert Major Player Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Crested Butte, CO Posts: 576	Wow, Michael, thanks for the work. Very Helpful. I overdrove Smart Smoother to get a sort of cartoon look, which I liked, but after crashing the first time, it did not render out as the preview showed. Have a current project where I have to color balance between an Xi and a Sony. Maybe Auto Level will be a good tool. We'll soon see. Kevin, I've been debating between getting a calibrated NTSC monitor vs a 17-20" LCD HDTV/PC screen. Had some trouble with accurate coloring lately. What is your HDTV, have you calibrated it at all, and how is it connected to your PC, if at all? Scott

February 15th, 2005, 09:20 AM	#39
Kevin A. Sturges Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 167	Yes, I have my HDTV calibrated. There are DVD’s you can get that help with that. Otherwise, if you can control all the levels in a menu, just make sure everything is zeroed out. I have a 38” RCA CRT HDTV. It works great as a monitor for seeing my timeline in real-time. I use Vegas Video which allows me to send the video preview out through firewire. So, my computer is connected via the DV cable to my camcorder, and the camcorder is connected via SVideo to the HDTV. I would say this setup has made a 90 percent improvement in the quality of my work. It’s amazing what a difference a good monitor makes. I even shoot better now because of it, because I have gotten very sensitive to all the settings in the camera. I think the auto level plugin would be perfect to help match shots between the two cameras - -especially if you can use it to balance out all the footage. Just be careful of that flickering effect when it sometimes gets tripped up on footage with changing light levels.

February 23rd, 2005, 01:01 AM	#41
Michael Wisniewski Wrangler Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Makati, Metro Manila Posts: 2,706 Images: 32	That is odd. XP Pro never fails to recognize any camcorders I fire up on the firewire connection. In fact it's notoriously stable in that respect, I always have to keep closing the extra copies of Vegas that keep opening whenever I turn on the camcorder. 80% of the time I'm using the Optura Xi. Vegas VidCap gives me some disturbing error messages when I'm futzing around with a camcorder, but it always recovers quite nicely. I'm using XP Pro with whatever the latest and greatest updates are + Vegas 5 version 5.0b

February 24th, 2005, 09:15 AM	#42
Kevin A. Sturges Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 167	I just found the guy who created the fantastic Auto-Level plugin for Vegas. I wrote to him and let him know what a stir it’s caused in this forum. I asked him if it would be possible to add a “freeze values” function to it to eliminate the occasional flickering effect. He wrote back and said, yes, he’s been meaning to do that, but is very limited for time right now and doesn’t know when he’ll be able to get to it. I asked him to please let me know when it’s been updated, and that I will definitely be sending him a donation for his great freeware programming. Kevin

February 24th, 2005, 09:23 AM	#43
Andriy Zolotoiy New Boot Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Richmond Hill, Ontario, CA Posts: 19	XP always recognizes my Xi with action box pop-up. If I choose 'Capture using Vegas' from that box capture process fails on occasion. But if I close that box, open Vegas and start capture that always works.

March 10th, 2005, 11:14 PM	#44
Davis Lee Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 33	Tripod and a dolly for Optura XI Hi, Im on a VERY limted budget and i was wondering if theres a good, solid, fluid head tripod for a cheap price that i could use with my Optura XI. Im also looking for a dolly to go with the tripod.

March 11th, 2005, 02:58 AM	#45
Michael Wisniewski Wrangler Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Makati, Metro Manila Posts: 2,706 Images: 32	Davis, What's your budget?