20x zoom lens -- various topics

[Jeff Miller]

That must be a Dvinfo first. :}

[Greg Boston]

Wow Kevin, that's a new one on me. By the way, is this a beetle of some type. I've heard there is some type of beetles that make a clicking sound. I would 'love' to know how that bug got in there. Ohhhh, I just thought of how...this has to be a Japanese beetle, they are yellow and black IIRC. Obviously it got in there when the lens was assembled. Maybe this is some sort of 'tracking bug' so they can find out where their cameras are being sold.

Sorry, I just couldn't resist. Please keep us posted as to what you find out on this issue.

-gb-

[Kevin Janisch]

Yes, I contacted Canon and they basically said to not be alarmed. I was told they have employed Banon Beetles to control the auto focus mechanism in the lens (20x only, sorry) and there was a dispute with the union, hence the walkout...

The issue has been resolved, all beetles have returned to work, but click to remind the user to put pressure on Canon for fair pay ;-)

Actually, I'm picturing a gremlin like the one or ones that took apart Bugs Bunny's airplane/bomber.

[Geoffrey Engelbrecht]

Has anyone else noticed that it is only the cameras in the US which click? Or at least whose owners are willing to own up to it in this forum.

Hmmmm. My XL2 remains firmly in Europe thank you! ;-)

[Mark Sasahara]

My 20x clicks. So far, so good. That's prosumer for ya.

I once had a spider make it's home inside my Nikon F3. Imagine my surprise when it appeared in the finder! The F3 is probably Nikon's worst camera, so that's par for the course. Luckily the camera belonged to the newspaper I worked for. I would never pay money for an F3. Yecchh.

That camera was such a piece of ****, I wanted to to just pound it it against the pavement until it was tiny bits of metal, plastic and glass. It never performed well and it synched at 1/90th of a second. What a piece of crap.

You may have had a Korean beetle, so that's a different union. Actually, I'm not sure that the Korean beetles are unionized.

[Harley Heffernan]

Hey all,

I've recently bought an XL2 and have only just used it for the second time. On my first shoot i didn't notice this problem but today while playing around in my yard i noticed that the lens is really noisy. By this i mean that when i have auto focus switched on all i can hear is your typical still camera auto focus sound clicking on and off. With the onboard mic switched on and using manual levels set to about halfway the sound is audible on the levels monitor.

Also when zooming in and out with the same audio levels I can hear a motorised sound through the mic. Yes these sounds are audible when played back on a television or even through headphones when recording. I'm wondering if this is normal as I feel it may be a problem when filming quiet scenes when i want ambient sound recorded using the onboard mic. Has anyone else had these problems or is the 20x lens just really noisy? As i may be sending the camera back to Canon.

Any help or advice would be really appreciated.
Kind Regards
Harley Heffernan

[Harley Heffernan]

Would someone owning an XL2 be able to tell me if this is normal and if it happens with their camera? If it's common and normal i won't worry too much. But if a lot of you guys with Xl2's dont have this problem i'll talk to Canon.

Hoping a few people can let me know what their cameras do.
Cheers.

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Harley,

Have you worked with an XL1s or XL1?

Zoom noise is normal on these cameras when using the on-board microphone.

This effect can be minimized with the Lightwave System's "System Isolator".

Whenever possible, I use an off-camera microphone, usually with a boom pole.

I have not heard, nor have I searched for, "Auto Focus" noise.

[Harley Heffernan]

Thanks for your reply Dan.

Yes i have been working with both the XL1 and Xl1s in the past. They were nowhere near as noisy as the XL2. Although i could hear their zooms i never had any problems with the onboard mic picking it up.

I too will be doing the majority of my shooting with wireless lapels and booms but at times may be covering events where i need to use the onboard mic.

The zoom noise i could probably live with but the auto focus noise will drive me crazy and even more so if the mic picks it up while recording.

I hope a few more people can tell me how their Xl2's act but by the sounds of it my lens may be faulty?

Cheers for your reply.

[Kevin Janisch]

I have actually found the zoom noise to be considerably lower with the XL2 than the XL1s. There is autofocus noise that I can hear when going handheld as the body is next to my ear, but it doesn't get picked up by the microphone. When I put it in manual focus, the noise stops.

Kevin

[Harley Heffernan]

Thanks for your input Kevin.

My XL2 also makes the noise when in auto focus and stops in manual, although i did a few tests today with audio levels and in a relatively noisy outdoor environment where i may need to record ambient sound (birds tweeting, lawn mowers etc) with the onboard mic and it was clearly picking up the auto focus and zoom noises. I'm guessing mine may be faulty as i never had any problems with the XL1s and everyone seems to think the XL2 is quieter. I'll talk to the store i bought the camera from and then to Canon.

Its not such a big drama as a lot of the time I'll be using external microphones but i have been doing a fair bit of sport/car racing filming lately and believe that the zoom and auto focus noises will make the onboard mic useless.

If any one else has had this issue let me know.

Thanks again.

[Lucinda Luvaas]

Hi There,

I assume that the 16x servo lens is better to purchase with the XL2? Is that true or not. I'm wondering if I should just go with the 20x lens that comes with the cam or get the 16x? Any advice?

Lucinda

[Chris Hurd]

If you do more handheld shooting, then stick with the 20x, as you will need its autofocus capability and image stabilisation. If you shoot primarily on a tripod, then the black 16x manual lens might be a better choice. Hope this helps,

[Mark Sasahara]

What will you be shooting? Documentary, film production style, hand held?

I shoot a lot of feature/short films, industrials and music videos on the 16x. I'm on a tripod/dolly most of the time. I like knowing what my focal length and distance are, so that I can repeat settings.