Original XL1s gripes solved on XL2 at DVinfo.net

Lawrence Stevens · October 10th, 2004, 05:49 PM

I know the camera is a big advance over the XL1s, however my 2 simplest gripes with the XL1s seem to have been fixed with the XL2 - however I have only just started using the XL2 today, so it is very early days

1 - The hunting autofocus problem on the xl1s seems to have been pretty much overcome. I didnt really have any problems when i was trying some filming inside a car this evening, while is was nearly pitch black (dark is always difficult for the auto focus to get its bearings) So thumbs up round 1

2 - The viewfinder I would say is now usable! My god, how did I ever get by with the xl1s viewfinder. Actually I shoot weddings, and had to use someone elses PD150 to shoot with, as the screen on the xl1s was so small you couldnt rely on what it was showing. Now the XL2 - it's very good. I will be able to use it to shoot weddings, and charge to hire it out instead of being provided with the PD150! Thumbs up round 2!

Also to add to the above note about the quality of the viewfinder. I posted a thread in this forum about how much/little the XL2 viewfinder overscans compared to the XL1s. The xl1s was APALLING, when you viewed the footage back on a standard TV, the frame was acres bigger! Equipment you thought you framed out is clearly in shot at the edge of frame,

The XL2 is much, much better. If anything it slightly underscanned when compared to my TV screen. The viewfinder is much more useful for framing accurately!

These to me were big deals/issues with the xl1s, and Canon has really pulled it off with the XL2. The low light performance is also very good - but most people know that.

Anyway, these are my initial, initial feelings towards my PAL XL2

Thanks Canon, I can now at last make money hiring my XL2 for weddings I shoot, instead of having to leave my XL1s investment at home and shoot on a PD150!

Lawrence

Greg Matty · October 10th, 2004, 08:03 PM

When using an 18% gray card or white t-shirt or white whatever to set the white balance, my XL-1 would always give an image that was very blue in color. I had some success with the 1/2 step warm card and using various strength blue gels in front of the lens while white balancing but it sure would be nice to not have to do that.

So, how would you rate the XL-2's white balance capabilities?

Greg

October 10th, 2004, 05:49 PM	#1
Lawrence Stevens Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: London, UK Posts: 67	Original XL1s gripes solved on XL2 I know the camera is a big advance over the XL1s, however my 2 simplest gripes with the XL1s seem to have been fixed with the XL2 - however I have only just started using the XL2 today, so it is very early days 1 - The hunting autofocus problem on the xl1s seems to have been pretty much overcome. I didnt really have any problems when i was trying some filming inside a car this evening, while is was nearly pitch black (dark is always difficult for the auto focus to get its bearings) So thumbs up round 1 2 - The viewfinder I would say is now usable! My god, how did I ever get by with the xl1s viewfinder. Actually I shoot weddings, and had to use someone elses PD150 to shoot with, as the screen on the xl1s was so small you couldnt rely on what it was showing. Now the XL2 - it's very good. I will be able to use it to shoot weddings, and charge to hire it out instead of being provided with the PD150! Thumbs up round 2! Also to add to the above note about the quality of the viewfinder. I posted a thread in this forum about how much/little the XL2 viewfinder overscans compared to the XL1s. The xl1s was APALLING, when you viewed the footage back on a standard TV, the frame was acres bigger! Equipment you thought you framed out is clearly in shot at the edge of frame, The XL2 is much, much better. If anything it slightly underscanned when compared to my TV screen. The viewfinder is much more useful for framing accurately! These to me were big deals/issues with the xl1s, and Canon has really pulled it off with the XL2. The low light performance is also very good - but most people know that. Anyway, these are my initial, initial feelings towards my PAL XL2 Thanks Canon, I can now at last make money hiring my XL2 for weddings I shoot, instead of having to leave my XL1s investment at home and shoot on a PD150! Lawrence __________________ Canon XL2 Vinten Vision 3 tripod Own Build High End PC with RT.X100

October 10th, 2004, 08:03 PM	#2
Greg Matty Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Kirkland, WA Posts: 177	How about white balance When using an 18% gray card or white t-shirt or white whatever to set the white balance, my XL-1 would always give an image that was very blue in color. I had some success with the 1/2 step warm card and using various strength blue gels in front of the lens while white balancing but it sure would be nice to not have to do that. So, how would you rate the XL-2's white balance capabilities? Greg