PLEASE HELP! I'm stupid! at DVinfo.net

Alex Sprinkle · July 28th, 2006, 10:35 PM

I'll be honest, I have no idea what half of you guys are talking about half the time. I just love shooting, editing and the like. I'm working with a GL2, and an XL1s, but I have a problem.

When I take the XL off auto and put it to Tv (or Av, really), the color goes from vibrant to dull and cold. I've messed with the presets and I can't find a thing that brings it to as bright as the auto setting. I don't want to shoot on auto all the time. I bought this used, but marked as "A+" condition. It really works great, and I'm sure I'm just stupid (I've had no classes or anything, I just learn as I go / mess up). Please help!

HawkTeflon@hotmail.com

PS~~> Anyone in OKC want to spend some time teraching me some ins and outs? I'll buy you lunch!

Greg Boston · July 28th, 2006, 10:51 PM

Alex, when you leave the auto mode and go to manual or one of the semi-auto modes such as Av and Tv your camera is now paying attention to where you have the gain selector instead of selecting it for you. It's probably set to zero or -3 which is why you see the reduction. Mind you, this is a good thing. All that brightness you see in auto mode as the camera adds gain will add noise to your video. On this camera, only use gain above 0 when you absolutely have to. It's much better to add lighting to the room and open the aperture wide than going above zero. On outdoor shots, there is sufficient light to allow you to shoot ast -3 which will give an even cleaner picture.

Have fun,

-gb-

Alex Sprinkle · July 28th, 2006, 10:56 PM

When I do that, it still gives my blues a grey look, and my reds are washed. I know it's not HD, but shouldn't the colors be remotely close?

Greg Boston · July 28th, 2006, 11:07 PM

Video requires more light than what seems necessary to the naked eye. Try this, put the camera in Manual. You will then see a bar in the upper left of the vf. This is your exposure meter. Adjust shutter speed to 1/60 and open the aperture to try and get that indicator almost to center. Also, check to make sure the ND filter on the lens isn't turned on. That's the equivalent of sunglasses for your camera.

If you do all these and the meter is still pegged to the left, you really need more light. This is why video lamps tend to be 250, 500, 1000 watts or more. Outdoors in daytime, Mr. Sunshine gives you all the lighting you need.

Once you get the meter centered, hold a white card in front of the lens and do a manual white balance. Your colors should be natural and vibrant.

Another thing I just thought of, the XL1s has some picture adjustments within the menus. Put all those back to their default positions for now.

-gb-

Alex Sprinkle · July 29th, 2006, 06:22 PM

I realized I never turned on the Custom presets. I didn't know what that "on/off" button did. I really AM dumb, huh? My camera never came with instructions, so I do a lot of guesswork.

Do you know if there's a way to restore factory settings via menu? I don't want to go through all of the options and bring everything down. Ideas?

Mathieu Ghekiere · July 29th, 2006, 06:28 PM

Aren't the factory presets just all the parameters in the middle?
I don't know for sure, but I think for the most part, it's like that.

Best regards,

ps: I had problems with those custom presets too, in the beginning, so you're not the only one who made that mistake ;-)

Alex Sprinkle · July 29th, 2006, 10:24 PM

Yeah, you're right. I wish I could find someone willing to teach me the ins and outs of this. It's so weird going from a GL2 to an XL1s

Mathieu Ghekiere · July 30th, 2006, 02:33 AM

I think you can download the manual from the XL1s from this site, and if not, you could ask it around here.

Ben Milsom · August 2nd, 2006, 04:47 AM

Emailing you the manual now, hope it helps.

Alex Sprinkle · August 2nd, 2006, 04:27 PM

Yeah, I really appreciate it! Thanks so much!

July 28th, 2006, 10:35 PM	#1
Alex Sprinkle Major Player Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Moore, Oklahoma Posts: 408	PLEASE HELP! I'm stupid! I'll be honest, I have no idea what half of you guys are talking about half the time. I just love shooting, editing and the like. I'm working with a GL2, and an XL1s, but I have a problem. When I take the XL off auto and put it to Tv (or Av, really), the color goes from vibrant to dull and cold. I've messed with the presets and I can't find a thing that brings it to as bright as the auto setting. I don't want to shoot on auto all the time. I bought this used, but marked as "A+" condition. It really works great, and I'm sure I'm just stupid (I've had no classes or anything, I just learn as I go / mess up). Please help! HawkTeflon@hotmail.com PS~~> Anyone in OKC want to spend some time teraching me some ins and outs? I'll buy you lunch!

July 29th, 2006, 06:22 PM	#5
Alex Sprinkle Major Player Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Moore, Oklahoma Posts: 408	you'll laugh... I realized I never turned on the Custom presets. I didn't know what that "on/off" button did. I really AM dumb, huh? My camera never came with instructions, so I do a lot of guesswork. Do you know if there's a way to restore factory settings via menu? I don't want to go through all of the options and bring everything down. Ideas?

July 29th, 2006, 06:28 PM	#6
Mathieu Ghekiere Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Belgium Posts: 2,195	Aren't the factory presets just all the parameters in the middle? I don't know for sure, but I think for the most part, it's like that. Best regards, ps: I had problems with those custom presets too, in the beginning, so you're not the only one who made that mistake ;-) __________________ http://productionsofthe3rdkind.com http://pr3k.com

July 29th, 2006, 10:24 PM	#7
Alex Sprinkle Major Player Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Moore, Oklahoma Posts: 408	Good call Yeah, you're right. I wish I could find someone willing to teach me the ins and outs of this. It's so weird going from a GL2 to an XL1s

July 30th, 2006, 02:33 AM	#8
Mathieu Ghekiere Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Belgium Posts: 2,195	I think you can download the manual from the XL1s from this site, and if not, you could ask it around here. __________________ http://productionsofthe3rdkind.com http://pr3k.com

July 28th, 2006, 10:51 PM	#2
Greg Boston Wrangler Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: DFW area, TX Posts: 6,117 Images: 1	Alex, when you leave the auto mode and go to manual or one of the semi-auto modes such as Av and Tv your camera is now paying attention to where you have the gain selector instead of selecting it for you. It's probably set to zero or -3 which is why you see the reduction. Mind you, this is a good thing. All that brightness you see in auto mode as the camera adds gain will add noise to your video. On this camera, only use gain above 0 when you absolutely have to. It's much better to add lighting to the room and open the aperture wide than going above zero. On outdoor shots, there is sufficient light to allow you to shoot ast -3 which will give an even cleaner picture. Have fun, -gb-

July 28th, 2006, 10:56 PM	#3
Alex Sprinkle Major Player Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Moore, Oklahoma Posts: 408	When I do that, it still gives my blues a grey look, and my reds are washed. I know it's not HD, but shouldn't the colors be remotely close?

July 28th, 2006, 11:07 PM	#4
Greg Boston Wrangler Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: DFW area, TX Posts: 6,117 Images: 1	Video requires more light than what seems necessary to the naked eye. Try this, put the camera in Manual. You will then see a bar in the upper left of the vf. This is your exposure meter. Adjust shutter speed to 1/60 and open the aperture to try and get that indicator almost to center. Also, check to make sure the ND filter on the lens isn't turned on. That's the equivalent of sunglasses for your camera. If you do all these and the meter is still pegged to the left, you really need more light. This is why video lamps tend to be 250, 500, 1000 watts or more. Outdoors in daytime, Mr. Sunshine gives you all the lighting you need. Once you get the meter centered, hold a white card in front of the lens and do a manual white balance. Your colors should be natural and vibrant. Another thing I just thought of, the XL1s has some picture adjustments within the menus. Put all those back to their default positions for now. -gb-

August 2nd, 2006, 04:47 AM	#9
Ben Milsom New Boot Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: UK Posts: 8	Emailing you the manual now, hope it helps.

August 2nd, 2006, 04:27 PM	#10
Alex Sprinkle Major Player Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Moore, Oklahoma Posts: 408	Yeah, I really appreciate it! Thanks so much!