Tips on xl2 and gl2
 

Hello, I just found this site, and I am needing a little help. I just moved from Iceland to the USA. I have been using xl2 and gl2 to record both church services and tv programs. I am always having a little hard time to let them mix together . I wondering if you can give some tips or point me to a place where I can find some deeper understanding how to set my camera like using gain ,shutter and the iris. I know how to change it but I dont have full understanding how it works. Thanks !!!

There's a great "feature tour" movie of the XL2 at Dv Creators.net:

http://dvcreators.net/canon-xl2/

Yes, thank you it is very good. I know how to function the camera and I have played with it a lot but still I need understanding on how much of gain or how much of iris with that much of a gain, just practical tips on how you set it up in good lighting and with diffrent lighting. I can always get a good picture but still I am not sure how to get them toogether unless spending a lot of time playing with them. I need more understanding on how gain, iris and shutter works .

Working with gain, iris, and shutter setting is a huge subject, meaning you can get all different kinds of opinions and suggestions. It really just comes down to practice. What we usually teach at camera orientation is:

Gain: Should be left at 0. Use gain only as a last resort. You are artificially bumping up the sensitivity of the camera, and this will introduce electronic "noise" into the image.

Shutter Speed/Iris: these work hand in hand. If you're trying to get a very shallow depth of field (so only the subject is in focus, objects in front and behind appear soft and out of focus) then you'll want to open the iris up as much as possible, then set the shutter speed to get proper exposure.

If there is motion in your image, or you are thinking of slowing down the footage in post, or if you intentionally want to blur objects, then you'll went to set the appropriate shutter speed, then set your iris for proper exposure. Fast shutter speeds produce clear images, even when objects are moving, but can start to look stuttery when the shutter speed gets really fast (like 1/2000th). Slow shutter speeds will make moving objects appear to blur. This really starts to show below 1/60th.

Hope this helps.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I've always understood the -3 gain setting on the XL2 to be "no gain" and the 0 gain setting to be "just a tiny bit of gain." Weird, I know...

Also, unless you want a more unique effect, the shutter speed should be 1/48 if you're shooting 24fps, 1/60 at 30pfs (interlaced or progressive).

thanks a lot , that has helped me a lot.

Really? Can you confirm this?

weird...

I never heard this before, but this is pretty obvious when you think about it. You can only adjust something from 0 and up. If 0 got some noise and -3 got no noise than it is pretty obvious that -3 is 0 and 0 is 3, because no noise got to be 0, if not Canon got some kind of standard noise that they think is “good noise” and put that as 0. If Canon got some kind of standard noise and than made XL2 with a better noise reducer but still want to keep the “standard noise” on one level. Cause if 0 would be no noise, what would -3 be? No noise but better? I don’t know but maybe that is some kind if digital enhancement of the picture in -3 that reduce image quality, but this is just something a grabbed out of air.
I just want to make clear that his is my reflection on what Dale Stolzfus wrote and I’m looking forward to get a ensure from some one that know more about this.

Markus Nord