XL1 / XL1S various posts

Chet Hardin · May 2nd, 2002, 01:20 PM

Hello all!

I have been kicking around the idea of purchasing a new lens for my xl-1. I like the idea of getting a 3x wide angle lens or an adapter with the manual 16x.

But the idea of not being able to use filters with the 16x/wide angle adapter worries me. Is this true? Is there anyway around this?

I like the idea of the manual 16x with an adapter otherwise. It seems like more for your buck.

Ford Minton · May 2nd, 2002, 01:27 PM

thank you for info, will contact Canon and see what they can do.

Cheers-

Ken Tanaka · May 2nd, 2002, 01:28 PM

The 3x wide angle lens is a very handy tool which CAN accept filters. In fact, it has a 72mm thread which is the same diameter as that of the standard 16x auto lens. So you can interchange filters between the lenses.

All other factors being equal, given the choice between the 3x and the 16x manual lenses (assuming you already have a 16x auto lens) I would definitely choose the 3x lens first.

I can't speak for the wa adapter for the 16x lens. I can say that the Canon wa adapter for the GL1's lens does not accept a filter.

If you can swing it, I would highly recommend getting the 3x lens rather than a wa adapter.

Peter Sheppard · May 2nd, 2002, 05:13 PM

I`m quite happy with a new XL1s except when I crank up the dbs to 18....there is a lot of noise that looks like a very fine rain shower, making such footage useless for most commercial purposes...has anyone else found the same? No camera presets are being used(sharpness etc). I find that only up to db 6 can I rely one a clean image....so what is the use of the higher dbs feature on this unit versus the original XL1?

Chet Hardin · May 2nd, 2002, 08:47 PM

has anyone else in here ever experienced this:

(and i guess this might not exactly be an xl-1 issue but since i shoot with the xl-1 with the standard 16x lens)

but when i first got the camera i got a few filters to go with it... uv and warming. while i was playing around with footage i had shot i noticed something dark in the bottom left hand corner of the screen, what i thought looked like a hair. it drove me bonkers for a couple of hours cause as far as i could tell every part of the lens and camera were clean, until i realized i had put the warming filter on top of the uv filter. so i took both off and the dark "hair" was gone. so i was satisfied that i had just extended the rim of the filter into the cameras view...

but now while editing a short i shot with only one filter attached i think i am noticing the same thing. not near as pronounced as before but still on certain shots, ones with light, muted tones filling in the bottom of the screen i seem to be noticing what looks like shadows.

what could be causing this? is something inside my camera causing this or how the lens attaches or, in the lens?

Rob Lohman · May 3rd, 2002, 02:07 AM

Ofcourse this will happen. What you are doing is electronically
enhancing the signal. What you should be doing instead is to
give the chips a signal that does not need enhancing (open up
the lens, remove ND filter, lower the shutter or add more light).
A camera can not "magically" enhance the input it receives
without some down side. I always (at least try) to shoot at
preferably -3db and otherwise 0 db. The option exists for you
to rescue the shot if you truly have no other option. It is possible
to remove some noice in the post-process step but you'll never
get rid of them all without reducing quality.

Chris Hurd · May 3rd, 2002, 08:33 AM

This is quite normal for 18db gain, but what you must understand is that there are times when getting a noisy image is much, much better than getting no image at all. Look at all the reality shows on TV... Cops, etc. where there are grainy shots of the pursuit or whatever. Content is king. Content matters over all. And noisy, grainy content shot at 18db or higher will make money for you where no content at all doesn't mean a thing. Hope this helps,

Ford Minton · May 3rd, 2002, 03:23 PM

Looking for a good wireless video tap for use on my XL1. Any suggestions?
BTW- have looked at Super Circuits gear, but most of their units require you to have license to use it (legally that is).
Thx for any replies in advance.

Andrew Leigh · May 4th, 2002, 01:38 AM

Hi all,

what is more advantageous when recording a soundtrack?

To record on a standalone DAT / other machine (other that is to the primary camcorder).

To use a Radio mic into camcorder and have the audio with the video.

Regards
Andrew

Adrian Douglas · May 4th, 2002, 06:14 AM

Andrew,

Both methods have pro's and con's. In my opinion it depends entirely on the location/situation you are shooting and also your budget.

A cheap radio mic(VHF) can be affected by interference from lights, etc, but a good one(UHF) can cost $1000's. You can use a cheap recordable MD and get great audio but you've got more work in post syncing. Ideally I'd have both setups available. I've ben looking at DAT's lately. Here in Japan you can get some good Sony ones for <$500.

Chet Hardin · May 6th, 2002, 08:45 AM

the subject says it all...

are there wide angle adapters for the manual 16 that can be filtered? or, if i want to filter wide angle shots, do i have to go with the 3x?

thanks

Martin Munthe · May 6th, 2002, 08:52 AM

Check out: www.centuryoptics.com

Chet Hardin · May 6th, 2002, 09:28 AM

cool martin m, thanks!

Andrew Leigh · May 6th, 2002, 01:36 PM

Hi,

have just been rummaging through my old band gear and discovered my old EV PL80 mic. It is in pristine condition as I only used it for about 6 months. Nice surprise!!!

At the time it was a mid priced mic that was widely used here. Does anyone have experience of this on an XL-1 through the MA-100.

Regards
Andrew

Ryan Jilek · May 7th, 2002, 01:40 PM

I just have a quick question on anyone's experiences on getting rid of hum caused by connecting the XL1s to power through the AC adapter. I'm also tied into the house PA and somewhere in between I'm getting a pretty serious ground loop that gives me a ton of grief and noise!! If I run from batteries all is well but I have a couple of days worth of recording to do and this may pose itself to be a bit unpractical. I'm also using the high impedence input since that may make a difference.

I appreciate any help you all can provide.

Thanks!

May 2nd, 2002, 01:20 PM	#271
Chet Hardin Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Troy Ny Posts: 60	wa adapters Hello all! I have been kicking around the idea of purchasing a new lens for my xl-1. I like the idea of getting a 3x wide angle lens or an adapter with the manual 16x. But the idea of not being able to use filters with the 16x/wide angle adapter worries me. Is this true? Is there anyway around this? I like the idea of the manual 16x with an adapter otherwise. It seems like more for your buck.

May 2nd, 2002, 01:27 PM	#272
Ford Minton Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: San francisco Posts: 54	thx! thank you for info, will contact Canon and see what they can do. Cheers-

May 2nd, 2002, 01:28 PM	#273
Ken Tanaka Retired DV Info Net Almunus Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 6,943	The 3x wide angle lens is a very handy tool which CAN accept filters. In fact, it has a 72mm thread which is the same diameter as that of the standard 16x auto lens. So you can interchange filters between the lenses. All other factors being equal, given the choice between the 3x and the 16x manual lenses (assuming you already have a 16x auto lens) I would definitely choose the 3x lens first. I can't speak for the wa adapter for the 16x lens. I can say that the Canon wa adapter for the GL1's lens does not accept a filter. If you can swing it, I would highly recommend getting the 3x lens rather than a wa adapter. __________________ Lady X Films: A lady with a boring wardrobe...and a global mission. Hey, you don't have enough stuff! Buy with confidence from our sponsors. Hand-picked as the best in the business...Really! See some of my work one frame at a time: www.KenTanaka.com

May 2nd, 2002, 05:13 PM	#274
Peter Sheppard Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Barbados, West Indies. Posts: 30	noise on XL1s I`m quite happy with a new XL1s except when I crank up the dbs to 18....there is a lot of noise that looks like a very fine rain shower, making such footage useless for most commercial purposes...has anyone else found the same? No camera presets are being used(sharpness etc). I find that only up to db 6 can I rely one a clean image....so what is the use of the higher dbs feature on this unit versus the original XL1?

May 2nd, 2002, 08:47 PM	#275
Chet Hardin Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Troy Ny Posts: 60	dark corners on muted shots has anyone else in here ever experienced this: (and i guess this might not exactly be an xl-1 issue but since i shoot with the xl-1 with the standard 16x lens) but when i first got the camera i got a few filters to go with it... uv and warming. while i was playing around with footage i had shot i noticed something dark in the bottom left hand corner of the screen, what i thought looked like a hair. it drove me bonkers for a couple of hours cause as far as i could tell every part of the lens and camera were clean, until i realized i had put the warming filter on top of the uv filter. so i took both off and the dark "hair" was gone. so i was satisfied that i had just extended the rim of the filter into the cameras view... but now while editing a short i shot with only one filter attached i think i am noticing the same thing. not near as pronounced as before but still on certain shots, ones with light, muted tones filling in the bottom of the screen i seem to be noticing what looks like shadows. what could be causing this? is something inside my camera causing this or how the lens attaches or, in the lens?

May 3rd, 2002, 02:07 AM	#276
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	Ofcourse this will happen. What you are doing is electronically enhancing the signal. What you should be doing instead is to give the chips a signal that does not need enhancing (open up the lens, remove ND filter, lower the shutter or add more light). A camera can not "magically" enhance the input it receives without some down side. I always (at least try) to shoot at preferably -3db and otherwise 0 db. The option exists for you to rescue the shot if you truly have no other option. It is possible to remove some noice in the post-process step but you'll never get rid of them all without reducing quality. __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

May 3rd, 2002, 08:33 AM	#277
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,366 Images: 513	This is quite normal for 18db gain, but what you must understand is that there are times when getting a noisy image is much, much better than getting no image at all. Look at all the reality shows on TV... Cops, etc. where there are grainy shots of the pursuit or whatever. Content is king. Content matters over all. And noisy, grainy content shot at 18db or higher will make money for you where no content at all doesn't mean a thing. Hope this helps, __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

May 3rd, 2002, 03:23 PM	#278
Ford Minton Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: San francisco Posts: 54	Wireless video tap for the XL1? Looking for a good wireless video tap for use on my XL1. Any suggestions? BTW- have looked at Super Circuits gear, but most of their units require you to have license to use it (legally that is). Thx for any replies in advance. Last edited by Ford Minton; May 3rd, 2002 at 03:36 PM.

May 4th, 2002, 01:38 AM	#279
Andrew Leigh Major Player Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Johannesburg, South Africa Posts: 220	DAT vs. Radio Mic Hi all, what is more advantageous when recording a soundtrack? To record on a standalone DAT / other machine (other that is to the primary camcorder). To use a Radio mic into camcorder and have the audio with the video. Regards Andrew __________________ PAL XL-1, DV Raptor, Premiere TOTAL AMATEUR - DOING IT FOR THE FUN

May 4th, 2002, 06:14 AM	#280
Adrian Douglas Trustee Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Chigasaki, Japan. Posts: 1,660	Andrew, Both methods have pro's and con's. In my opinion it depends entirely on the location/situation you are shooting and also your budget. A cheap radio mic(VHF) can be affected by interference from lights, etc, but a good one(UHF) can cost $1000's. You can use a cheap recordable MD and get great audio but you've got more work in post syncing. Ideally I'd have both setups available. I've ben looking at DAT's lately. Here in Japan you can get some good Sony ones for <$500. __________________ Adrian DVInfo.net Search for quick answers Where to buy? From the best in the business...DVInfo.net sponsors

May 6th, 2002, 08:45 AM	#281
Chet Hardin Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Troy Ny Posts: 60	filtering Wide angle adapters the subject says it all... are there wide angle adapters for the manual 16 that can be filtered? or, if i want to filter wide angle shots, do i have to go with the 3x? thanks

May 6th, 2002, 08:52 AM	#282
Martin Munthe Major Player Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 331	Re: filtering Wide angle adapters Check out: www.centuryoptics.com __________________ Martin Munthe VFX Supervisor/DP/Director

May 6th, 2002, 09:28 AM	#283
Chet Hardin Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Troy Ny Posts: 60	cool martin m, thanks!

May 6th, 2002, 01:36 PM	#284
Andrew Leigh Major Player Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Johannesburg, South Africa Posts: 220	EV PL80 Microphone Hi, have just been rummaging through my old band gear and discovered my old EV PL80 mic. It is in pristine condition as I only used it for about 6 months. Nice surprise!!! At the time it was a mid priced mic that was widely used here. Does anyone have experience of this on an XL-1 through the MA-100. Regards Andrew __________________ PAL XL-1, DV Raptor, Premiere TOTAL AMATEUR - DOING IT FOR THE FUN

May 7th, 2002, 01:40 PM	#285
Ryan Jilek Tourist Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 4	How can I get rid of 60 Hz Hum on AC adapter? I just have a quick question on anyone's experiences on getting rid of hum caused by connecting the XL1s to power through the AC adapter. I'm also tied into the house PA and somewhere in between I'm getting a pretty serious ground loop that gives me a ton of grief and noise!! If I run from batteries all is well but I have a couple of days worth of recording to do and this may pose itself to be a bit unpractical. I'm also using the high impedence input since that may make a difference. I appreciate any help you all can provide. Thanks!