Basic Newbie manual?
 

I want to learn as much as possible about the XL1S and the manual is not really any kind of help.

There's a ton of info from the postings here but I was wondering if there was a site or a tutorial that started from the ground up (you know: "this is a camera..") and built on it?

I can do the basics with the camera and learn as much as possible from my DP while we're working but I can only bug him so much during a shoot before he will start asking for a raise. (G)

Thanks

The parent site of this forum, The XL1 Watchdog, is probably the best central resource for you. (http://www.dvinfo.net/xl1s.htm) There's no other book or site I know of that focuses as closely on this camera.

If there are specific questions that you have, just put together a list and post them. You will find some pretty bright minds here. I spent close to a year lurking around before I jumped into this place.

There is so much to take in, it can be a bit daunting. Welcome aboard and fire away with your questions.

Do you mean stuff about practical applications of it's use, rather than just basic camera functions?
A great general purpose book is Digital Videos For Dummies (not saying you are a Dummy!), and they actually use an XL1 in it as an example camera. It covers a lot of stuff beyond the use of cameras. It deals with lighting, sound and other aspects of production. (Yes I sat down and flipped through the whole thing in Chapters).
Of course, you may be beyond that level. For good practical info, you can't beat a course at a local school for hands on learnin'.