anyone know what the max reccommended operating temperature is for the XL2? i've had really nice mics crap out at around 110 degrees, but never a camera. and hip hip hooray i get to be shooting in death valley in a week and it would not be unusual for the temperature to be around 118 degrees farenheit this time of year. Is there any kind of cool suit one could rent?

-Jon

A cool suit for you or the camera, Jon? For both, I hope!

The batteries (the standard Canon ones) perform best under 104 degrees, but they don't become "dangerous" (explosive) until 140 degrees. Charging may be an issue, as the charger shuts itself off at 104 degrees (best performance for the charger is between 50 and 86 degrees). You might want to consider renting a professional battery solution such as an Anton/Bauer system, or IDX or Aspen or similar pro battery setup. I think you should bring your own shade, like an umbrella at least, in order to avoid having the camera sitting in direct sunlight out there for any length of time.

Or you can keep your batteries in a cooler (not ice but the blue freeze blocks).

Is there any kind of cool suit one could rent?

-Jon[/QUOTE]
Actually Jon there is a cool vest you can get. It was developed for construction workers, especially highway workers. I believe it is available from businesses that sell those supplies. Google "cool vest" and you will come up with several suppliers. It has been adopted by a lot of people who have to wear character costumes in theme parks.

interesting about the vest, i know they make full suits for endurance race car drivers that run coolant through a thin network of tubing, but they have the cooler mounted in the car and are plugged into it. but i was wondering if there was something like that, maybe in a blanket form or something (like the reverse of an electric heated blanket i guess) or some jacket setup for cameras like that.

i thought about trying to build one with the blue ice blocks but i was worried about condensation and anything that would absolutely block out condensation would block out the cold too i figured, interesting about the batteries though.

-Jon