Protective Filter on GL2
 

I notice on my GL2 that there is a piece of glass on the front that does not appear to be part of the actual lens itself. Is this a built in protective piece of glass? If it gets damaged is it expensive to replace?

I currently have a B&H UV filter on my GL2, but wonder about a couple of issues:

1. Because of the extreme depth of field, anything on the filter shows up in my video. This includes even microscopic pieces of dust if I am shooting toward the sun. I had to put a second filter ring with no glass in it on top of my UV filter to set the lens cap further away from the filter because the Canon lens cap is deep enough that it touches the filter and leaves smudges that show up.

2. Even though the B&W filter is a good quality filter, it is still another piece of glass that may degrade my picture quality.

The glass that comes on the camera is set back far enough that it avoids the lens cap smudge problem and a lot of the dust flair problem. If it is a protective piece that can reasonably be replaced I will probably take my filter off for much of my shooting.

Does anyone have info about this?

Thank you.

Hmm.. I never really noticed that peice of glass you are talking about. However, i do have the same UV filter you do and I tend to keep it on most of the time. But of course, all I am currently filming for right now is just my new skate video and I don't see much of a difference when the filter is on.

Zebra Stripes- How much is too much ?
 

Thanks from a brand new member ! I just got my Gl2 a few days ago and am still trying to figure everything out. I've searched this board for everything I can find about Zebra Stripe settings and experimented on my own a bit; at what point should I begin resetting my exposure to eliminate the stripe pattern because as soon as I get rid of it , my image looks really underexposed. I know from a long experience with using photoshop for my still work , that I can always tweak my image up a bit but it takes forever in rendering time in video work. How much striping is too much and when do you step in to decrease your exposure?

There is no pat answer to your question. The answer really depends on your subject and at what point you have your zebra's sensitivity set to (ex: 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 100%). Remember that the display is telling you which areas of your image have reached or exceeded the set percentage of overexposure. It's just another tool. Experiment at various settings with the type of shooting you do. Zebra usage for, say, action sports shooting will be different from dramatic shooting. Take notes while you are experimenting so that you can see what works for you. Just remember that 100% bars indicate a complete blow-out.

Also be sure to keep your eye on the general exposure indicator bar at the top of the display. It's telling you the overall level of your exposure.

See these thread for more information:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...threadid=13523
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...threadid=11017

"tape end" visible
 

When I export from FCP to make 2 hour VHS tape, I also grab the first hour back-up onto mini dv on my GL-2. I then go back and dub off the second hour on another tape later.

Problem is: when the GL-2 tape ends, it flashes "TAPE END" and this goes onto my VHS finished tape, right in the middle of the two hours. How can I stop this from happening.

Gl2 Video Or Book
 

IS THERE ANY GOOD VIDEO'S OR BOOKS OUT THERE THAT A PERSON COULD PICK UP THAT SHOW A NEWBIE HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF HIS CAMERA.
THANKS IN ADVANCE

You are not going to like this but you need to do it with the tape out of the camera at first. If the camera has no tape in it it will run as an A to D converter till you stop it. Then you can make your DV backup.

Too good to be true? *Crosses fingers*
 

Over the last few weeks I've been putting a heck of a lot of time into finding the "perfect" fisheye lens for my GL2. I wouldn't settle for anything less than 0.3x- which left me with two options. Settle for a... "less than perfect" quality Raynox MX3000/XM3000, or spend $700 on a Century Optics.
I was leaning towards the Raynox, just because I needed that fisheye effect I've missed ever so much (I sold my old camera and 37mm 0.42x fisheye to get some extra GL2 money) when I stumbled upon....

http://www.congiano.com/Photography/PoenixFisheye.htm

The $70 Phoenix 58mm 0.24x full fisheye lens. I thought that for $70, the quality of the lens was going to be complete crap, but much to my suprise, this thing packs a punch! The thing I was most suprised by was the fact that you could zoom in so there was no vignette, without any loss in quality! It almost seems too good to be true...

So I guess I'm asking you all- is there something I'm missing? Is there some sort of catch that little Jeremy is too thickheaded to see? Your comments are very much appreciated...

Match color for XL1
 

I'm using XL1 and XM2(GL2) together.
I always find that XL1 color is more warmer than XM2.
I know there is a custom key to adjust the color in XM2.
Can anyone tell me the custom key setting in XM2 to match the color with XL1?

Thanks.

So did you buy this and try it out?

3 Tapes? ;-)

Grazie

Newbie
 

Hi,

Just got my XM2, decided to purchase after reading a lot of the previous threads on this forum. Thanks for all the feedback to the questions regarding live gigs etc.

Looks a great Cam and I look forward to finding out all the features in time, you may see a lot more as I delve into the nitty gritty.

Welcome aboard Alan. I hope you enjoy your new camera and feel free to ask all the questions you want, thats what we're here for.

Thanks Adrian,

I am off out tonight to a pre-wedding meeting so will use the XM2 and accessories to record. Will then review/edit in Edition5.5 tomorrow, stand by for the questions.

idea
 

if i stop the first tape before it gets to the end, and can fit on two tapes, that is what i will do, or just hook up to my xl1s, that one doesn't do it

thanx all

Water Proof
 

I will be shooting from a small boat and it will be easy for me and the camera (GL1) to get wet. I was wondering if anyone had any ideas on how to keep the camera from getting wet. I was looking at the camera rain covers but was not sure if that would protect the camera if it were hit with alot of water at once. Anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks in advance

Dive shops usually have all kinds camera protection. The best protection from water is to shoot in the desert.

A Lowepro Dryzone 200 is an excellent bag for keeping the GL2 dry when not in use. However, if you are more concerned about the camera when you are shooting, I would get insurance! I was raised on a sailboat, and water can come from just about anywhere.

Nathan, problem there is that you got sand and wind! - Can't win eh? ;-)

Grazie

GL2 with rosco swatch book
 

Can anyone tell me how to use the rosco book,I am new to this obviously as you can tell.Any pointers would be appreciated.

This is one that can't be easily answered in a forum, as the uses of the rosco filter line are so broad. If you have a few hours, or days...you will be able to read about virtually every filter in rosco's line at their website

http://www.rosco.com/main.html

click on the guide to color filters which will give you a pdf that has a lot of quick data...although it is skewed more toward theatrical users....or...

click on the technotes section to be overwhelmed by the amount of information that they have made available to the industry about their products. Don't be too freaked out about what's there, most of us would never use even 10% of the filters that they offer, nor understand most of the data associated with it...the ones to be concerned with on a technical level are the light balancing filters CTO, CTB, FLD etc and the diffusion materials, these are the most standard materials that many photographers, cinematographers and grips can recite off the top of their heads...the bulk of the rest are primarily special effect color filters that....well...if its a red filter...it will make your light turn red...if its purple...it will make your light more purple....straw...straw...and so on.

Welcome to the world of light control....you'll never be satisfied with "natural" light again.

Barry

video book
 

I have quite a few books on videography, but I have to be honest in saying that none of them have been as good as the two instructional videos I ordered from www.elitevideo.com. They're titled Advanced Broadcasters Camera Techniques. Don't let broadcasters scare you, the techniques are good for broadcasters, videographers, and home movie makers.

As for the technical side, I would just use the Canon GL2 manual and ask lots of questions on this board. Read the manual from cover to cover and get to know your camera. It's too bad that Canon has not put a instuctional video for using their camera, but the manual is the next best thing in terms of the technical side.

Hope this helps.

Thanks Barry,
I will check this out.

DM-50 - Tinny sound??
 

Anybody else have the DM-50 and notice that the sound is really "tinny on it?? I just shot a live concert, there was plenty of bass coming through the bands speakers, I shot on the GL2 using the DM-50 in shotgun mode and the resulting sound was relly good, but there was almost no bass at all. It's not a big problem, I can fix it in post, but just wondering if anyone else has noticed this, also would it make a diffrence if I had shot it with one of the 2 stereo modes instead of shotgun??

Turning Off the GL2 Display While Recording
 

I'm going to be videotaping a holiday ball at a hotel in NY during the holidays. I'll be using my newly purchased GL2 to tape the event. My client wants to take a feed from my camera to a projector which will display the camera feed on two large screens at the front of the room. Is it possible to disable the various displays that are on the gl2 viewscreen so they are not projected. I was just editing a small segment on my computer using the gl2 firewire, and accidentally turned on camera rather than play/vcr. I was horrified to see the display from the camera on a tv I use to help me edit. I'd prefer not to have to purchase a video monitor to loop out of since I've already spent a good deal of money on the camera, tripod, and final cut pro editing software. I hope I'm missing pushing a certain menu to disable the display since the camera is new to me.
Thanks

synch more than 2 GL2's?
 

I have three GL2's for recording indoor music sessions. I can timesynch two of them using the DV CONTROL function (and then disconnect and move the 'slave' GL2 to a different point in the room--still filming, of course), so that the audio is in synch.

But how do I get a THIRD GL2 in synch with the first one? -- without STOPPING the 'master' (putting it out of synch with the FIRST slave)?

If i just plug the DV CONTROL cable into it (without STOP/START on the Master), nothing happens.

(1) if i plug it in and hit START REC on the slave, will it somehow 'get' the timesynch from the master?

(2) would a firewire (passive) hub work as a "splitter", so that i could hook both slaves up at the same time, and start them both with the same 'start' signal from the master?

(3) any OTHER/BETTER ways to do this?

Thanks

I'm not sure I'm following you... but...

In the System menu (I think) there is a TV Screen or something to that effect option. Turn this off and it will not display the viewfinder info on the remote screen.

I hook up an ext. monitor all the time. You can have the viewfinder data displayed on that monitor, or turn the data off with just a clean picture. Your choice with this option.

Read the manual.

Can't speak to the DM-50 specifically, but many moderate priced camcorder mics (e.g., MKE-300, Sony ECM-MS957) have bass roll-off that starts at around 200 Hz.

It's easiest to just do it in post if you have more than 2 cameras. Even easier if you are doing live concerts. Get all 3 cameras rolling, have the drummer hit the snare drum for you, or you can do it yourself with permission. You then have a point to line up all 3 tracks at the snare hit and with a few minor tweeks you should be OK.

If you do that type of recording more than once in a while you should invest in a 4 input switcher and mix it live. It will save all that syncing in post and cutting.

Ben Lynn

VL-3 with shotgun mike?
 

Hi All GL/XM2 users..

is there anyway to use the VL-3 light with a 3rd party shotgun mike on the camera? as a VL-3 needs the shoe ontop of the camera, how would I then be able to fix a shotgun mike then?

any advice?

ys

You would have to use a bracket, such as the Mini Rover to hold the mic.

Basson Steady Cam for GL2?
 

Hello, i'm looking at a steady cam for my GL2 and seem to have found one at a "decent" price:

http://www.bassonsteady.com.ar/shop/productos.asp?id=1

Anyone have experience or heard of the Basson Steady?

Thoughts?

TIA,

Joe

It's looking the deal, that's for sure. I can't remember someone
mentioning it here though. It is quite hefty in the price tag, but
then again, so are the glidecams...

white screen on LCD and viewfinder?!?
 

i dont know if anyones had this problem before or not but maybe 3 times out of 10 when i turn my gl2 on, the viewfinder is completely white... all the menu options and things you would expect to see on the screen are still there but there is no image. once i turn it off and turn it back on again the problem goes away... my only worry is that this might lead to a bigger problem in my camera, has anyone experienced this?

If it's still under warranty send it in. The performance you're describing is not normal.

the canon people were so cool about honoring my warranty despire the fact i had lost the receipt and the people i bought it from (bridgeview photo) are under fbi investigation for fraud and were impossible to contact for another receipt...
the way they handled everything makes me real happy to be a canon owner.

GL-1 vs GL-2 build quality
 

I just purchased in new GL-2 after owning a GL-1 which I purchased in 2000. The
new GL-2 seems like it is made a lot cheaper. First the body seems to be made of a cheaper material than the GL-1. It seems a lot lighter than the GL-1. The "wheels" especially the select and exposure wheels are a joke. Most of the important functions are now menu driven and dependant on this select wheel which requires a sharp finger nail or pen to push on the fly. The main power switch gives you the feel this camera may not even last a year even under gentle treament. The hot shoe has no cover exposing it to all problems. Even the Canon shoulder strap is crap compared to the GL-1 strap. I made sure I looked underneath to make sure the camera was even still produced in Japan. This thing has the look and feel of a product made in China. Canon should be ashamed at selling the GL-2 for GL-1 prices with the build quality drop off that has occured. I guess their service department needs more business which is engineered into this camera.

Well, I suppose to each his own (opinion).

I have owned both cameras and did not have any of the reactions that you expressed. (The straps have been identical in nearly every one of the 6 models of Canon video cameras I've owned.) None of the primary controls are difficult to use with some practice and familiarity. (None require a pen.)

But if you're that displeased why don't you just return it and get a different camera that feels better to you?