Called Canon tech support this morning and described the problem to them. They do say it's a hardware problem of some sort but didn't get more specific than that. They told me to send the camera in for servicing.

Will post back to this thread after I find out exactly what is causing this anomoly in case someone else ever has this problem.

Thanks for the help Jeff.

Viewfinder timecode
 

Hi, I've just taken delivery of a new XL1s and have noticed that there is no frame counter on the viewfinder timecode display, just minutes and seconds. Is this normal for the 1s? I cant find any reference to it in the manual.
Regards all.

I don't have my camera in front of me (loaned it to a few of my students) but that sounds right. In playback you might be able to display frames, I don't remember. The remote controls the TC display.

Audio VU in viewfinder??
 

I would have sworn there is a way to get the VU meter to show in the viewfinder of the xl-1s, but I cant find it anywhere in the manual.

Awfully annoying to have to pull your eye away to peek at the VU on top of the body. Is there someway to get it into the finder??

Thanks,

Eddie

Hi Eddie,

Unfortunately no, there's no way to get the meters in the EVF display like you can on the GL2. The meters can be read only in the LCD panel on the camera. Hopefully this will change on the XL2, whenever that is.

Yes, that is normal.

Broken color viewfinder at swivel point. Can Crazy Glue fix it?
 

Hi folks

Just came back from a full day wedding shoot (6:00 AM til 3:00 AM!!!). Right after the church, as I was packing my gear away, I noticed that my XL1 color viewfinder piece (the part rotates up an down) was dangling from the camera. Imagine the thud in my chest when I saw this!!!!

Quickly, I turned the camera back on and noticed that I was still getting an image in the viewfinder. I ran to the local grocery store (luckily there was one tight around the corner) and purchased some scotch tape and tape the viewfinder piece back on. I noticed that the part that swivels is made out of plastic!!! Can I use Crazt glue to glue the piece back on??

By the way, how much does it cost to replace this piece?

Gee, Canon should have made this piece more rugged!!!
Thanks

Canon has swivel replacement parts to fix the swivel. Cost should be less than $50 and it's a pretty easy job to do yourself.

cleaning my viewfinder.
 

I have an xl1s, I got it last thursday. For some reason, my viewfinder seems to have alot of specks on it. What is the best way to clean it?

It is quite easy to open once you fiddle through it once. I'm not
sure what to use. But a very soft brush or cloth might do the
trick. Make sure you aren't pressing too hard on the LCD screen!

Norman,

Don't feel too bad, apparently this happens pretty frequently.

We operate 6 XL-1 series cameras; four XL-1Ss and two XL-1s.

Although with our cameras it wasn't the swivel or pivot point that failed.

Of these six cameras, we have had to repair five of the eyepieces due to stripping of the screw wells or overall catastrophic failure of the same.

We all have our own personal shoot kits and I treat mine with kid gloves. Yes we do get into some tough situations but the gear is constantly and meticulously maintained.

I could not believe it when I went to pull my camera from its KATA bag and wound up with exactly the same dilema, a useless viewfinder. All of the screws that secure the eyepiece housing to the metal dovetail plate were loose and the plastic wells where they anchor were completely broken.

We were lucky in that we have two monochrome viewfinders that we used as replacments and actually the B&W viewfinders, although heavier, are much better for judging focus and contrast.

You would think that Canon would beef up their eyepieces by making the anchor points metal instead of the thin and delicate plastic that they are.

Be careful with krazy glue, the CYANOACRYLATE that the product is made from can fume and pemanently etch or haze your viewfinder element and/or viewfinder monitor. This is how hard-to-lift fingerprints are acquired, and for Pete's sake DO NOT use LocTite. The LocTite will completely dissolve the plastic, (repair #2 when we thought we had a great idea!)

I can't answer the $$$ question because, thankfully, we have an open repair contract with a local company.

RB

Hey, I busted mine twice, and, with super glue I was able to "fix" it untlil the next time I sent it in for cleaning. But, be careful that you glue only the swivel, hold it dowd with rubberbands till you get the feeling of where to glue, then, glue it and use the rubberbands to hold it in place. When you carry the xl-1 or 1s with the sholder strap,,,ALWAYS turn the view finder forward, this keeps it from hitting your hip. And, when I travel overseas, or Stateside, I always carry glue and rubberbands. Also, whenever I travey, I always take the viewfinder off the Canon and stow it on the inside of the case, it only takes a minute to put it back on the camcorder, and remember, this is the most delicate part of the Canon XL. Been there, glued that......bob safay

Viewfinder
 

I am considering purchasing a XL1s but haven't had a chance to get my hands on one yet to check it out. Could someone answer this question for me? I cannot use my right eye and since the XL1s does not have a LCD panel; can you adjust the viewfinder to the opposite site of the camera so you can use your left eye? Or is there some other way to reasonable use it with your left eye when hand held.

I just purchased my xl1s today and although I can use both eyes I prefer to use my left. So I was glad to find out that the xl1s has a dial that connects to the viewfinder that allows you to push it far to the left, leaving you enough room for your eye. Then all you just need to do is rotate the eye rest to the left and your in business.

What John says.

It's nice to be able to switch eyes every half hour or so, on longer shoots.