Canon XL1S Presets
 

Hello! I was wondering if someone wouldn't mind recommending some eginning presets to conduct basic tests with this camera.
I am a novice when it comes to using this camera.
Thanks!
Jean King

Hi Jean,

What type of things do you shoot? I change my settings depending on amount of light (low light reduce sharpness), contrast (low contrast, up black level) film look (might change color saturation). In some situations (run and gun) I set the levels etc. and leave them. If I'm doing an interview for a documentary I'll fiddle more with the settings. I went through this about a year ago when I got my XL1S and I arranged a small set like I would do an interview and started adjusting levels while the camera was plugged into a monitor. Then I went outside and did it all over. I spent a couple of days just playing with the camera until I felt I really knew it.

Jeff

Jean,
Taking time to experiment and evaluate your results on a (tv) monitor is really the best way to learn, as Jeff suggested. I experimented with various settings and made up paper "slates" noting those settings as I shot. The resulting tape became my reference standard to which I could refer in the future. (Actually, I put many of the shots onto a DVD for easier viewing.)

The key initial settings to investigate are:
- Gain: some like to set it to -3 for smoother blacks.
- Sharpness: some like to set it lower for a softer image, some set it higher to match the standard image on most prosumer Sony cams.
- Saturation: some turn the red down, feeling that Canon's standard image is a bit warm.

Have fun experimenting!

Re: Canon XL1 presets
 

Thanks for all you replied to my question about Canon presets. I will try those techniques when I rent the camera this weekend. One other question, to Jeff in particular -- how do I "up" the black level?

Howdy from Texas,

<< how do I "up" the black level? >>

That's under the Custom Preset menu. It's the fourth (last) one at the bottom of that menu page: it's called "set up." Hope this helps,