DVX100a or Canon XL2?

schmolze · February 10, 2005

Hi everyone.

I'd like to buy one of the two, but am not sure which one would be better for my needs.

Basically I want the best image quality, and the native 16:9 is a huge draw to the Canon.

I would probably never buy another lens if I bought the Canon. Is the stock lens as good as the DVX's Leica? Better?

My uses for it would be extreme low-budget film-making and hours of fun times.

I'm starting to feel that maybe the Canon is better, but I have no basis for that judgement.

Could anyone help me out with a decision?

Thank you all.

nchopp · February 10, 2005

Boy, if I had a dollar...

The thing that really bugs me about the XL2 is the same thing that really bugs me about the XL1 - it doesn't know what it is. Is it a shoulder camera? No, not really. It it a handheld? No, not really. It's quite possibly one of the most uncomfortable cameras to shoot handheld with since... well, uhh, I don't know. The back-mounted video cameras of the 70s. That doesn't matter if you're on sticks or flying it, but still.

If you don't think you be getting other lenses, that kind of kills one of the biggest advantages the XL2 has over the 100. I would at least consider getting the 14x manual, if you do go for the XL2. The standard lens is... well, decent. It's L glass, so it's not bad at all. I'd say it and the Leica are about on par, but I don't have anything to back that up with.

The 16x9 of the XL2 is definitely an advantage. It's a lot simpler than putting the adapter on the 100, then having to adapt the viewfinder, etc. Or using the rather crappy 16x9 on the 100. I've had pretty decent results from shooting 4x3 and then cropping\squeezing in post, but it's still a pain. Shooting 4x3 while composing for 16x9 is not my idea of a good time. ;-)

Personally, I prefer the 100. While I love Canon (all my still equipment is Canon, and I've got a pretty decent amount of Canon glass), I just really like the 100.

schmolze · February 10, 2005

thanks, man.

sort of surprising that, given the price difference, many people prefer the 100.

the canon stock lens, it can be used manually, right? good grief, i hope so.

when you say 14X manual, does that mean that it's ONLY manual?

also, my brother has a few really nice canon SLR lenses. would they fit on the XL2?

thanks again.

b

nchopp · February 10, 2005

thanks, man.
sort of surprising that, given the price difference, many people prefer the 100.

the canon stock lens, it can be used manually, right? good grief, i hope so.

when you say 14X manual, does that mean that it's ONLY manual?

also, my brother has a few really nice canon SLR lenses. would they fit on the XL2?

thanks again.

b

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It can manually focus, yes, but it's the standard servo crap. The 14x manual Canon is a much more of a professional lens. Only manual focus, iris, etc.

The XL2 WILL take Canon EOS lenses, if you pick up the EOS adapter. About 300, but if he's got good L glass, it'd be worth it. You can stick everything up to and including the Canon L 1200mm. The advantage of the EOS L glass is it's built for much higher resolution DV - it's meant to stand up to the 11mp Canon 1DS, so the XL2 doesn't quite out-res them. ;)

Lars.Erik · February 10, 2005

Hi there schmolze,

first of all, there are more cameras out there than the two you mentioned. I agree with nchopp, canon can't quite decide what kind of camera they've made. personally i don't like the small ones. but i can see their uses in some areas.

sony has a new one out, the hdv. they come in consumer and pro edition. the thing that bugs is the fact that you can't put new lenses on them. neither on the 100a, but you can on the canon. that's a plus.

but the resolution is higher on the sony. it has a 960x1080 matrix and each ccd is 1.12 megapixel. it alsi has 24p option.

the canon has in 16:9 (different ccd for 4:3 and 16:9) 960x480, each ccd 460,800 megapixels. the pal version has a bit higher res.

the 100a has the poorest resolution of the three. 410,000 pixels each on the ccd's.

personally i would go fo the sony, even though you can't change lenses on it, the res is good.

and i really don't like canon lenses. yes lot's do. but i don't.

usually go for fujis when i'm working.

good luck on your search. i would advise you to try and borrow some cams to do some test shooting with them all. it's a lot easier to make your mind up then. because there's a lot of people out there with different opinions. that's good. but their opinion, or mine for that sake, might not be right for you.