Paul Lammertsma

I put together scans of the manual in a PDF, which you can find here: Canon 514 XLS manual

Great, thanks for the quick reply! I'll give it a shot as soon as I can go get some new batteries (I only have 4 left).

I, too, shoot many interviews and balancing on a white sheet is never a problem. It could indeed be some flaw in your particular camera. If it always seems to do this, take it to Canon for a look. Otherwise, try using a slightly magenta sheet to balance on. In some cases I use a 80a incandescent filter since these interviews occasionally are shot in pubs and cafes.

I have the European verson of the GL2, the XM2, which is identical with the exception that its PAL instead of NTSC. I can testify that I have never had the blinking eject tape. On several occasions I've been instructed to clean the heads, but this was my own doing by inserting several Sony tapes (also taking them out of a Sony camera and putting them in the GL2), which is a big no-no. The GL2 went along for a documentary to Hawaii and was in some cases in some pretty wild environments. No problems -- none at all. As tornsprocket says, the image stabilizer is exceptional I haven't seen anything remotely as good before or since. It supports 16:9 which was one of the many reasons I went for it. I have a few grievances, but only minor ones. The foremost is the incredibly slow zoom, especially in tele. The far zoom (say at the max of 20x) has visible vingetting. Focus under low light is disappointing, though I wouldn't go as far as to say it's bad (then again, if there's that little light you'll have a bad picture with noise anyhow). It doesn't have 24p, but it allows you to shoot frame 30i, if that's any compromise. I don't suggest you look into 24p since you're bound to pay $1000 more for a camera in that league. Unless you can cough up the dough, of course. ;) This is a real feel-good camera and you'll love it in the first few moments. Learn to use just a handfull of it's features and you're well on your way to make good DV-quality productions. The price is good at the moment, and although I have no experience with other camera's in this particular price range, I'd say: Go for it.

I know this is a bit of a shot in the dark, but I also know there are a lot of 514XL-S owners out there. A friend of mine gave me an old Canon 514XL-S and Yashica Super 60-E since she knows I'm into this sort of thing. The Yashica works like a charm, no complaints in that department. On the other hand, the Canon seems broken, but in a strange way. You'd kind-of expect these things to either work or do nothing at all. In this case, I popped in six charged NiMH penlites and turned the main switch to 'R'. Following the instruction manual I grabbed from the internet, I pressed the battery check button, but saw no LED indicator. The batteries, however, are charged. My immediate conclusion was that the camera is totalled, fried, no good. Looking through the viewfinder, however, I then suddenly noticed that the light meter was moving! From the 'OFF' position to 'R', the meter swings out to f4 or f4.5 and slowly drops down to steady out at about f2.5. It doesn't appear to really react to light, although it does move slightly to a higher or lower f-stop when aiming at a lighter or darker subject. Noteworthy is that the meter hops in a seemingly random direction the moment the shutter release is (half) pressed. There are otherwise no signs of life from this devine piece of equipment that undoubtedly had made some previous owner a very happy person. Well, until, of course, the moment it stopped working. It is also perhaps relevant to mention that the meter jumps back to f1.4 when the camera is switched off or if the 'battery check' button is pressed. I'm interested in restoring the camera if this is in any way possible. Any suggestions on where or how to get this repaired are welcome (although since I live in the Netherlands this could be somewhat difficult).

I'm not really into Super8, but I got two cameras via a friend. It concerns the Yashica Su 60-E and Canon 514XL-S. Unfortunately, the Canon doesn't seem to be functioning (the only thing that work is the lightmeter; sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't). The 60 E works like a charm, although I haven't gotten around to actually shooting any film. Heck, I wouldn't even know where to get Super8 film anywhere nearby. It seems seriously inferior to the Canon because it lacks sound, EE lock, accessory shoe, macro and single frame progress. On the other hand, it does have spotlight and backlight exposure compensation and a superoir f1.4 lens. Most noteworthy is that indeed, like Christopher said, the lens can be unscrewed, revealing the zoom gear within. I will post a photograph when I get around to it. I've blogged some photographs and other background information here, for those interested. Although I'm astounded that the 60 E is in near mint condition after all those years, I've heard that the zoom motor is extremely sensitive and suggest you use it with caution. For example, do not hold the zoom buttons in after the lens has stopped moving. I will post elsewhere about hopefully getting the 514XL-S working again.