Mike Sauls

Thanks for the reply. I just finished my first wedding and it went off without a hitch. Learned allot. Just sent my XL1s back for a refund and the XL2 came in the mail the same day, four days late thanks to Ivan! I have footage from the XL1s and I will have to say that the XL2, set up in the dummy mode, has better looking video than the XL1s. The low light is better with less grain. Haven't worked with it much but plan on doing so later in the week. I'll make a post hear on my findings. In the long run I do agree with you about buying within your budget. Thankfully I did get a chance to use the XL1s for a week so I got pretty familiar with it. The XL2 is a much better camera. Many buttons and dials have be reworked and moved. Obviously Canon has been listening to the people that have been using the camera for the last 5 years. I plan on doing weddings and other video's so I should be able to play for this within the next few jobs. I would rather try not to fill my pockets with profit right now, instead put that money back into top notch equipment. Then I'll have the right gear to do a professional job. Thanks for your reply. m

Thanks a bunch, you can delete from your end. In my short time with the camera I have found that some of your setting are very close to mine, only you added a few things that I haven't thought about. All are great tips and it's obvious that you know what your talking about. It's funny that these custom settings are mostly geared to the fact that these camera's don't do good in low light. I have heard the the XL2 has better low light capabilities and it looks like mine will be hear this morning. I'll work with it as much as I can during the rehearsal tonight. You are right about working with a heavy camera. I have a bogen mono-pod that I have been using. We will see. Thanks for you invite with email. I'll post again, probably Sunday, after I've used it some. Thanks again for you help, it's invaluable.

Drew, thanks a bunch. Just the kind of info I'm looking for. I have already made a change. I should have the XL2 hear today or tomorrow. Can't tell right now because it's held up by the hurricane. I live just north of Gulfport about 30 miles and we had a near miss. Folks east of us are not so lucky. I agree with the Canon camera's. I have several and just think you can't go wrong. I agree with the XL1's lens. The video looks a little fuzzy to me. I have had it for almost a week and shot a bunch of side by side with the GL2. I like the GL2 footage better in most cases. I found that if you have good lighting that will help the XL1 and it will produce a nice picture. I have been playing around with the custom presets and found you can really get the picture out of whack real easy. I have my first wedding job starting Friday and I might have to video it with the XL1 not the 2. I won't have any special lighting and the camera will have the stock lens. I do have some tiffen lenses I can use. I'm scared that I haven't had enough experience with it so unless you can get me a magic bullet, I'll probably let the camera do most of the work with the exception of the focus. I'll probably shoot in Auto mode. Again, thanks for your reply. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Mike

OK folks, I know lots of people are looking at this post. Has anyone seen any XL2 footage that they have compared to the XL1s? Any thoughts will be welcome. mike

Thanks for the reply. Don't really have a show room anywhere around me. I hear you loud and clear about trying new cameras out. It is a great idea. A few things that I'm thinking about. I've been a Canon user for a number of years and have allot of extra stuff that will work with the XL1s I just bought, mostly batteries. I'm a die-hard Canon fan. Also have still camera's, scanners, printers and just don't have any trouble with any of them. Since I have already made a purchase for a long term investment, spending 3-5 thousand is not out of the question. Anything over that is! Don't think I don't like the XL1s, cause I really do. Besides being a sold camera it also looks like a pro camera. Don't take that the wrong way, there are plenty a great camera's out there and, I know, you can't judge a book by it's cover, but I think you know what I mean. Just wondering about what the "real world" video looks like comparing it and the XL2. There are a few post starting to show up on the net and I'm sure I'll find something juicy in the near future. I'll keep picking around to see what I can find. Worst case scenario, I call Dell and have them send me the XL2. If I decide to keep it I won't have to pay for it until January. Try it out and compare the two camera's side by side. Thanks for the info, it sounded solid to me. Mike

Hi all. I'm new to the forum and I would like to ask you guys and gals a few questions about the XL1s vs XL2. Hope I don't rave to much. I'm in the process of starting a small business taping weddings, "how to" video's, documentaries. I have my first wedding this coming weekend. Cross your fingers. The dilemma that I am in is this. I needed another camera, I've had a GL2 for over a year, and decided to purchase a little higher end setup. I got my XL1s several days ago. After using it some, I have found that the picture is pretty good. Not a quantum leap above the GL2 but noticeably better in my humble option. I have noticed that there are some post on the internet about the performance of the XL2 and it sounds promising so far. I got a great deal on the XL1s and it has a 4 year warranty. I have 3 more weeks before I can return it for a refund. Not sure if the extra $2000 is worth the XL2. I did allot of research before the purchase and I was aware of the, not so good eye piece, auto zoom hunting some and not so great low light capabilities (maybe). The weight and balance is not a factor. I do not have any plans to send video to broadcast TV. I just want a good sold camera. Sometimes the picture that you are looking at on the TV is very subjective. I think allot of people just want the video from their camera to look better and talk themselves into it. To be honest, I have a Sony TRV 50 "a single ccd camera" and it looks great! Bottom line is, what does the final product "looks like". Is the 24p or 30p worth that extra cash. The ccd's are about the same in both camera's and they both require 100 lux for proper filming. Sure would like to see some of that video on my HD TV. Just looking for a "no holes barred" assessment from the pros. I'm prepared to send this one back and put down another 2 grand but I won't like it. If I knew that the video quality of the XL2 was so much better than the XL1s, then that extra money might be well spent. Over all, I'm happy with the XL1s but I might find out some serious problems or come up with something I haven't though off after the return period. That would be a bummer!! Thanks for any help. Mike