Rated 
This is a great camera, especially if you are doin ...
20x zoom lens with great stabilizer, XLR inputs, full 16:9 aspect resolution, 24P, 30P, great control over image quality and tonal adjustments including skin detail
Front-heavy
Posted Jan 12, 2005 - This is a great camera, especially if you are doing sports or event videography. It's even better if you're doing mostly tripod-mounted work and you're not used to a heavier camera. However, this is not a good camera for family vacations or heavy heavy hand-held work if you are not used to the size and weight. What makes this camera stand apart from the other pro-sumer cameras is that it has a really really long 20X optical zoom lens with a great optical stabilizer. Another huge selling point is the full resolution 16:9 aspect ratio mode that allows you to record video in widescreen without losing any resolution as you typically would with most other camcorders. For filmmakers who are in love with 24-frames progressive scan mode (24P), this camera has it. Personally, I prefer 30P because most of my work is targeted for video output anyway. There are some who are enamored with 24-frames per second. Whatever your own opinion, the great thing is that this camera does both modes, so you can decide which mode you like. (And we don't have to debate which mode is better.) There are several custom presets that you can configure to adjust the image quality. You have many controls over the color matrix, knee, black, pedestal, sharpness, coring, and a lot of other stuff that most people don't know how to use. A nice feature is skin detail which actually tones down sharpness in color tones that you set, i.e. color tones that match people's skin tones. This is great for glamour or close-up shots, as it reduces the details in the skin so you don't see all the blemishes or pores. It makes the image more flattering. Another nice feature is the extensive audio controls section that gives you automatic or manual control over all 4 audio channels. The default mode is to only record 2 channels of audio. There are three custom white balance with two stanard indoor/outdoor settings. The custom settings are great if you're shooting and moving between different locations and need to quickly switch between settings. One note is that the image gets soft when you open up the iris much wider than f2.0-2.4. However, this is common with most lenses that wider apertures lower the sharpness or resolving power of the lens. Just keep this in mind because this camera can give you manual control over everything. There is also a fully-automatic mode if you don't trust yourself. Overall, this camcorder will produce great recorded video, and even fantastic video if you use it right.
97% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful , unhelpful, or inappropriate?
Comment about this review
Canon XL2
Comments - Post a comment