by Arthur Yeap

For more than four years, the Canon XL1 has been the premiere miniDV camera for many users. It could even be termed a "classic" since in this industry, four years for a product run is indeed commendable and a testament to good design. The XL1 has even been used to provide the news pool feeds at the September 11 site, shot numerous network news features and has even been aboard the shuttle missions.

Now, Canon has improved the XL1 and added new features to produce the new XL1S. Some of the most significant improvements are:

• Signal/Noise improved by 4 dB
• Sharpness, Color Saturation (Chroma) and Tint (Phase) user adjustable in 13 steps
• Black Level user adjustable upwards in 13 steps
• Three User Set-up Presets including White Balance
• Zebra Display (level selectable)
• Additional Gain Up of +18 db and +30 dB
• Safe Area Marks for 16:9 shooting
• SMPTE Color Bars (switchable)
• Time Code/Date/Time Recording
• Time Lapse Recording
• Anti-Flicker (no flicker or black-bar when shooting TV screens)
• Variable Zoom Speed
• Firewire AV/C Control
• Analog Video and Audio Inputs
• Video and Audio Insert with Audio Dubbing
• New 16x Lens with Zoom and Focus Rings

In total, Canon has added or improved 27 features, some of which are quite significant, as listed above. The external cosmetics remain virtually identical whereas the internal circuitry has been almost completely revised.

Lets go over some features of this improved veteran. The Canon starts as a 1/3-inch 3-CCD camera with "Pixel Shift" technology that makes the 270,000 pixels appear sharper than specs would convey. Audio can be recorded as two channels of 16 bits at 48 kHz or four channels of 12 bits at 32 kHz. Both SP and LP speeds can be used to record onto miniDV tapes. The new 16x zoom lens with image stabilization has "friendlier" control rings for zoom and focus. There is now a new "Menu Wheel" similar to those used in some cellular phones for selecting the different parameters, along with viewfinder prompts making adjustments much simpler and faster than before. The color LCD viewfinder remains, as well as the lightweight magnesium body that allows the same interchangeable lenses from both Canon and other vendors. Six types of Auto Exposure including Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, Spot and Full Auto are also now available.

Testing the XL1S was an easy task. Owning vintage Canon F1 and T90 camera systems, I felt right at home with this new camera. I had the opportunity to put the XL1S through its paces Christmas Eve for Midnight Mass at San Francisco's Grace Cathedral. This was a demanding situation with very "contrasty" lighting in a dark space with constant movement and zooming to follow the service. Shots ranged from tight close-ups of the pulpit 150 feet away, to wide shots that included the 100-foot-high vaulted ceilings and overflow crowd.

The camera performed exceptionally. Zooming was smooth, especially with the improved 16x lens, while the image stabilizer did not add any noticeable lag as the camera was panned. The Auto-Focus also tracked quite well, even when shooting low-contrast images such as dark clothing set against stone pillars. A little bit of "hunting" was observed at those extremes, but not much more than a manual operator finding the proper focus. Focus was also very accurate in that mode, so much so that I ended up with most of the shoot done with the Auto-Focus mode. With the 2x Digital Zoom engaged, there was some pixelization of the image. But where extreme "reach" was needed, it met the need.

I did most of the shoot at 0-dB gain due to the extreme contrast in wide shots (leading to white clipping), but in darker areas such as the rear of the church, ran at +6 dB. I also adjusted the Black Level to a more "normal" elevated level than the factory default to get better black detail. In the future, Canon might consider adding a menu to compress whites.

We ran external audio into the Line Inputs at 48 kHz sampling with the results being most satisfying; this particular to choir and organ produces tremendous dynamics. Playback was very stable, with good chroma response and very little red "blooming" using the S-VHS connection.

We made some measurements on the performance and found them quite impressive. Sensitivity came in at better than f8.0 at 2000 lux surprisingly good for a 1/3-inch block while Black measured at 0 IRE. Signal/Noise was better than 56 dB and resolution measured at over 550 lines. The biggest visible difference from the original XL1 is the improvement in Signal/Noise as well as the noticeable increase in sharpness. While the picture was sharp, the new design did not have the "contrasty" harshness of many other systems.

As one of the pioneers in bringing professional video quality and features into an affordable arena, Canon did an excellent job with the original XL1. With the XL1S, they have attentively listened to their satisfied customers and come out with an exceptional product that should bring them another generation of loyal professionals. Most churches will find this camera a fine unit to do field production, as well as for affordable fixed-installation usage that could be used with operators or on remote pan/tilt mounts. I have recommended it as such already with some budget-concious inquiries. In summary, this author is mightily impressed!

Arthur Yeap consults with Novo Group in San Francisco, and since 1975 has been with HP Television, HP Labs and an executive with several Silicon Valley startups. One of the invited participants to the original 1982 SMPTE Digital Standard Meetings, he has designed several production studios and enjoys assisting houses of worship and schools. Questions are welcome at artky@pacbell.net.