Canon XL2 MiniDV Camcorder, 20X Optical Zoom Lens, Advanced Optical Image Stabilizer, 1/3-Inch 3-CCD Widescreen with 24P Recording

Unsurpassed Image Quality... The Canon XL2. A powerful 20x professional fluorite lens. Access to a wealth of XL video lenses and to a world of Canon photographic lenses. A superior 3CCD progressive scan imaging system delivering outstanding picture quality, highly accurate color reproduction and a wide dynamic range. Selectable frame rates and independent manual controls to create your own cine look. Whatever you're shooting, from TV documentaries to Indies, the XL2 is ready.

16:9 Wide Aspect Ratio As the market shifts to home theatre systems that include widescreen TVs, demand is increasing for programs that deliver the full width of filmbased theatrical movies. Canon's XL2 delivers both the standard 4:3 aspect ratio for the common TV screen plus the popular 16:9 widescreen ratio.

Progressive Scan 3CCD System. The XL2 features a 3 CCD system with a separate progressive scan CCD (chargecoupled device) for each primary color red, green and blue). Each CCD contains 680,000 pixels. Together they deliver outstanding image quality, highly accurate color reproduction and a wide dynamic range.

The Canon XL2 Puts the control of your vision in your hands, where it belongs. You've got the power to manipulate the image just the way you want. Start with white balance, shutter speeds and aperture control. Create a cine look, with control of all the nuances, from gamma and knee to coring and hue. Adjust the setup level, skin detail and gain. The XL2 is designed to deliver creative image control when you want it, how you want it. The XL2: ready, willing and able.

With increasing emphasis placed on delivering the cine look to video, the XL2 offers you the ability to customize your video recordings using a number of variables, each one can be adjusted independently, giving precise control over the film-like appearence of your video.

Programmed Auto Exposure Modes provide automated, advanced recording settings for professional results in various shooting conditions. There are a variety of AE programs available: Auto, Shutter-Priority, Aperture- Priority, Full Manual, Spotlight, Low Light and Easy Recording.

Using AE Shift, you can add or subtract a bit of exposure, making slight adjustments to the image brightness to compensate for backlighting or for scenes that are being rendered slightly overexposed. With AE Lock, you can hold the exposure at a particular setting, preventing unplanned exposure changes with a moving subject, for instance.

The XL2 offers you Automatic White Balance (including a fully automated mode, an indoor mode and an outdoor mode), and manual white balancing. The camera also gives you the option of setting and saving up to three white balance presets that can be reused for non-sequential shooting.