Canon GL1 Vs. Canon GL2
The professional and consumer video industries have a long history of separation--mainly because the price of professional video equipment has been much higher than consumer equipment. Then Canon released the GL1 and the GL2 MiniDV camcorders a few years later, and that began to change. These cameras gave the consumer videographers a glimpse of professional equipment and began to blur the line between the two industries. Both cameras are solid, but they are different.
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Canon GL1
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Canon broke technological ground with the release of the GL1 in 2000. This MiniDV camcorder has a 20x optical zoom, 100x digital zoom, 2.5-inch color LCD, records digital stills and comes with wireless remote and a battery pack.
GL1 Features
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Weighing only 2.8 lbs., the Canon GL1 was one of the catalysts that began to bring together the worlds of professional video equipment and consumer video equipment, according to Amazon.com. Many of its more professional features were borrowed from its big brother of sorts, the XL1, but the GL1 carries these features in an affordable, easy-to-transport camera. According to Amazon.com, this camera only costs just a bit more than a quality consumer camcorder, but produces a picture good enough to be used in a professional setting. The GL1 also has a quality built-in microphone with two pairs of pickups, recording audio in 16-bit mode on two channels on one track or in 12-bit mode on two channels on one track.
The GL1 also has different shooting modes. Normal movie mode is for shooting video footage; digital photo mode records a still image for six seconds onto the MiniDV tape, capturing audio as well. Frame movie mode records 30 stills per second but isn't used for shooting regular video; rather, it should be used as a continuous shooting mode.
The GL1 is hard to find brand new because it came out such a long time ago, but as of September 2009 you could find one in good condition for less than $1,000.
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Canon GL2
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The Canon GL2 is the newer version of the GL1 and also comes with 20x optical zoom, 100x digital zoom and 2.5-inch LCD. It also has an additional 270-degree rotation, saves to a MiniDV tape or MMC/SD card and comes with an 8MB SD card. This camera allows recording for up to 65 minutes at a time.
GL2 Features
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Overall, the GL2 is extremely similar to its predecessor, the GL1, but has a few major differences that earn its place as the advanced version. While the GL2 is a tiny bit bigger than the GL1 (by 1 1/2 inches), it still weighs about four ounces less and consumes 30 percent less power, according to Steven Trent Smith from The Digital Filmmaker. The camera's resolution has been bumped from 122,000 pixels on the GL1 to 200,000 pixels on the GL2. So, overall, the picture looks better.
Additionally, the GL2 has an omnidirectional microphone that puts out more realistic stereo sound. Its audio can be record in 16-bit mode on two channels on one track or in 12-bit mode--the audio track divided in two with two channels of audio recorded onto one track. The other track is left for audio dubbing.
The GL2 retailed at just more than $2,000 brand new in September 2009.
Considerations
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Though the GL2 is similar to the GL1, its improved resolution and audio make it the obvious choice. The main similarities are in the cosmetics, movie modes and zoom, among others. Both have garnered positive reviews on Internet technology forums, but the consensus is that the GL2 is a better camera and, if you can afford it, the obvious choice.
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References
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- Photo Credit fry2k: sxc.hu
