Re: Digital SLR display

Roy G wrote:
<lubecki@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
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Roy G wrote:
"Tass" <tass@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:3faqg.116959$Mn5.52768@xxxxxxxxxxx
Last night some told me that you cannot use the screen display on a
digital SLR to take the picture. Is this correct?
Thanks.


That is correct.

Who in their right mind would want to look at a small screen, which does
not
quite keep up with moving subjects, and which goes all streaky when the
light shining towards the camers gets a bit too bright, and in which
nothing
can be seen when the camera iself is in bright light.

LCD only cameras are for people who don't know any better. There do seem
to
be rather a lot of them around.

Oh yeah, anyone who doesn't use a camera exactly the same way you do
just doesn't know any better. There are plenty of reasons why someone
might prefer to compose a picture using the LCD rather than the
viewfinder.

1. The LCD on many point-and-shoots gives you a decent idea of what the
picture will look like (whether it will be over- or under-exposed)
before you take it - just press the shutter button half-way to lock
exposure and focus.

2. You can see a histogram before you take the picture. That's much
more convenient and waaaay faster than taking a picture and then
reviewing it.

3. It's easier to adjust aperture and shutter speed when you're looking
at the camera and the scene at the same time. You also get real-time
feedback as to the effect of those adjustments on the picture.

4. When taking action shots, it's much better to see all of the scene
with your own eyes and see the shot on the LCD screen at the same time.
This lets you anticipate when a fast-moving object will enter the frame
and get the shot. A viewfinder imposes an annoying tunnel vision that
makes it more difficult to frame the shot.

My previous P&S had a viewfinder but I haven't used it in even a single
shot out of the thousands I've taken. My new camera has a nice, big
screen and no viewfinder. I realize that DSLR viewfinders work much
better than viewfinders on P&S cameras, but the previous 4 points still
apply.

-Gniewko


Bolloks.

1. Will it? Even when the sun is shining on it, and all you can see is a
bit of black plastic.

I have never had a problem with not being able to see the LCD screen on
any of my cameras, and I've taken pictures in all kinds of conditions,
including a sunny day on a beach. Maybe you're doing something wrong.

2. That one is true. But only for that very few P & S users who know what a
histogram is. Just bring that word up in conversation with the vast
majority of P & S users.

3. This all depends on where these controls are situated on the Camera, if
they are on the Top it aint too convenient. There are Cameras, which have
this data on display in the VF.

I'd rather see the settings in nice big numbers on the screen than look
at tiny cryptic writing in the viewfinder. And then see immediately how
the picture preview changes when I change the aperture and shutter
speed.

4.That is a very new way of taking action shots. I always understood it was
best to track, or pan with, the fast moving subject.
I have yet to see an LCD which re-draws the scene fast enough to either
track or catch a fast moving subject in frame.

To each his own. I prefer to see the whole scene while framing a part
of it on the LCD. This way I can see immediately the best way to frame
the shot. With a viewfinder you either have to pan around searching for
the best view, or move your eye away. I hate the tunnel vision imposed
by the viewfinder.

You do notice I have not even bothered to mention the little matter of
Camera Shake, or the ability to see which part of the subject is under the
very small Autofocus mark.

When you compose the picture on the LCD, you don't have to do it with
your arms stretched out in front of you and the camera shaking. As long
as you brace your elbows against your hips you can stabilize the camera
nicely. As for seeing what's under the autofocus mark - the view you
see on the screen is much larger than what you see in the viewfinder,
so actually that part is easier with the LCD.

You did notice also, I hope, that I am not decrying LCDs as such, only those
people who are willing, or stupid enough to accept cameras which do not have
a real VF.

Well, call me stupid because I see absolutely no reason to have a
viewfinder on a P&S digital camera.

-Gniewko

.