EVF

I'm considering switching from an SLR to a ZLR and as far as I can see the
feature that makes a ZLR most like an SLR in
use is the EVF.
(I know there are lots of other things to take into account but for me the
quality of the EVF seems to be a starting point.)

So why do I find so many people saying that this camera or that camera has a
terrible EVF?


I'm I missing something?
What's the best camera for EVF?
Can you compose a shot using the EVF on all cameras or are some really as
bad as some reviews make out?
mikej

mike.james wrote:
I'm considering switching from an SLR to a ZLR and as far as I can
see the feature that makes a ZLR most like an SLR in
use is the EVF.
(I know there are lots of other things to take into account but for
me the quality of the EVF seems to be a starting point.)

So why do I find so many people saying that this camera or that
camera has a terrible EVF?


I'm I missing something?
What's the best camera for EVF?
Can you compose a shot using the EVF on all cameras or are some
really as bad as some reviews make out?
mikej

Many EVF have a poor resolution - typically stated as 230,400 pixels or
whatever. This disguises the fact they take each colour as a pixel, so
that's 76,800 RGB pixels, or a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels. This will
come as a shock to an SLR user! The Minolta A2 had 640 x 480 pixels
(advertised as 900,000 pixels), which was much better, but they dropped
that in later models.

Some cameras have even fewer than 200,000 pixels, but even these EVFs are
quite usable for composition. Just don't try and make any fine focus
adjustments with them! [Note: some cameras magnify the area round the
focus spot in manual focus mode, making it quite easy to focus].

Cheers,
David

Many EVF have a poor resolution - typically stated as 230,400 pixels or
whatever. This disguises the fact they take each colour as a pixel, so
that's 76,800 RGB pixels, or a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels. This will
come as a shock to an SLR user! The Minolta A2 had 640 x 480 pixels
(advertised as 900,000 pixels), which was much better, but they dropped
that in later models.

Some cameras have even fewer than 200,000 pixels, but even these EVFs are
quite usable for composition. Just don't try and make any fine focus
adjustments with them! [Note: some cameras magnify the area round the
focus spot in manual focus mode, making it quite easy to focus].

Cheers,
David

Thanks for the comments - but I have to say I'm now even more confused.
What is the point of an EVF is you can't compose the picture using it?
I would have thought that this was a minimum requirement and if the EVF
doesn't meet it then it might as well be left out of the design?

It does indeed come as a shock to an SLR user - are you saying that you
use the LCD screen on the back to compose a shot? Because after using
a compact digital for a while there are more occasions when I can't see the
back screen due to sunlight (say) than I can.

mikej

Gisle Hannemyr wrote:
"David J Taylor":
[Note: some cameras magnify the area round the focus spot in manual
focus mode,

True.

making it quite easy to focus].

Not true. Well, YMMV, but my Powershot G5 does this, and I still
find manual focus very hard to get right.

No problem with the Panasonic FZ20.

David

mike.james wrote:
[]
Thanks for the comments - but I have to say I'm now even more
confused. What is the point of an EVF is you can't compose the
picture using it? I would have thought that this was a minimum
requirement and if the
EVF doesn't meet it then it might as well be left out of the design?

It does indeed come as a shock to an SLR user - are you saying that
you use the LCD screen on the back to compose a shot? Because after
using a compact digital for a while there are more occasions when I
can't
see the back screen due to sunlight (say) than I can.

mikej

No, I use the EVF almost exclusively on both my Panasonic FZ5 and Nikon
8400, and would not want to be without it! I have now become used to the
lower resolution (compared with the "infinite" resolution of the SLR).
The EVF and LCD typically have similar resolutions, so having one hidden
from sunlight is ideal. I prefer the camera to the eye taking posture as
well.

What I hadn't realised is that you may already be familiar with the poorer
resolution of the LCD (compared to a computer monitor, say). It's like
that, but viewed directly - that's all. Oh, and you may want to ensure
that your camera offers a dioptre adjustment, should your eyes require
this.

Cheers,
David

"David J Taylor"
wrote in
message . uk...

No, I use the EVF almost exclusively on both my Panasonic FZ5 and Nikon
8400, and would not want to be without it! I have now become used to the
lower resolution (compared with the "infinite" resolution of the SLR). The
EVF and LCD typically have similar resolutions, so having one hidden from
sunlight is ideal. I prefer the camera to the eye taking posture as well.

Ok. This seems reasonable and more or less what I would have assumed was
to be expected of any camera.

But are there some cameras that have EVFs that are "un-usable" in this way
as I've read in a number of reviews?

That is do I have to make EVF resolution something I have to check out
before considering
buying a model.

mikej

"mike.james" wrote in message
...

"David J Taylor"
wrote
in message . uk...

No, I use the EVF almost exclusively on both my Panasonic FZ5 and Nikon
8400, and would not want to be without it! I have now become used to the
lower resolution (compared with the "infinite" resolution of the SLR).
The EVF and LCD typically have similar resolutions, so having one hidden
from sunlight is ideal. I prefer the camera to the eye taking posture as
well.

Ok. This seems reasonable and more or less what I would have assumed was
to be expected of any camera.

But are there some cameras that have EVFs that are "un-usable" in this way
as I've read in a number of reviews?

That is do I have to make EVF resolution something I have to check out
before considering
buying a model.

mikej


I have had a couple of cameras where the EVF had such a slow refresh rate
that it was difficult to be sure of exactly what the picture was going to
be. It involved a lot of "pre-guessing" when the subject involved movement.
Landscapes etc were of course less of a problem. An early Olympus was
particularly bad.

As far as resolution goes I have not had a problem, although I confess that
I really do prefer an optical viewfinder above all else.

Robert R.

mike.james wrote:
[]
But are there some cameras that have EVFs that are "un-usable" in
this way as I've read in a number of reviews?

I've not encountered this on models I've used or tested:

Panasonic FZ5/FZ20
Minolta A2
Nikon Coolpix 5700
Nikon 8400

I would be surprised if any reasonably priced camera today had an unusable
EVF.

Cheers,
David

David J Taylor wrote:

I have now become used to the lower resolution (compared with
the "infinite" resolution of the SLR).

I was fine with the EVF on my Nikon 5700, until someone asked me to
take a pic of them with their film camera (I think it was the Canon
Rebel (not digital))! But I got used to the Nikon's EVF again. The
resolution is at least reasonable if not great; and though it's a bit
small overall it's acceptable for composition (it probably helps that
I don't use manual focus mode - I prefer to choose the spot-focus area
and let the camera focus). In other words, it will do until I can
afford to upgrade in another year or so!

"mike.james" wrote in message
...
I'm considering switching from an SLR to a ZLR and as far as I can see the
feature that makes a ZLR most like an SLR in
use is the EVF.
(I know there are lots of other things to take into account but for me the
quality of the EVF seems to be a starting point.)

So why do I find so many people saying that this camera or that camera has
a terrible EVF?

EVFs take some getting used to. There are two issues: Resolution and
Response Time. Obviously, resolution must be darned good if one expects to
use manual focus. I have an FZ5 with mediocre EVF resolution and no manual
focus, so that makes sense (Panasonic made a good decision). The response
time is disconcerting to folks who switch between DSLRs and cameras like the
FZ5. It is something you have to learn to live with on EVF cameras.

Now, the good news is that cameras like the FZ5 are excellent buys for
walk-around, general-purpose cameras and make more sense than DSLRs for many
buyers.