Chopped OVF for Sony A350

Sometime ago I read about the possibility to put a Nikon eye magnifying
glass in place of the Sony eyecup.
Yesterday I went to a store and tried the Nikon DK21M (M is important,
because without it, it's just an empty cup). It fits like a glove and the
view is very much improved, no if's, buts or maybe's about that.
BUT! I did like the original big eye cup of the Sony. So I started to chop
around and now I finished. Mind the fact that the whole thing stands a
little off from the camera, but for me that's not important.
I have a much better view and control.

Here's a picture of the two parts before I "trashed" them:
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye1.JPG

You have to take the rubber ring away from the Nikon, even they tell you it
can't be done. RIGHT!

Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the bottom
of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some away again,
etc.
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG

There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's much!
Any questions: just ask.


--
Focus

"Focus" wrote in message
...
| Sometime ago I read about the possibility to put a Nikon eye magnifying
| glass in place of the Sony eyecup.
| Yesterday I went to a store and tried the Nikon DK21M (M is important,
| because without it, it's just an empty cup). It fits like a glove and the
| view is very much improved, no if's, buts or maybe's about that.
| BUT! I did like the original big eye cup of the Sony. So I started to chop
| around and now I finished. Mind the fact that the whole thing stands a
| little off from the camera, but for me that's not important.
| I have a much better view and control.
|
| Here's a picture of the two parts before I "trashed" them:
| http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye1.JPG
|
| You have to take the rubber ring away from the Nikon, even they tell you
it
| can't be done. RIGHT!
|
| Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
| To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the bottom
| of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some away again,
| etc.
| http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG
|
| There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's much!
| Any questions: just ask.

nice work

On Wed, 28 May 2008 12:46:55 +0100, Focus wrote:

Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the bottom
of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some away again,
etc.
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG

There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's much!
Any questions: just ask.

Nice job. But as it will let in additional light from the rear,
putting the exposure off by as much as 0.7EV, it would have been
more useful on the Canon DSLR you recently returned . . .

"ASAAR" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 28 May 2008 12:46:55 +0100, Focus wrote:

Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the
bottom
of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some away again,
etc.
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG

There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's
much!
Any questions: just ask.

Nice job. But as it will let in additional light from the rear,
putting the exposure off by as much as 0.7EV, it would have been
more useful on the Canon DSLR you recently returned . . .

LOL.
But additional? If anything it lets less light come in..


--
Focus

Focus wrote:
"ASAAR" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 28 May 2008 12:46:55 +0100, Focus wrote:

Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the
bottom
of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some away again,
etc.
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG

There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's
much!
Any questions: just ask.
Nice job. But as it will let in additional light from the rear,
putting the exposure off by as much as 0.7EV, it would have been
more useful on the Canon DSLR you recently returned . . .

LOL.
But additional? If anything it lets less light come in..



And on the A350 you can always just switch to live view, viewfinder
blind comes over and you get 1200-zone evaluative metering read from the
focus screen - with alarming accuracy.

David

"David Kilpatrick" wrote in message
...
Focus wrote:
"ASAAR" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 28 May 2008 12:46:55 +0100, Focus wrote:

Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the
bottom
of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some away
again,
etc.
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG

There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's
much!
Any questions: just ask.
Nice job. But as it will let in additional light from the rear,
putting the exposure off by as much as 0.7EV, it would have been
more useful on the Canon DSLR you recently returned . . .

LOL.
But additional? If anything it lets less light come in..



And on the A350 you can always just switch to live view, viewfinder blind
comes over and you get 1200-zone evaluative metering read from the focus
screen - with alarming accuracy.

David

Can you elaborate on that? I don't quite understand.
Do you mean the metering in liveview is different than with the OVF?

And how is it alarming?


--
Focus

Focus wrote:

Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the bottom
of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some away again,
etc.
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG

There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's much!
Any questions: just ask.

I admire your handiwork. However, this is the nice thing with the
higher end Minolta's (Sony's): the viewfinder is brighter and has higher
contrast than the lower end models like the -350.

This mainly due to a prism instead of a mirror box.

Cheers,
Alan.


--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.

Focus wrote:
"David Kilpatrick" wrote in message


And on the A350 you can always just switch to live view, viewfinder blind
comes over and you get 1200-zone evaluative metering read from the focus
screen - with alarming accuracy.

David

Can you elaborate on that? I don't quite understand.
Do you mean the metering in liveview is different than with the OVF?

And how is it alarming?


Yes, in evaulative (matrix) mode only. In centre weighted and spot, you
get the normal system. In matrix mode, the CCD video sensor does the
metering instead, and of course you never get overexposure (it's like a
bridge camera metering in that respect) and there is therefore no need
for the camera to underexpose slightly, which the A350 tends to do with
regular metering just to make best use of dynamic range (9.2 stops at
ISO 100 according to Anders Uschold in the BJP yesterday).

With Live View Matrix metering, you get 1200 colour sensitive points and
the live view image perfectly matches the final output in terms of the
live histogram, as well. with LV metering there really is no need ever
to think about bracketing, it's like using the KM A2 (which I still use
occasionally).

David


--
Icon Publications Ltd, Maxwell Place, Maxwell Lane, Kelso TD5 7BB
Company Registered in England No 2122711. Registered Office 12 Exchange
St, Retford, Notts DN22 6BL
VAT Reg No GB458101463
Trading as Icon Publications Ltd, Photoworld Club and Troubadour.uk.com
www.iconpublications.com - www.troubadour.uk.com - www.f2photo.co.uk -
www.photoclubalpha.com - www.minoltaclub.co.uk
Tel +44 1573 226032

Alan Browne wrote:
Focus wrote:

Then you also have to do some trimming on the Sony cup to make it fit.
To keep the eye starter to work, you also need to trim a bit at the
bottom of the Nikon: just take some away, try if it work, take some
away again, etc.
http://photos-of-portugal.com/Eye2.JPG

There you go: perfect OVF with a 17% bigger view. Believe me: that's
much!
Any questions: just ask.

I admire your handiwork. However, this is the nice thing with the
higher end Minolta's (Sony's): the viewfinder is brighter and has higher
contrast than the lower end models like the -350.

This mainly due to a prism instead of a mirror box.


Of course you can also fit the magnifier to the higher end cameras - it
then produces a superb size of viewing image. I have the Olympus ME-53
magnifier which is 1.2X instead of the 1.17X for the Nikon, but it need
a lot more work to make it fit.

David


--
Icon Publications Ltd, Maxwell Place, Maxwell Lane, Kelso TD5 7BB
Company Registered in England No 2122711. Registered Office 12 Exchange
St, Retford, Notts DN22 6BL
VAT Reg No GB458101463
Trading as Icon Publications Ltd, Photoworld Club and Troubadour.uk.com
www.iconpublications.com - www.troubadour.uk.com - www.f2photo.co.uk -
www.photoclubalpha.com - www.minoltaclub.co.uk
Tel +44 1573 226032

"David Kilpatrick" wrote in message
...
Focus wrote:
"David Kilpatrick" wrote in message


And on the A350 you can always just switch to live view, viewfinder
blind comes over and you get 1200-zone evaluative metering read from the
focus screen - with alarming accuracy.

David

Can you elaborate on that? I don't quite understand.
Do you mean the metering in liveview is different than with the OVF?

And how is it alarming?


Yes, in evaulative (matrix) mode only. In centre weighted and spot, you
get the normal system. In matrix mode, the CCD video sensor does the
metering instead, and of course you never get overexposure (it's like a
bridge camera metering in that respect) and there is therefore no need for
the camera to underexpose slightly, which the A350 tends to do with
regular metering just to make best use of dynamic range (9.2 stops at ISO
100 according to Anders Uschold in the BJP yesterday).

With Live View Matrix metering, you get 1200 colour sensitive points and
the live view image perfectly matches the final output in terms of the
live histogram, as well. with LV metering there really is no need ever to
think about bracketing, it's like using the KM A2 (which I still use
occasionally).

David

Thanks for clearing that up. Now, of course: how does it differ from say,
Canon and Nikon LV? I assume they don't have that CCD video sensor, because
the mirror is locked up, right?


--
Focus