See Your LCD Screen in Bright Sunlight

#1 GARY POGODA

If this works nearly as well as the images indicate, say good-bye to
optical viewfinders in digicams (if you have not done so already).

6:27 pm - Friday, January 13, 2006

#2 nick in japan

Plus, my ONLY complaint about my Canon 20/10D is the non-EVF!! Being able to see your activity in REAL time is just WONDERFUL! Purists disagree, but one of the time saving things that gets us back to subject composition rather than having to do both view-finder, then screen verification too! I use the Sony F 828 alot, JUST for that reason. It's like the old 2 touch lens focus/zoom.... outdated!
This new screen development will make alot of manufacturers think more about losing the viewfinder, or at least transition to EVF in DSLRs too!

10:58 pm - Friday, January 13, 2006

#3 Itai

This is great advance, but I don't think this will affect the DSLR market. EVFs don't usually have the same visibility problems as LCD screens because the are not exposed to sunlight as much. Their brightness can be improved by using a rear sunlight input just like on video-cameras.

I do strongly agree that having a live-preview is a wonderful thing and that's why I use a Konica-Minolta A2 much more than a 20D. Getting a correct long-exposure metering on the 20D is much harder than on cameras with live-preview (too bad the 20D has better image quality).

Now that Sony showed that its possible to make a large-sensor camera with live-preview, all that's missing is someone to show you can do a camera with a large-sensor, live-preview AND interchageable lenses. Such cameras won't be SLR cameras (since they won't be reflex anymore) but will introduce a new class of cameras, call them ILC (Interchageable Lens Camera).

2:46 pm - Saturday, January 14, 2006

#4 GARY POGODA

Interesting concept, ILC, but I do not picture it catching on due to the
dust collection problem. I think that multiple fixed lens cameras have
a better chance.

5:43 pm - Saturday, January 14, 2006

#5 nick in japan

Folks that use DSLRs dont have much dust problems due to the fact that altho the lens switch process takes place,sometimes, most folks get the camera for use with one favorite lens and use back-up cameras for the alternatives. I know alot of serious photographers that never take their prime use lens off except in exceptional cases.
My situation involves my 2 favorite lenses, the Sigma 50-500, "Bigma", and the Tokina 12-24. If I go to a flower shoot and want to do macro, I'll slip the 180mm macro on the 20D before I leave, and leave the Tokina home.
I have had dust problems, easily corrected if detected after a quick check after the lens switch.
Switching lenses have always presented problems.. for folks that are too lazy to do the change in safe area, or in a big plastic bag around the camera, just takes some smarts to do it.

12:39 am - Sunday, January 15, 2006

#6 GARY POGODA

So the question is, if you had a fixed lens camera with a 50 - 500 mm
lens, and another with a 10 - 24 mm lens, and another with a 180 mm
macro lens, and all three cameras were of professional quality, would
that be preferable to a single DSLR with those same three lenses?

I wish I had thought of your plastic bag idea. I do all my lens changing
in my Class 100 clean room (no more than 100 particles per cubic foot
of air). I also wear a special protective suit, which does not give off lint
particles, and prevents human skin and hair particles from entering the
room's atmosphere. I also wear a protective, pleated face mask, nitrile
powder-free gloves, a Tyvek hat, and polypropylene shoe covers.

The room is equipped with an air shower, and a modular, self-contained
HEPA filter and blower unit, with a filter efficiency of 99.99% on particles
0.3 microns or larger. The floors are covered with 2 mil, medium density
polyethylene sticky mats. The cameras and lenses are maneuvered on a
heavy duty wire shelf utility cart, with open wire design for maximum air
flow with minimum dust accumulation.

My clean room is maintained weekly by a professional cleaning staff, and
inspected quarterly by a certified CRE technician. Similarly, I also have a
portable clean room which I take along on photo shoots.

But as you say, it's really not a problem, as long as you are not lazy, and
as long as you have some smarts. From the description above, you know
that I have some smarts (though on hindsight, I wish I had thought of the
plastic bag idea). And if there is one thing I'm definitely not, I am not lazy.
In fact, as I have been told by my doctors, I have more stamina than men
twice my age.

12:29 pm - Sunday, January 15, 2006

#7 nick in japan

That camera may be coming, Gary! Till then it's keeping lottsa manufacturers rich, selling bodies, lenses, filters and odds and ends so our camera bags become too big to carry.... gotta get a 2 wheeled cart, then another Domke.....! Your info on the super sensitive sensor may get us to the super camera with a single zoom lens in the near future, but quality of the image may suffer, there are just so many aspherical, apochromatic and achromatic lens elements you can stack together!
Sounds like you were a hydraulic mechanic too! I spent many a night in a clean room testing SAS Links, cylinders, motors and actuators!
Unfortunately, in the Corps, we didn't have a staff to ensure our clean rooms were contamination free, we had to do alot of sweeping!!!

6:57 pm - Sunday, January 15, 2006