10 tips on shooting pictures without viefinder

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Marek - 11 Apr 2006 12:52 GMT

Many small point and shoot digital cameras have no viewfinder, just a
LCD monitor which may be hard to read in bright sunlight. The lack of a
viewfinder is perhaps the main reason preventing some photographers from
buying waterproof Pentax Optio cameras. The new shock and waterproof
Olympus Stylus SW 720 also features the LCD monitor but no viewfinder. I
think that this a reasonable compromise in a camera of this size. It
shouldn't stop you from buying these cameras, photographing and having fun.

After paddling with Pentax Optio WP for more than a year, I have
gathered some tips and comments on shooting pictures using these tiny
cameras without a viewfinder.

http://users.frii.com/uliasz/weblog/C2003804840/E20060409162645/index.html

What is your experience with digital cameras without a viewfinder?
Do you have any other tips, comments or suggestions for photographing
paddlers?

Marek

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Whiskers - 11 Apr 2006 15:27 GMT

> Many small point and shoot digital cameras have no viewfinder, just a
> LCD monitor which may be hard to read in bright sunlight. The lack of a
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
>
> Marek

Use a magnifying glass to change the LCD into an eye-level viewfinder. A
cheap slide-viewer can be adapted for the job, or stiff card and elastic
bands can be used to make a sort of 'hood' with a small 3X magnifying lens
taped or glued into a suitable position. I have such a thing bodged
together which folds flat for going into a pocket and slips over my
Minolta dimage X20 when required - effective, but not pretty.

I wouldn't be surprised if there aren't commercial gadgets already for
doing this - I've certainly seen little 'hoods' on sale for shading the
LCD, although not so far with a magnifier included.

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MartinS - 11 Apr 2006 16:45 GMT

> Many small point and shoot digital cameras have no viewfinder, just a
> LCD monitor which may be hard to read in bright sunlight. The lack of
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
> Do you have any other tips, comments or suggestions for photographing
> paddlers?

Your point about not shooting with sunglasses is well taken. Depending on
the relative angle, polarized glasses can blank out an LCD screen.

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Martin S

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Tuli - 12 Apr 2006 14:44 GMT

> What is your experience with digital cameras without a viewfinder?

I had a terrible time with a Nikon Coolpix P1 that I took to the
sunny Caribbean in March. The LCD panel became totally invisible in
the bright sunlight there. Unless you enjoy shooting blind, and if
you care about the quality of your photos, you will be miserable with
a camera that does not have an optical viewfinder.

My advice to everyone wanting to buy a digital camera: do NOT buy a
camera that lacks a viewfinder! Beware!

Tuli

P.S. I've since traded the Coolpix P1 in on a Nikon D70s, a great
camera :-)

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