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A Better (digital) View
Digital photography has brought with great advances and, in many ways, made photography simpler, more affordable and more accessible than ever before. More cameras are in the hands of more people and there is virtually no aspect of modern life that goes unrecorded by someone with a digicam, a webcam, a pocket camera or a cell phone. Top of the line digital cameras can now do more than their 35mm film counterparts. Even large format cameras, the tool of professional, niche and specialist cameramen, are now equipped with digital backs, producing images of superb quality. In many respects, it is the typical digital camera which has advanced furthest, to offer average amateur photographers and snap-shooters features that were only found on semi-pro models a few years ago. They have pushed many film cameras off the shelves, and major companies right out of the market. Eight years ago, the best compact cameras had lenses with 3 times zoom lenses up to 150mm; there is hardly a digital on the shelves that doesn’t match or exceed that range, and with similar or better maximum apertures. The current crop of digitals match the film cameras they replaced in all but low light and flash photography, where noise and slow-charging flash guns are disappointing; but noise levels are improving, and people seem to be willing to put up with the long delay between shots while the flash recharges. Digital cameras also offer video as good as old-style amateur movie cameras; still film never managed that, and allow anybody to make amazing close up photos that once needed a high end single-lens reflex and great skill to do. Is there anything that the new breed of cameras lack? Oh yes! Fashion seems to have dictated that smaller, thinner and more compact cameras do not need viewfinders. Believe me, they do. I have quite a few cameras, from the work horse SLRs I use to shoot assignments and produce stock images, through to simple point-and-shoot cameras and my latest digital phone camera. The camera phone doesn’t have a viewfinder, of course, and that doesn’t bother me: I make the rare picture with it, but is a phone, after all. As long as I can phone, text, e-mail and occasionally browse on it, I’m happy. The camera doesn’t matter. My “pocket” cameras are another matter. Compare the two cameras I keep with me; one delivers 7 megapixels and has a 6x zoom. The second is 4 megapixels with a 4x zoom. The higher spec camera has a 3” LCD screen, the other is much smaller (about 2” I think). Indoors, it is easy to compose on the LCD, outdoors in dull or cloudy light, not too bad. But on a typical sunny day, you cannot see a thing on either screen, and at night they are equally useless. The “smaller" camera, however, has an optical viewfinder. It works in places that the “better” camera is no more than a paperweight. Now, this is not a mater of a poor camera failing to perform where other work. This is a good camera with an excellent screen from a very competent camera maker. I have found exactly the same issue on every point-and-shoot digital I have tried. Move into the next price bracket (above about $500) where compact camera design mimics SLR styling, and the viewfinder is back. No serious photographer will do without it, and the marketers know it. Trouble is, bad and frustrating experiences like those I have described don’t encourage people to delve deeper into photography; they put them off, and that’s a shame. Bring back the viewfinder. |
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This intel was contributed by David Rich
David Rich
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May, 2012
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