Does a dSLR camera show the object in the monitor?
Posted by Admin in Digital Photography Question and Answer on 02 10th, 2010 | 3 responses
Mystery asked:
Does a dSLR, like a Nikon D60, show a preview of the object you are taking as a photo through the monitor? Much like a compact digital camera does? Or is the monitor on dSLRs strictly menu-based and for viewing your photo gallery?
Guide to Digital SLR Photography
Does a dSLR, like a Nikon D60, show a preview of the object you are taking as a photo through the monitor? Much like a compact digital camera does? Or is the monitor on dSLRs strictly menu-based and for viewing your photo gallery?
Guide to Digital SLR Photography
Digital SLR Photography Guide Official Site
In all DSLRs, the mirror(and usually also a mechanical shutter) blocks the main image sensor until the instant before exposure. Thus, it’s not readily possible to see what’s going to appear on the image sensor in the same way that it is with a compact digital camera.
With that said, however, some recent DSLRs do allow live view. There are two ways to make this possible. The first is to flip up the mirror and use the main image sensor. The downside to this is that the optical viewfinder blacks out and becomes useless. Also, in the first cameras that did this, you lost metering and autofocus-newer cameras are smart enough to also use the main sensor to perform these tasks.
The second option is to place a secondary, low-resolution sensor somewhere in the optical path, and provide the live view fee off of this. This method retains full use of the optical viewfinder, and also allows the autofocus and metering systems to work as intended. The downside is added cost and complexity, while the previous system can be accomplished through changes in firmware.
Offhand, I don’t know if the D60 has live view, although I would guess it does. If it does, I would guess it’s the first system.
EDIT:
I just spent a minute surveying the specs on the D60, and it appears as though it does NOT have live view.
dslr camera
The D60 does not have liveview and its really not something you will miss. Holding several pounds of DSLR out at arms length is very different than holding a few ounces of point and shoot. Its harder to get a steady shot so live view ends up being something that is used only in some few tripod operations. Learn to hold the camera properly and you will get steady unblurred photos as your reward. Live view is being found on more DSLR but I personally think its mostly a marketing ploy and not something that in the long run will get you better photos.
I have liveview on my D300 and have never used it.
dslr camera
Some of the newer DSLR’s have Live View. Almost every company has one or two models by now. That’s the name of the feature you are looking for – “Live View.”
I have it on my D300 and I must say that it is NOT a toy. There are times when I find it extremely useful, such as shooting over the heads in a crowd, shooting a very low angle shot, or some macro work when it is helpful to check critical focus on a zoomed in view on the LCD.
The Nikon D90 also has Live view. The Canon XSi and XS and 50D have it, too. I don’t know the models by other makers, but it’s out there. Sony A300, A350; Olympus E420, E520: Pentax K20D… others…