Inexpensive camera with a viewfinder

The
Canon PowerShot A1400 (starting at $99.00) is an affordable digital camera that features a viewfinder.
Until digital cameras you had to look through the viewfinder to take a photo. Now most digital cameras have
display screens on the back allowing you to see what you're taking a picture of. Nonetheless there are still many
reasons for having a viewfinder in addition to or instead of the rear screen.
Reasons to Consider a Viewfinder
- Taking pictures in very bright light can make it extremely difficult to see exactly what you're taking a
picture of on the display screen.
- Having the camera braced in close and held tight provide better ergonomics for taking a steady shot vs having
your arms outstretched.
- People who require glasses to view the display screen can use a viewfinder without glasses as most have a
diopter built in to adjust for poor eyesight.
- Optical viewfinders permit you to you use the full resolution of your eyes which is magnitudes higher than
the LCD screen.
- A viewfinder lets you immerse yourself in the picture - using up much more of your field of vision allowing
you to experience the photo.
Types of Viewfinders
Pentaprism - SLR
SLRs permit the photographer to see through the lens. Pentaprisms use a prism to redirect the light from the
lens to the view finder vs the camera sensor. Pentaprisms are the highest quality viewfinders - they provide the
highest resolution and most natural representation of the photo about to be taken. Pentaprisms are higher quality
than penta-mirrors and thus are found largely in most
professional DSLRs, they
allow more light to pass through permitting a brighter view of the scene being photographed.
Penta-mirror
Most
entry-level DSLRs use
penta mirrors which, like pentaprisms permit the image being captured by the lens to be redirected (in this case by
a series of mirrors) through the viewfinder. This permits full resolution and a natural immersive view of what your
are taking a photograph of. Penta-mirrors provide the same function as a pentaprism by are typically constructed of
plastic and cheaper to produce; on average they produce a darker image in the viewfinder.
Tunnel / Rangefinder
This is also an optical element and permits the full resolution of the eye but it does not look through the
lens. These viewfinders are separate optical elements that for the most part approximate what the camera will take
a photo of. When a subject is very close the suffer from parallax error, meaning what you are looking at will not
be what the camera is taking a picture of - macro photos using these viewfinders are not terribly useful because
the parallax error is huge. Depending on how important the framing is a few feet away may be acceptable to remove
the parallax error. You will nonetheless get used to the parallax and adjust accordingly - especially with the
instant feedback of a digital camera.
Best Digicams with a Viewfinder
These are some of the best digicams that offer a viewfinder
Discussion
Showing 13 comments