Learn aboutViewfinder types

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

Penta-mirror Viewfinder

Illustration of a penta-mirror that would be commonly found in a beginner digital SLR. Image by Basilicofresco.

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

	Nikon Coolpix P510 from $338	Great zoom 41.7x High resolution screen 921k dots Flip-out screen Great for movies Learn more about the Nikon Coolpix P510
	Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX200V from $327	Great zoom 33.8x High resolution screen 921k dots Flip-out screen Great for movies Learn more about the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX200V
	Nikon Coolpix P7100 from $299	External mic jack Record higher quality audio with a microphone High resolution screen 921k dots Flip-out screen Great for movies Learn more about the Nikon Coolpix P7100
	Fujifilm FinePix SL1000 from $358	Great zoom 50x High speed movies 480 fps High resolution screen 920k dots Learn more about the Fujifilm FinePix SL1000

See more of the top digicams with viewfinders

Discussion

Showing 13 comments

Joshaverhoog (0:42 PM, May 03, 2012)

That you rate them so low*

Joshaverhoog (0:41 PM, May 03, 2012)

I find it really strange that you rate the latest versions of the Sony SLT cameras. Look at the A77, it gives a very bright, detailed viewfinder that is huge compared to similar cameras and gives 100% coverage. Also, why is it not discussed here? It is getting more important with more and more modern cameras using them!

Shpg2dmv (7:04 PM, March 14, 2012)

From my research on the subject there are basically three viewfinders today:  the LCD screen; the EVF (electronic viewfinder) and the good old tried and true OVF (optical viewfinder) as on my old Pentax.  The LCD everyone probably knows.  The EVF is mirror magic; the eye does not see exactly what the camera's eye sees, and adjustments in focusing a subject have to be learned to get a well-centered image; the OVF found only on high priced DSLRs gives the eye the same view as the camera's eye and so what you see and take is what you get--not part of subject chopped off, and so forth.  The EVF is better than just a LCD.  The LCD on my Nikon CoolPix point & shoot is now virtually useless--faded over a period of a year to no visual image so I take pictures blind, hit or miss--until I can get good bridge camera.

Shpg2dmv (6:50 PM, March 14, 2012)

the S3300 is considered a bridge camera . . . between a point and shoot and a dslr.  It is closer to a dslr than to a point and shoot, meaning features.

Guest (6:34 AM, February 17, 2012)

Why is the electronic viewfinder not discussed here?

tandrews0555@yahoo.com (3:09 AM, January 17, 2012)

Many of your comparison fields are incorrectly represented.  How can you rate Sony's OLED viewfinder as basically the worst of the bunch?  Ridiculous.

Snapsort (10:06 PM, November 06, 2011)

Hi Sam, it is not considered a DSLR.  Key features of a DSLR are: interchangeable lenses and an optical viewfinder that lets you look through the lens.

SAMtheMAN (10:50 AM, November 06, 2011)

um.....would the Fujifilm FinePix S3300 be considered as a D-SLR of would it be a point-and-shoot?

Wjesse (1:17 PM, October 11, 2011)

Another very important consoderation....the tunnel view finder does not drain the battery

Snapsort (2:13 PM, March 29, 2011)

We apologize, thats a mistake. You're correct, the Sony R1 has a digital viewfinder which obviously uses battery power.

l8tr597 (3:28 AM, March 29, 2011)

then how does the type of camera like the sony R-1, where you say "digital" and "no battery" which cannot be accurate, as it uses some type of power, or, lets just say if its "off" the viewfinder is black (blank)

Snapsort (3:29 PM, March 23, 2011)

Good catch, thanks, we'll correct that.

Justin Ji (6:09 AM, March 23, 2011)

800uz has no viewfinder...