The Online Photographer

Of all the viewfinders in all the cameras you've ever used, which would you say is your favorite?

If you don't have one, no worries. You can sit this round out. 

"Finding the view" is one of the basic functions of a camera as a device, and has been since the beginning. A history of camera viewfinders would be astonishingly varied. How does the camera show the operator what it's about to take a picture of? It's a technical problem, of course, but it's also integral to how the photographer interacts with the visual world, and and how she relates to the camera as a tool.

Do you like an OVF or EVF? TTL or not? Looking down, sideways, or remotely? Several Fujis can be switched at will from optical to EVF, an exotic but useful feature. The Leica SL's feature a super-high-quality screen, which nicely echoes the original Leitz SL's, some of which had microprisms over their entire field. Larger cameras tend to have larger VFs—comparing the view through a medium-format DSLR to the one through a consumer APS-C with a mirror-box is instructive. The one seems as broad as the Grand Canyon, the other like peering down a tunnel or through a keyhole.

If some company was going to build your perfect camera, at your direction, what kind of viewfinder would you tell them to make?

As I think about this question, two cameras come to mind. They're from different eras, so maybe I can be excused for mentioning them both. One is the Olympus OM-4T film camera, which has a remarkably generous and direct viewfinder for such a small camera. The other is the Panasonic GX8, which has that high-quality EVF that swings from vertical to horizontal and everything in between. I loved that one. (At some point in the 2010's, I transitioned from being an OVF to an EVF guy. I like to shoot in low light, which is where the EVF comes into its own. In daylight, you still can't beat an SLR.) The GX8 viewfinder must be difficult and/or expensive to make—I can't imagine, otherwise, why any company would develop that and then promptly orphan it. Such a shame.

I also love the viewfinder in the iPhone. Looking at an image that's already in just two dimensions has always been helpful to me in visualizing. That's true whether you're looking down at the waist-level finder of a TLR or looking at the back of a smartphone. It's pretty clutter-free, too—viewfinder clutter doesn't get much "ink" in the Photosphere, probably because most cameras give you options, but it's become an increasing problem in the electronic era.

And of course I still love the view through the Wista 4x5 with its fresnel intensifier. Seeing the image as it's cast by the lens has a special kind of magic. Back when I taught, the day when I'd let all the kids line up and look through the 4x5 was always a fun day. I loved hearing the happy exclamations of amazement from under the dark cloth.

Mike

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Original contents copyright 2021 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Jack Mac: "My favorite viewfinder is on a Leica S. Mike, you have looked through mine; did you approve? I do not have a favorite mirrorless viewfinder. None of them are enjoyable to use except at night. I like the Leica M10 RF viewfinder but interestingly sometimes combine it with a live view WiFi connection to an iPad. Then it’s as if I’m looking at a 8x10 ground glass. Should I cover my head with a black cloth?"

Mike replies: I took pictures with it twice, once at the sushi restaurant near the expressway between Waukesha and Brookfield, and once on our field trip to the ruins of the old Pabst Brewery. But although the impression I have is good, I don't really remember it well enough because I just didn't use it long enough.

Richard Arsenault: "Great topic. Two answers: My favorite viewfinder is...a.) the one I am actually using right now. Too many cameras not being used.  :-(   b.) the one that won’t fool me and crop out the people on the sides of that group shot I got finagled to do at so-and-so’s wedding (mostly because of the item above). The only thing about EVF that irks me is that there are so many bits of information that I am always at risk of focusing on the camera settings instead of the shot. Granted that is more of an « id10t » user issue than anything else, and my biggest goof-up (above) was when I was using a new-to-me DSLR....

"All the best and hope your pool game is improving."

Mike replies: Right now I am making some spectacularly difficult shots and missing some very easy ones. I'm concentrating on position play, and that's slowly getting...a little better.

Rod S.: "The Cambo T-20 reflex viewfinder for my Cambo Wide DS 4x5 camera. This viewfinder brought me into 4x5 format and architectural photography, by far the biggest advance ever in my photography. If getting under a dark-cloth was the only way to do 4x5 then I may well have said 'No way.' The Cambo T-20 reflex viewfinder is a simple device. It contains a 45-degree angled mirror and 2X magnifier within a high-quality, robust plastic housing that swivels between landscape and portrait orientations. The net result is revolutionary: You look downwards into the soft rubber eyecup positioned at a comfortable high chest height and view the image upright, not inverted. And the camera bubble levels and lens controls and shutter all become easily viewable and accessible. I can focus accurately and quickly using the 2X magnifier, another real advantage over conventional practice. It makes my 4x5 use...slick. I shoot architecture in busy foreign places where getting under a dark cloth would have me feeling vulnerable. This viewfinder solved that problem, too.

"The design has been cloned by Shen Hao to fit onto numerous other brands of cameras. I have these clones for my Toyo VX125 and Arca-Swiss F-Metric. If you shoot 4x5 or are intrigued by the possibility, this viewfinder might just be the thing that makes it all sing."

Steven Palmer: "Easily, the viewfinder from my Nikon FM3a is my favourite. It's big, bright and has match needle metering. For those who have never used a camera with match needle metering, you can see your exposure without actually having to look at the readout. You can see the needle with your peripheral vision so you don't have to look away from your subject. The FM3a also has an exposure lock button under where your thumb is likely to be so you can change exposure quickly simply by moving the camera to a brighter or darker part of the scene and pressing the button when the needle gives you the exposure compensation you want. It's simple, dead easy and fast."

Jim Simmons: "A topic near and dear to my heart. I look for three things in a camera, all of which I require—excellent viewfinder, ergonomics, high quality lenses. So...my favourite 35mm SLR viewfinder is the Leicaflex SL, in spite of 92% coverage. Magnification reportedly .9X, and the fine micro-prism screen snaps into focus like no other SLR I ever used. Eye relief was just OK (I wear glasses), but I had a diopter made so I could use it without glasses.

"Next favourite: Pentax 67 with Beattie fresnel screen. Only 90% coverage, but a big screen to look at and compose on, and the Beattie screen makes it reasonably bright.

"Next favourite: Arca-Swiss 4x5 with fresnel screen and the mirror viewer. The viewer is almost as big as the camera, but it makes the viewing a delight—both eyes used and right side up (but flipped left-to-right).

"But my most favourite viewfinder of all time is my current Fujifilm X-T4. 3,690,000 dots for very fine resolution and crisp focusing, 100% coverage, .75X magnification, very long 23mm eye relief. A real joy to use. I have adjusted all the elements of the viewfinder—brightness, colour, contrast—so that I can trust that what I'm seeing on the screen is very close to the Fuji JPEG settings I use most often. This is as close to a WYSIWYG viewfinder I've ever used."

Kodachromeguy: "For a rangefinder camera, the Leica M3 is hard to beat. That has always been my favorite."

PJ Cicalo: "For many years my longstanding favorites were on my various Olympus OM bodies. Then I got a Voigtländer Bessa R. Now that was a bright viewfinder! Much brighter than any Leica I ever peered through."

Vijay: "For me, the viewfinder is the most important part of the camera. Bad viewfinders discourage me from taking photographs. Great ones invite me to engage with what I’m seeing and lead to more enjoyable photography and more satisfying results.

"I prefer viewfinders that most closely match what I see with my own eyes. Rangefinders are my top choice, followed by reflex finders, and EVFs are a last resort. In all cases bigger is better. Eyepoints under 20mm put me in a bad mood. When shooting landscapes on a tripod, I’m all for the fully articulated LCD screens for convenience and the size of the view.

"Favorite viewfinder ever: Zeiss Ikon ZM. Never owned one though, as I’m afraid of the lack of parts/service."

Michael Ryan: "My favourite viewfinder is the 27" iMac 5k in my studio while shooting tethered."

Mike replies: Now that's a viewfinder.  :-)

Helcio J. Tagliolotto: "The Contax RTS III's viewfinder. It's even color corrected."

Mike replies: Yes, that one was a beauty. Deluxe construction. It was criticized because the exposure information in the finder (in blue!) was allegedly difficult to see in bright light. I never owned one but only looked through them in the store, so I don't have experience with that.