Is a "bigger, brighter" viewfinder worth it? (D80 vs D50)

Alan Browne wrote:
To determine the dominant eye, locate a small object across the room.
With both eyes open, bring your hand up at arms length with your
thumb up. Cover the far object with your thumb. Stay still. Close
one eye then the other. The eye that has the thumb and the object
aligned is the dominant.

Either I'm doing something wrong or don't have a dominant eye.

I see 2 thumbs or 2 objects depending on what I focus on.


--
Mike Warren
My web gallery: http://web.aanet.com.au/miwa/mike

Joan wrote:

Can't let this pass without a quote from the Nikon D50 user manual:

When using the viewfinder
When operating the diopter adjustment
control with your eye to the viewfinder,
care should be taken not to put your
finger in your eye accidentally.

I'm glad I read that when I got my D70s. Could have been a nasty
accident.

--
Mike Warren
My web gallery: http://web.aanet.com.au/miwa/mike

Not a problem for me, 'cos I wear glasses :-)

--
Joan
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joan-in-manly

"Mike Warren" wrote in message
. com...
: Joan wrote:
:
: Can't let this pass without a quote from the Nikon D50 user
manual:
:
: When using the viewfinder
: When operating the diopter adjustment
: control with your eye to the viewfinder,
: care should be taken not to put your
: finger in your eye accidentally.
:
: I'm glad I read that when I got my D70s. Could have been a nasty
: accident.
:
: --
: Mike Warren
: My web gallery: http://web.aanet.com.au/miwa/mike

Scott Speck wrote:
Hi Everyone,

I really like my D50, but the upcoming D80 has me wondering -- with the
bigger LCD display and the bigger, brighter viewfinder -- these are two
features I, in my picture taking, could really use, IF they made a
difference. I can see where seeing more detail, "on the fly" on the LCD
screen, would allow me to figure out if I had to reshoot, and, if so, better
how to adjust my camera's settings. However, will a bigger, brighter
viewfinder aid me in achieving good manual focus?

I think so yes, that's the biggest difference when I upgraded from a D70
to a D200 was being able to actually manual focus and judge DOF. And yes
the D200 LCD is much bigger with much better controls to zoom into full
pixels with a couple clicks & a a twist of a dial. I don't know whether
the D80 will have those same specs but those have been a big improvement
for my work. Take a close look at the functions & body controls when a
D80 becomes available, there are lots of functions on the D200 that give
me much better control, like for example the ease of zooming on the LCD
& 3 color histogram, more knobs on the body to change ISO visible in the
viewfinder, etc.


I take lots of insect
macro pictures (2 inches away from dragonflies, etc), and accurate focus is
a challenge for me. I want to eventually achieve pixel-level focus,
manually, and I'm wondering if a brighter viewfinder would help.

Also, will the D80 sensor be significantly better than the D50 sensor?
Other than megapixel count, I mean -- such as sensitivity, noise level, etc.

Thanks for any help,
Scott



--
Paul Furman
http://www.edgehill.net/1
Bay Natives
http://www.baynatives.com

On Fri, 25 Aug 2006 17:35:58 -0400, "Scott Speck"
wrote:

I recently got an angle finder for my 20D and it magnifies the
viewfind...big difference. These old eyes were finding manual focus
a bit daunting and a bigger view helps alot - for manual focus; and
when i would normally use auto but the light doesn't allow it to
work properly.

size matters

cheers

Siggy wrote:
Alan Browne wrote:
8


To determine the dominant eye, locate a small object across the room.
With both eyes open, bring your hand up at arms length with your thumb
up. Cover the far object with your thumb. Stay still. Close one eye
then the other. The eye that has the thumb and the object aligned is
the dominant.



Interesting, Alan. Thanks. I kinda knew that but this is interesting
confirmation. Do you do that as a party piece then? ;-)

Yeah, and 1 out of 3 people still can't figure out which is the
dominant. Another way to find the dominant is pistol or rifle shooting,
the shooter quickly figures out which is which.

My SO has putting problems as she's a physical "righty" and dominant eye
righty. So the whole is masked by her nose and this tends to make her
shoot outside the hole (wrt the line).

Cheers,
Alan.

--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.

Mike Warren wrote:
Alan Browne wrote:

To determine the dominant eye, locate a small object across the room.
With both eyes open, bring your hand up at arms length with your
thumb up. Cover the far object with your thumb. Stay still. Close
one eye then the other. The eye that has the thumb and the object
aligned is the dominant.


Either I'm doing something wrong or don't have a dominant eye.

I see 2 thumbs or 2 objects depending on what I focus on.

One eye at a time.


--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.

Alan Browne wrote:

My SO has putting problems as she's a physical "righty" and dominant eye
righty. So the whole is masked by her nose and this tends to make her
^ hole (sigh)

On Sun, 10 Sep 2006 10:02:17 -0400, Alan Browne
wrote:

Siggy wrote:
Alan Browne wrote:
8


To determine the dominant eye, locate a small object across the room.
With both eyes open, bring your hand up at arms length with your thumb
up. Cover the far object with your thumb. Stay still. Close one eye
then the other. The eye that has the thumb and the object aligned is
the dominant.



Interesting, Alan. Thanks. I kinda knew that but this is interesting
confirmation. Do you do that as a party piece then? ;-)

Yeah, and 1 out of 3 people still can't figure out which is the
dominant. Another way to find the dominant is pistol or rifle shooting,
the shooter quickly figures out which is which.

My SO has putting problems as she's a physical "righty" and dominant eye
righty. So the whole is masked by her nose and this tends to make her
shoot outside the hole (wrt the line).

Cheers,
Alan.

I was born with VERY uneven sight. Through the years I've learned to
select which eye I want to use.

It caused a few 'discussions' while I was in American Navy Boot Camp.

They would put up two slides with a swing going right on one and left
on the other.

They would ask which way is the swing going? ...and I'd say 'With
which eye?.

That was NOT the answer they wanted to hear...LOL


--

Scott in Florida

'The Land of the Free. Thanks to the Brave'