Live preview

[illmonkey]

Wanting to purchase an SLR for a range of shots. Is it worth getting one with Live preview?

I was hoping to be bottom end of the market, spending maybe £300-£400 for a "starter kit", but would spend more knowing it'd last longer for me or have more features.

Worth upgrading to get live preview? I'm used to a point and shoot, so use it all the time

[Simpo Two]

illmonkey said:

Wanting to purchase an SLR for a range of shots. Is it worth getting one with Live preview?

Worth upgrading to get live preview? I'm used to a point and shoot, so use it all the time

IMHO live preview on a DSLR is more of a hindrance, with the possible exception of studio work. Contrast-detect AF is agriculturally slow and it makes what should be a fast, responsive machine into a turkey for normal work. Being a cynic by nature, I suspect that live view has largely been introduced for POS users who think a viewfinder is something you get on a Box Brownie and all a bit scary.

By all means get a DSLR for its better sensor, better lenses, better handling, faster speed and more options, but not just for live view.

[SamHH]

Well, I don't have an SLR camera with live view but it seems like a bit of a gimmick to me. The only circumstance I can see it being useful is if you needed really precise manual focus. On my compact camera I always use the viewfinder over the video screen, even though the viewfinder is poor compared to those on SLRs.

[Kermit power]

I have Live view on my Canon 450D. I don't use it much, and certainly wouldn't use it if I can easily look through the viewfinder instead. As others have said, the autofocus really suffers, plus it uses the battery a lot faster.

Having said that, it can be extremely useful in situations where you can't reach the viewfinder, such as holding the camera overhead above a crowd or the other side of a fence.

[GetCarter]

I have it and only use it if the camera is on the ground.

[Whitefly Swatter]

I have it and it is useful for overhead shots and those candid ones of loved ones who dont like their photo beinng taken (along with a remote shutter release)

[Moonhawk]

It can be useful for Macro work and astrophotography as some models allow you a 10x zoom on the screen which makes manual focussing easier.

Also may be useful for awkward shots where you cant use the viewfinder.

The Canon 5D mk2 also has a quiet shooting mode which is only availble using live preview.

[Scho]

GetCarter said:

I have it and only use it if the camera is on the ground.

love the movement you've captured in the water there steve.

i can allmost hear that.

[DIW35]

Also useful for focussing for astrophotography.

[Mr Whippy]

Also useful if you can then take full HD 1:1 pixel a/r video because of it!

Just done some footage today on a 5D with an f1.8 50mm lens... stunning DOF and sharpness for what is ultimately a DSLR!

Fantastico... you can take some pretty good still shots from the video stream!

Edited by Mr Whippy on Tuesday 7th April 15:31

[Bigdrift]

live view is the work of the devil and marketing men trying to dumb down DSLR's and is to be avoided


HTH

[mikee boy]

Bigdrift said:

live view is the work of the devil and marketing men trying to dumb down DSLR's and is to be avoided


HTH

live view is great for accurate manual focus and allows you to get an exact focus if your subject isn't at one of the focus points in the viewfinder when the camera is on a tripod for example. Even if the your subject is on one of the focus points, the camera's focus isn't always as accurate as you can achieve manually. I use Live View frequently when I'm doing tripod and studio shots like this which would have been much more difficult without it (shot in very dull red light).

Edited by mikee boy on Wednesday 8th April 00:04