Do you use accessory viewfinders?

Do you use accessory viewfinders?

  • Yes - I frame carefully and make each shot count.

    Votes: 159 43.8%

  • No - I'm trigger happy, guess the framesize, and fire away!

    Votes: 42 11.6%

  • Sometimes - It all depends on the application.

    Votes: 162 44.6%
  • Total voters
    363
M

maitrestanley

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Jan 16, 2007
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146
Just wanted to know how many of you actually use the accessory viewfinders for very wide angle lenses.

If yes, do you jump back and forth between the a. viewfinder and rangefinder?

If no, how are the results?

If sometimes, how do you decide when to use it or not?
 
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I use a Canon Serenar 28/3.5 with viewfinder. It works best on an ltm body (Leica IIIf or Canon IIF), but also works well on my M4-2.
 
For the 21, no choice but to use the external VF. The M6 has framelines for the 28 but the external VF is more accurate and the lens hood does not block your view.
 
I use 15, 25 and (sometimes) 28mm finders. The wider you go, the more you need the external VF. As you may know, CV is releasing a camera in April, the R4 that has framelines and parallax correction for 21, 25, 28, and other focal lengths.
 
For very wide angle lenses, yes; I use the accessory viewfiinder almost always. Sometimes I'll just hold the camera off and point it in some strange direction if the situation seems to call for it... but I'm much more likely to do that with an AF camera. My problem with accessory viewfinders is the increased parallax error, so I'm reluctant to do indoor closeups with a rig requiring one. For this reason I'm feeling favorable toward the new Bessa 4. :)
 
I use 35mm and 50mm external finders on both my Leica IIIa and IIIf RD, because I wear glasses and can frame much more accurately with the external finder.

Jim N.
 
I use an accessory VF for all shots taken with CV 15/4.5 and 21/4, so far.

When I get a chance to shoot at waist-level with these lesnes, I won't be using any VFs of course.
 
I use an accessory finder for my 21mm lens, and I also use them for lenses longer than 50mm on my R-D 1. Obviously with long lenses, 'guess-framing' is not an option!

Some people can estimate long-lens framing by referencing various 'landmarks' inside the finder, but I'm more comfortable composing within an actual frameline. The long lens I use most often on the R-D 1 is a 100mm f/2 Canon, and I've got a 135mm Komura brightline finder that's a surprisingly good match for its viewing angle. 135 ought to be too wide for the R-D 1's 1.53x conversion factor, but I guess Komura must have been very conservative when designing this finder, because it frames quite well at moderate to long distances.
 
I use a Russian turret finder sometimes even when I have a frameline in the camera, as for a 85/90 or a 135mm in my M5. I use it because it actually helps to have asmaller image; it lets me see the relationships of dark and light masses in a way that I can't easily do through the bright line finder. Then I use the brightline for the final shot because it has the best parallax compensation.
 
I've got several aux.vf, but never got used to using them. I usually pre-guesstimate everything - exposure, focus, composition - wait for the moment - take the shot - and I've got piles and piles of junk pictures to prove it! ッ
 
Since using the Bessa T, I've ordered a dedicated 35mm finder, and have found one at reasonable cost. The T is my W/A camera, and of course the non-coupled CV 25/4 came with its own Voigtlander 25mm finder.

I can understand Doug's point about parallax problems, close up. Believe it or not, I carry a small, one meter tape measure in my camera bag! With the non-coupled CV 25/4 I've made some test shots, let's say at one meter or at 0.7 meter... and have stopped down to 5.6 to be on the safe side, and all is well. For assured accuracy close in, it's the coupled 35/2.8.

Cheers, mike
 
I've both a Bessa-T and an M4 (0.7x finder with 35/50/90/135 framelines). Although I'm used to switching between RF and VF all the time on the T, I don't use an external finder on the M4 for the 25mm lens. I eyeball the frame using the edges of the VF as a rough guideline..
 
I'm planning to get a 21mm in the future but the thing I don't want to deal with is switching back and forth between rangefinder and a.viewfinder.

Maybe I'll just stick with zone focusing.. the lens is crazy wide anyway and dof is crazy deep
 
My widest RF lens is 35, which I leave to the inbuilt VF. However, I'm using external VFs for my 50 and 90. Both eyes are open with 1x magnification. You have a friendly, exposed demeanor when shooting portraits - exactly opposite to hunching behind a pentaprism. The 90mm VF from CV and Leitz have distance correction for reduced parallax.
 
To many external viewfinder ...

To many external viewfinder ...

... two for the R-D1s (CV 15mm D and CV 25mm D) and two for the M6 (CV 15mm and Zeiss 25/28mm) Additionally the 50mm finder that came with the Bessa-T 101 set and a CV spirit-level ... Well, I use them quite often but it's always a problem with the camera bag ...
 
I use the CV 28mm with the Color Skopar 28 most of the time, unless it is a landscape where framing is not that critical, otherwise I use it. On the Jupiter 12, I use it most of the time also. The difference between the aux v/f and the v/f in the cameras is not much but I can improve the picture by making sure everything is in alignment and not tilted one way or the other. Messes up the lines!
 
I often use a 21, 28, 35, and 50 VFs but lost my $150/ 50 CV the other day--ouch! Now I'm going to resume using my homemade safety strap retainer for all my VFs. Having one fall off is a definite hazard.

Bersides that, they are better for snapshooting w/ my model Ps and fixed lens 50s. When I use a VF, I always use A/F hyperfocus settings.
 
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5.6/12 Cv

5.6/12 Cv

With this lens and about 120 something degree angle of view (film :D )you need to use the finder otherwise you have a lot of crap within your frame. Careful composition is a must in order not to get the shot just because of the lens effect itself - than it quickly turns out boring.
 
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