what you see is what you get?

[cam]

a very probable stupid question here. so stupid that i haven't seen it asked or answered, so apologies aforehand.

you obviously do not exactly what you see in the viewfinder (for instance my hair has strayed in many shots on windy days, ect.). other than an occasional unwanted strand, this hasn't bothered me much until today. i was trying to shoot through a grill in a window design for atmosphere and ended up completely blocking out what i was shooting.

is there a trick here? how to frame correctly on a rangefinder? or is the one of those instances that i should just say never mind and not frustrate myself? (i will add that i've found this even worse when shooting from above or below.)

thank you in advance. and, again, please excuse my ignorance.

 

[nikon_sam]

If you know ahead of time that what you're looking at through the viewfinder may not be exactly what you're photographing (especially close-up or close to the camera) you need to take a look at where your lens is placed...
Knowing the type of photo you were trying to take (window & grill) you have to think through the whole process not just point and shoot...this shot would be better done with a SLR...
Another problem with viewing through the RF's viewfinder is that it shows that everything you're seeing is in focus...in reality it's not...you might think that this shot may work, but being too close to an object will render it so out of focus you may not be able to tell what's there...
Using a SLR in this instance will show you a truer picture of what you're going to get on film...

 

[cam]

thank you, sam.

i was hoping there was some hocus pocus to making this work but i guess it's just trial and error or not try at all... damn!

 

[swoop]

SLR's are more WYSIWYG than rangefinders. But after working for awhile you just kind of know what your focus and settings are going to translate into on the film.

 

[deepwhite]

I have shoot through a grill and ended up exactly as you described. That's when I started to remember it's the lens that's taking the photo, not the viewfinder. And after that I'd just check if there's anything blocking the lens, or hold the camera a bit higher if shooting close (and even higher if using an external finder).

 

[cam]

i totally understand focus and DOF on an RF -- when i mess up, it's simply driver error.

it's the actual view that drives me batty on the trickier shots as i like to use natural frames... i will use your suggestion, deepwhite, and see if i can get a feel for how much higher i need it to be. practice practice practice! (or start carrying my GRD around as well)!

 

[nemjo]

a very probable stupid question here. so stupid that i haven't seen it asked or answered, so apologies aforehand.

you obviously do not exactly what you see in the viewfinder (for instance my hair has strayed in many shots on windy days, ect.).

I'm sure lot of us leave the lens cap on occasionally.
At least sometimes I do:bang:

nemjo

 

[cam]

I'm sure lot of us leave the lens cap on occasionally.
At least sometimes I do:bang:

nemjo

LOL! and then wonder why the exposure was so long in bright sunlight 😀