X100...Why A Hybrid Finder?

[dazedgonebye]

Sorry if this seem a silly question....

Why do they bother with a hybrid finder for the X100?
It seems to me that without an interchangeable lens, the optical finder would do.

Perhaps for close focusing?

 

[Tony Whitney]

I use a circular polarizing filter often on my X100 and of course, you can't adjust it properly with the optical finder. You have to use the EVF or screen...TW

 

[aizan]

better framelines and viewfinder display? might as well kill two birds with one stone.

 

[burancap]

Also helps when the WCL is attached.

 

[taemo]

EVF for close shots, especially macro.

 

[Jamie Pillers]

AND… [drum roll]…. IT SELLS MORE CAMERAS! 🙂

 

[judsonzhao]

it's technology : )

 

[SausalitoDog]

There are some situations where one works better than the other...I love the ability to switch.

 

[wogg]

Autofocus confirmation with in-view focus point indicator, that's a pretty big deal.

 

[dazedgonebye]

Stand by for my next thread...why an Optical viewfinder on the Xpro? I mean, if you're going to be changing focal lengths all the time...even using zooms...wouldn't an EVF be better suited?

 

[gavinlg]

Having both is literally the best of both worlds with no negatives. I can use optical for street stuff where I want to see out of the frame or when light is high contrast, and EVF for when I need critical framing or exposure preview.

 

[stephen.w]

I use the OVF by default, but the EVF is nice when framing is critical or the metering conditions are tricky - can be useful to see exactly what the sensor is seeing.

 

[jsrockit]

A better question is why you would ask this question... is this a case of - I don't see the need, so nobody must - ... ?

 

[Vagabond]

For setting the hyperfocal distance.

 

[dazedgonebye]

A better question is why you would ask this question... is this a case of - I don't see the need, so nobody must - ... ?

No, I'm not a silly person.
It's obvious to me that others do see the need. I ask the question to better understand, not to imply that they are not correct.

Also, I disagree that you have asked a better question.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Stand by for my next thread...why an Optical viewfinder on the Xpro? I mean, if you're going to be changing focal lengths all the time...even using zooms...wouldn't an EVF be better suited?

Yes, until you compare the view through it with the view through an optical finder. I quite like the idea of both -- which is also an option, of course, on an M Typ 240, with the added advantage of two separate looky-holes.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Highway 61]

The optical finder is so imprecise (its frame shows 12MP off the 16MP sensor) that this makes it pretty useless and convinced me to NOT buy that camera eventually after having tested it extensively in a shop.

Dumb design and marketing hype. A reasonably precise composing frame in the optical finder would have been so easy to make.

If you want to compose precisely with the X100/X100s you must use either the EVF or the screen. The OVF is totally useless in that case.

Why, why, why.

 

[dazedgonebye]

Yes, until you compare the view through it with the view through an optical finder. I quite like the idea of both -- which is also an option, of course, on an M Typ 240, with the added advantage of two separate looky-holes.

Cheers,

R.

If I were shooting any short prime lens, I think I'd likely ignore the EVF and enjoy the optical. For zooms and long primes, the EVF, I imagine, would come in to its own. So, actually I can see the setup as useful for the Xpro.
Seems less useful for the X100, but certainly it does have some utility for close up work.
I'm guessing I'd shoot the X100 like I shoot a Hexar AF...just pop it to my eye and snap the shot...let the camera do the work.

 

[Highway 61]

I'm guessing I'd shoot the X100 like I shoot a Hexar AF...just pop it to my eye and snap the shot...let the camera do the work.

And then you would never get what you had framed if you used the OVF (which frames show less than 90% of what the sensor captures), unless you are keen to take 12MP photos with an $1000 16MP camera.

 

[gavinlg]

The optical finder is so imprecise (its frame shows 12MP off the 16MP sensor) that this makes it pretty useless and convinced me to NOT buy that camera eventually after having tested it extensively in a shop.

Dumb design and marketing hype. A reasonably precise composing frame in the optical finder would have been so easy to make.

If you want to compose precisely with the X100/X100s you must use either the EVF or the screen. The OVF is totally useless in that case.

Why, why, why.

WRONG.

The finder has received multiple updates, the latest of which brings accuracy to about an average of 80% - the same as leica rangefinder frame lines.