LCD or no LCD on future Digital RF ?

LCD or no LCD on future Digital RF ?

  • Yes,

    Votes: 35 40.2%

  • Yes, but like on the RD1

    Votes: 30 34.5%

  • No LCD

    Votes: 22 25.3%
  • Total voters
    87
Harry S. said:
I think digital people are spoiled enough with workflow. It wouldnt be all that painful to have a laptop to review your images instead of a screen.
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hahaha.....try using a H 20 series Phase One back on a shoot then say that again :) No screen means you are tethered to a computer, and in the studio that sucks royal, and outside its even worse, believe me I know, the only thing that kept me from chucking it was the hasselblad it was attached to and the zeiss lenses.....bravissimo!
 
I voted 'no lcd'.

Reasons: size, cost, weight, added complexity.
Every compact digital camera has an LCD. Very few compact digital cameras have a (good) viewfinder (and I don't mean 'Leica-quality', but 'Canonet-quality'). I would prefer an excellent viewfinder over an LCD any time. It actually might be a selling argument. It might be good to stand out of the crowd of nearly identical compact digital cameras on the market today.
 
While I do agree there should be a LCD screen on a new digital RF, I do however like the film process, there are numerous of times where I probably would have deleted a 'nice' photograph straight away after shooting it if it would have been shot on digital instead of film. It's probably my inexperience to judge my shots, but when some time passes by (development, scanning etc.) I think about the photographs in a different way.
 
my wish may be too extreme. Im just glad that I have Rd1 and analog M cameras so I dont need compromise a lot. Thanks God that digital is not so good as BW film so it is no longer a priority for such feature for me. I think it might be a way to come around as to integrate lcd screen swiwel door on Leica M like rd1 now, very thin of a few milimeters without compromising of the size of analog M. So you get good ergonomic feeling. Ergonomics is one of big reasons for wishing for such feature.

I will get handheld meter soon so I close the LCD down on Rd1 and avoid internal metering. So it will be good exercise tool for improving my skills of M3 :)

I know my way of shooting is very extreme. maybe 1 of only a few tens of millions photographers in the world :) and Im still glad to find some people here who wants no LCD anyway :)

maybe it is stupid post here on internet forum about dinosaur things.
 
all they really need to do is incorporate a drop down shield to block the lcd. Then there's no real added bulk and you can essential disable the screen whenever you want.
 
switch it off, or cover it

switch it off, or cover it

or like me get a case from Luigi with a cover ...
I like to be able to review some shots, without having to download them in the computer - not necessarily after every shot!
but each to their own, I like a manual winder (option) mainly just to have a quieter camera - even though the camera is not noisy when you are not holding it close to your face ....
 
epson/cosina has done nice job to make the back of the camera completely FLAT no matter which side is shown of the "door" though the body becomes quite large. Also the outer cover has to be quite sturdy if you take the camera outside in the severe conditions. In that case Rd1 does much better with lcd closed down. It annoys me a lot that there are a wheel on M8 which sticks about almost half centimeter outside. Everyone held camera in some different ways so the placement of wheel might not be ideal for everyone.

Anyway, I think that future technology promises a lot for better compromises of the layout of the body. I always liked minimalist design of analog leica cameras so I hope they could improve the design further.

For me, cameras with LCD are still "fragile" and I have to handle those cameras with care. It is not the same way I could abuse M3 and I really want feel vulcanite when I held camera on both sides. Not something plastic, uneven, slippery, sticking out parts etc. Imagine how I became annoyed when I hold Rd1 when the finger almost slips out way from lcd screen covered with slippery lcd protector or accidentally push some buttons :)

I wrote before that we dont really chimp very often when sensors improves and contains much more DR, ten times more than today. We are able live with films before so we can do now in the same way or did we became already spoiled brats who care to pixelpeep, have AF on M8? I talked about two digital versions of M7 and MP. so I didnt mean that future M8 has to lose LCD but just add another model to complete the program after 10-20 years or something like that.

Leica is the only company who can make most "ridiculous moves". Thats why I have some little hopes there. Of course Canon and Nikon shooters consider me as a silly person as well.
 
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Jamie Pillers said:
I've posted "no LCD" comments in a number of threads here over the past 6 months or so. My thoughts are founded in two ideas, I think:

1) A lot of us would like to see a low-cost (Bessa range) M-mount, APS-C sensor camera offered. Removing the LCD removes cost (considerable?).

2) Personally I sooooooo much more enjoy the photographic experience I have with my film cameras than with digital gear! I think it this has to do with a number of things. Not knowing if I got the exposure right makes me slow down a bit and think about what I'm doing. Not having images to scroll through frees up my mind to look at the world... not the LCD. And of course, the joy of anticipation, waiting for my negatives to arrive... kind of like Christmas morning. :)

I'm not a professional photographer. I can understand why a professional would like the LCD... their living depends on getting the shots right before leaving the assignment. But for me... give me the simplicity of a D-R3a. :)
Click to expand...

My sentiments exactly! Also:
Surely by not having an LCD the bulk and weight of the camera will be reduced? (One of the things that I dislike about the M8 is the slightly larger depth of the body compared with the M7.)
 
I think not having an LCD is handicapping the camera. I have my RD1's LCD turned inward all the time, and only use it when I sit back to review, or need to see the exposure on a very tricky photo, maybe one out of 50 photos; but I would rather have it than not.
also, if the argument is to simplify things, an LCD menu can take out many buttons off the body, so in that respect, it makes sense, I think. The M8, even though not at the toip end of my list of ergonomic cameras, has a very clean button setup.

Plus, form a marketing point of view, an LCD-less M9 will be the last LEICA made.
 
LCD screen without "live view" camera support is only useful in:
  • Setting the camera; and
  • Examining the images after the fact.
To "catch the moment" is best accomplished by gluing your eye on the viewfinder and keep shooting..."no film/processing cost" is cheap.

To ensure good exposure is best accomplished by bracketing...don't worry about "no film/processing cost".

Since this is Rangefinderforum, I presume everyone had accepted that tight framing is not in the shooting protocol.

"To be overly concerned about setting a perfect exposure is a neurosis many people never overcome." (The Photography Catalog on the Leica M4, edited by Norman Snyder, 1976)

Therefore, the best solution is somehow modify an iPod with a mini-USB plug-in to read the camera memory chip (as if its own)...or even copy the contents over; review the pictures, do the RGB bit...after the action.

An iPod screen is much larger, with far better resolution, and iPod can support many more GB...kind of an image vault in your pocket.

How about it, Mr. Jobs? There is much money to be made in this.
 
I'd like to see a film camera with an LCD

I'd like to see a film camera with an LCD

you wouldn't have to look at it of course, but it could come in handy:)
 
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