Monday, November 10, 2008

What's good about my old digicam

My new DSLR (D90) has opened up a lot of photography possibilities for me, yet in some ways I think digicams still have a significant role to play. DSLR, by virtue of the pentaprism, makes a sound when the shutter is released. Ah, I miss the moments when I could snap quietly without announcing to the unsuspecting public "Hey, I am taking a picture of you!" This, coupled with my tilting Live View LCD, has enabled me to take many pictures in public places. I simply place my old Sony F717 at waist level and shoot, looking as if I was just fidgeting with my camera.

The other day when I went to the Derby Day races, I took my D90 with me. It seemed like I was the only one with a DSLR, although there were a few others with small pocket cameras. Subdued by my self-consciousness, I ended up not taking very many pictures. I would have taken more if I had a little digicam with me.

Some side notes.....
The lines are already starting to blur between DSLR and digicam.
1. DSLR's are beginning to sport Live View and articulated LCD. Leica and Panasonic already introduced articulated LCD with Live View in their DSLR one year ago. Olympus introduced articulated Live View LCD in its newly launched E-30, while Sony also has tilting Live View LCD (e.g. A350). Hopefully, it won't be long before Canon and Nikon add articulated or tilting LCD to their Live View. Shooting from waist level gives a more correct perspective to photographing people.
2. Hybrids may one day sport DSLR-size sensor. The Panasonic DMC-G1 uses Micro Four-Thirds sensor and does away with the pentaprism. This reduces the size of the camera, while allowing for interchangeable lens. I am hoping that this sensor may also find its way to some future digicams that will be small enough to carry in the pocket, yet gives SLR-level image quality.

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