I will admit, the vast majority of my EVF experience is on the EVF-DC1 and now the EVF-DC2. First, yes, both are dated and I hope the EVFs in the R and RP are technically better. I also hope that the EVF in the upcoming R5 and R6 are even better. Second, for those that care, yes, the DC2 is slightly better than the DC1. Maybe a bit better in resolution, but mostly in tones and color. But, if you are reasonably happy with the DC1, I would not rush out to get the DC2. I mostly have one as I wanted to test it and it was essentially free in a kit with my M6II.
That said, I have been trying to treat the M6II with the DC2 mounted on it as my primary camera for the last two weeks just to see if I could get used to the EVF. I have gotten used to it to the point where it is completely viable. As I know a few other people have been using EVFs, and I thought I could start a discussion and maybe you've found a work around to some of my "cons" or maybe there are other pros/cons that I have not yet considered.
So, my list:
"Pros" to an EVF compared to the OVF:
- Information available. Histograms, levels, settings, you name it, if you've seen it on the back of your camera during Liveview, it can be displayed in the EVF. This is very handy.
- What you see in the EVF is what you will get as your picture. The exposure in the EVF is the same as the image. I find myself making a lot more 1/3 stop type adjustments using the EVF and that some guess work is taken out.
- Love touch and drag on the LCD screen. My nose touches that top left of the screen, so I am set up for touch and drag on the top right portion. My nose does not interfere and this is a great feature. Could they do this for OVFs? Not sure, but they haven't to the best of my knowledge.
"Pros" to an EVF compared to the back of camera LCD:
- I am not sure where this will end up, but I am 500-600 shots taken on the M6 II, plenty of time in menus and looking at photos, and the battery has not lost a bar much less needed to be recharged. EVF shooting seems to save a lot of energy
- Of course, most people prefer shooting with the camera up to your eye.
"Cons" to an EVF compared to an OVF:
- Where the EVF displays what the camera "sees", an OVF displays what you "see." This is actually pretty significant to me and is the negative side of the second bullet. The main issues:
- I can't tell you how many times I've pick up the M6II, thrown it up to my eye and EVF is either black or blown out. Sure, I adjust settings immediately, so knowing my exposure was wrong was useful, but I also lost the feel of the scene/moment. I am a hobbyist, I shoot for fun. It isn't fun to get excited about a scene, throw your camera up and not see that scene.
- DOF is in play here as well. What will be oof in an image is oof in the EVF. The pro is above, what you see in the EVF is what you'll get in the picture, but the con is that while looking through the EVF, your eye cannot dart around assessing the scene unless you are also modifying the focus point.
- DR. Yep, dynamic range. I am not sure what the DR is of the OLED is, but I am pretty sure I've heard that most panels are 8 stops with the best up to 10 stops. What I do know is that the EVF-DC2 does not have enough DR to capture the range of even slightly contrasty scenes. Could this be improved? Maybe. But I am seeing a lot of blown highlights and crushed blacks which do impede your ability to assess the entire scene.
- Eye strain. I have not experienced this yet, as I haven't shot with it continuously up to my eye, but I have read several reports that if you shoot for extended periods of time, an EVF is harder on your eyes than an OVF.
How are other people liking EVFs? Any other pros/cons?
