Just wanted to confirm / get clarification for a couple of things:
- Aperture control is manual so stop down shooting needs to be used right? I.e. open the lens aperture up, focus, then close the aperture down to the required amount, then shoot?
Stopping down will cause the image to darken in the EVF / LCD display, right?
- Does metering / exposure get taken care of by the camera. Will the camera display the shutter speed for a given lens and aperture setting?
Yes, Yes and sort of.
The camera won't know which aperture or focal length you have used but since metering is TTL it will calculate the shutter-speed properly.
SKumar25 wrote:
Stopping down will cause the image to darken in the EVF / LCD display, right?
Depends on the camera and how you have it set up. IIRC, the Sony NEX cameras can be set up with exposure simulation in the EVF/LCD display. The GXR I'm using now doesn't seem to do this. There are good and bad aspects to each. The benefit of the exposure simulation mode is that you can visualize how close you to what you want in terms of exposure. The bad side is that if you want to open up the lens to double check precise focusing, then the image will blow out (assuming you're in manual exposure mode). I actually found this kind of annoying with the NEX-5N and it was one reason I usually left it in aperture priority mode. The Ricoh has been better in this respect, but if I want to be sure of the exposure, I need to set it to display the live histogram.
Also, lenses that have focus shift, such as the ZM 50 f/1.5, CV 35 f/1.4 and CV 40 f/1.4 you'll want to focus at the shooting aperture.
rscheffler wrote:
Depends on the camera and how you have it set up. IIRC, the Sony NEX cameras can be set up with exposure simulation in the EVF/LCD display. The GXR I'm using now doesn't seem to do this. There are good and bad aspects to each. The benefit of the exposure simulation mode is that you can visualize how close you to what you want in terms of exposure. The bad side is that if you want to open up the lens to double check precise focusing, then the image will blow out (assuming you're in manual exposure mode). I actually found this kind of annoying with the NEX-5N and it was one reason I usually left it in aperture priority mode. The Ricoh has been better in this respect, but if I want to be sure of the exposure, I need to set it to display the live histogram.
Also, lenses that have focus shift, such as the ZM 50 f/1.5, CV 35 f/1.4 and CV 40 f/1.4 you'll want to focus at the shooting aperture....Show more →
On the 5N and 7, there is an option to change whether you want the exposure simulated or not. Are you saying that there is no way for the GXR to simulate exposure in the EVF/LCD? If so, that would be a deal breaker for me, as I nearly always focus at shooting aperture.
Douglas, I think live histogram is the only reasonably accurate way to gauge exposure, even more so if I have a preconceived idea of what to do with the image in post pro. Since I don't want to blow highlights on digital no matter what I just keep an eye on the histogram and I focus and shoot at the working aperture.
As for simulated exposure I am not sure whether you can or cannot do this on the GXR, the menu system is a deep well of possibilities.
I don't really think it is that much of a deal breaker for me. It is nothing I would base a camera purchase on as I find working with the rear LCD as an indicator with simulated exposure quite limiting.
There are umpteen other specs/features that matter more to me. Then again, it's all highly personal.
douglasf13 wrote:
On the 5N and 7, there is an option to change whether you want the exposure simulated or not. Are you saying that there is no way for the GXR to simulate exposure in the EVF/LCD? If so, that would be a deal breaker for me, as I nearly always focus at shooting aperture.
That's what I'm saying... The only time I don't like it is when I'm not paying attention to the exposure settings in auto mode. But I generally try to shoot as much in manual as possible and therefore only need the EVF image for composition and checking focus. The live histogram helps a lot. IMO, the biggest deal breaker of the GXR is that it is momentarily inoperable while it's writing to the card. At least with the 5N I could often quickly shoot a second or maybe a third frame before it would bog down.
kosmoskatten wrote:
Douglas, I think live histogram is the only reasonably accurate way to gauge exposure, even more so if I have a preconceived idea of what to do with the image in post pro. Since I don't want to blow highlights on digital no matter what I just keep an eye on the histogram and I focus and shoot at the working aperture.
As for simulated exposure I am not sure whether you can or cannot do this on the GXR, the menu system is a deep well of possibilities.
I don't really think it is that much of a deal breaker for me. It is nothing I would base a camera purchase on as I find working with the rear LCD as an indicator with simulated exposure quite limiting.
There are umpteen other specs/features that matter more to me. Then again, it's all highly personal. ...Show more →
I still always use the live histogram on the 5N, but having the exposure simulated in the EVF also allows me to quickly get close to the correct exposure since I'm always in M or S mode, and, more importantly, makes the EVF bright and easy to see for focusing and composing. How do you manually focus the GXR if you're shooting in low-ish light and the EVF is dark?
douglasf13 wrote:
How do you manually focus the GXR if you're shooting in low-ish light and the EVF is dark?
The mode 2 'predator' focus assist is quite good in poor light conditions.
I went out a bit with the GXR today and paid attention to the EVF. It does change brightness as you adjust the shutter speed or aperture, so it would seem to mimic exposure simulation in the NEX series. I hadn't really noticed this before because I use the camera 90% of the time with focus assist mode 2 active, which is the monochromatic edge enhancement mode. What I like about this is if you're in manual exposure mode and want to quickly open up the lens to fine tune precise focus, it compensates for the change in exposure by keeping the viewfinder focus assist image the same brightness. It's once you half press on the shutter release to disable focus assist that you see the simulated exposure.
rscheffler wrote:
The mode 2 'predator' focus assist is quite good in poor light conditions.
I went out a bit with the GXR today and paid attention to the EVF. It does change brightness as you adjust the shutter speed or aperture, so it would seem to mimic exposure simulation in the NEX series. I hadn't really noticed this before because I use the camera 90% of the time with focus assist mode 2 active, which is the monochromatic edge enhancement mode. What I like about this is if you're in manual exposure mode and want to quickly open up the lens to fine tune precise focus, it compensates for the change in exposure by keeping the viewfinder focus assist image the same brightness. It's once you half press on the shutter release to disable focus assist that you see the simulated exposure. ...Show more →
Yeah, I would never consider opening up a lens to focus with these mirrorless cameras.
With the NEX, if you're using M or A mode, half pressing the shutter button locks exposure.
Douglas; what Ron said.
I might have misunderstood your question, I realize that now.
You can set the GXR to lock exposure in multiple ways. I prefer not to have it on the shutter button, but it comes from back when I was shooting film. Residual habit.
