Panasonic DMC LX3 and use of viewfinder

[Pablito]

A number of threads here have danced around this issue but none has addressed it directly:

Has anyone actually used the VC 25mm finder with the LX2 @ 24mm, with the 3:2 aspect ratio and if so, was it reasonably accurate?

The VC viewfinder is cheaper than the Panasonic VF, which also seems to be not available.

Thanks for any responses.

[photomoof]

I am using it, and it is close enough. I stopped by Adorama today still no finders. I wish the CV mini was available in a 24, that is the best finder around.

There is a problem with the CV finder, the flash does not clear it. I already owned one, don't buy it however just to save a few bucks.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=64803&d=1225731308

[Pablito]

Thanks, the photo you posted is really useful also because it gives a sense of the scale. (I have 21mm CV finder which is the same size as the 25mm so I can appreciate the size of the camera in relation to the finder..) The Panasonic finder cannot be found anywhere, the camera is not available in black either, out of stock everywhere unless you're wiling to pay a HUGE premium. I ordered a sliver one, maybe I'll hit it with Krylon:D

[photomoof]

Thanks, the photo you posted is really useful also because it gives a sense of the scale. (I have 21mm CV finder which is the same size as the 25mm so I can appreciate the size of the camera in relation to the finder..) The Panasonic finder cannot be found anywhere, the camera is not available in black either, out of stock everywhere unless you're wiling to pay a HUGE premium. I ordered a sliver one, maybe I'll hit it with Krylon:D

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The finder is on the way to me!! :p:p

I have seen the silver camera, it looks quite cool actually.

[photomoof]

Much smaller, and I can easily see the full frame with my glasses on.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=65315&stc=1&d=1227207667

[Pablito]

You got the last one. I also ordered one from them, their website said it was in stock, then they send me an e-mail saying they had cancelled my order.

Incidentally, the camera is fantastic. You don't need the instruction book at all!

[photomoof]

You got the last one. I also ordered one from them, their website said it was in stock, then they send me an e-mail saying they had cancelled my order.

Incidentally, the camera is fantastic. You don't need the instruction book at all!

For the average not overly equipment fetish-y person like me, it is perhaps the best camera I have ever owned for wide angle shooting.

Don't tell anyone, but... If I had a choice between an M8 and this camera I would pick this camera hands down, and I have used both. A little barrel distortion you have to be aware of, but I can deal with it.

Amazing viewfinder by the way! Just plain fun to use.

[S2C]

Does the LX3's viewfinder (DMW-VF1) display data such as camera settings, exposure meter, etc?

[photomoof]

Does the LX3's viewfinder (DMW-VF1) display data such as camera settings, exposure meter, etc?

No it is not electronic, you have to set the camera at hyper-focal, or auto focus. You can easily hear the autofocus lock.

[S2C]

No it is not electronic, you have to set the camera at hyper-focal, or auto focus. You can easily hear the autofocus lock.

Thanks for replying. So it's just a scope atop of the LX3? Not even camera settings is displayed inside the viewfinder?

[Benjamin Marks]

I have been using the C/V 28/35 mini finder. It is not qui - i -i -i-te wide enough for the 16:9 aspect ratio at the widest setting, but if you look to the absolute edges of the frame, you get a good sense of what is there. Also it is small, silver like my version of the camera and does not block the flash.

Now: I tend to use the camera in its 16:9 mode most often at the widest setting. This is a landscape-y sort of mode. If I am taking a portrait, I am mostly concerned with the center third of the frame, for which the 28/35 finder works fine. For WYSIWYG, use the camera's screen.

And yes. All of the options discussed are essentially a metal tube with lenses inserted. No camera linkage, no zooming. Mainly the aux finder keeps me from taking pictures with both arms out in front of me (the "un-steady-cam" posture). Don't get too worked up about it.

I have been using the camera for about two weeks and find it fun. I would not, as a poster on The Online Photographer suggested, choose it over my M8. That's a little hyperbolic. They are different beasts, used for different things. But for the price, it's great to have in a coat pocket.

Ben Marks

[photomoof]

Thanks for replying. So it's just a scope atop of the LX3? Not even camera settings is displayed inside the viewfinder?

Yes it is just pure optical, no info.