Sony A7 IV Viewfinder Locations

[Gaz]

When I look through the viewfinder on my A7iv it is already familiar but strangely glistening… it’s not like mirror SLR because it reflects the image, light and depth of field that the camera will produce.

I can’t help thinking that it shows me what it is designed for me to see. That duck I see with my eyes through the viewfinder might in reality be a chicken. Did the light really bounce around like that? Etc.

That said, I question why the viewfinder is located in the traditional spot mirrored SLRS have them. Is that the best spot? I mean, the A7C has a viewfinder located to one side, right?

Why is it even attached to the camera? It could be useful at times to hold the camera above my head, and if the viewfinder was remote, I’d still be able to point and click…. so, why have a touchscreen attached? Motorcycle helmets have heads up display these days so you can see what’s going on behind you. Just say “click”.

 

[Uncle Kevriano]

The reason the viewfinder is where it is , is simply because that's been the standard design for many years and people are used to it, and I think it would be weird if it was elsewhere. The offset viewfinder on the smaller cameras is weird btw
I actually love the EVF, because it immediately shows you any exposure changes you make, which makes getting exposure right easier, very important on these high res cameras like the Riv and RV. I could never go back to a DSLR now.
As for why it's attached? The same answer as the first point, but there are plenty of remote screens you could use for what you are suggesting, and they aren't expensive now either.

 

[Brownie]

I too love mirrorrless viewfinders. After messing around with the Minolta 5D and Sony A200 for a while I can't even begin to tell you just how much I hate the viewfinder on a DSLR.

The viewfinder is off to the side on the A7c because it's a rangefinder form. That's where they put the viewfinder on a rangefinder. Tradition, just like having it in the center of an SLR.

Just tilt the screen down and look up.

DSC02983 by Shotglass Photo, on Flickr

 

[Gaz]

It’s the beginning of the matrix! I can look through there and what I can see is very very tasty, but I know it’s completely virtual. It’s completely digital. Is the lens really that sharp. Was that bird flying past my face at 50 miles an hour actually in focus?

I feel like I’m being deceived!

 

[Brownie]

It’s the beginning of the matrix! I can look through there and what I can see is very very tasty, but I know it’s completely virtual. It’s completely digital. Is the lens really that sharp. Was that bird flying past my face at 50 miles an hour actually in focus?

I feel like I’m being deceived!

Maybe you should go back to Nikon DSLRs? Oh, wait...wrong guy...

 

[FowlersFreeTime]

a6xxx & a7c bodies follow the rangefinder style, placing the viewfinder on the left. Since I am right eye dominant, I have no problem with that (well, except I wish it was a bit bigger). If I were left-eye dominant, I think I would hate that, and thus have a preference for the central location on the bigger a7 bodies. So I always figured the "pro" cameras had the eyepiece in the center for ambidextrous reasons

 

[FowlersFreeTime]

Why is it even attached to the camera? It could be useful at times to hold the camera above my head, and if the viewfinder was remote, I’d still be able to point and click…. so, why have a touchscreen attached? Motorcycle helmets have heads up display these days so you can see what’s going on behind you. Just say “click”.

It's a neat concept. You could even sell it as an optional accessory: bluetooth compatible remote viewfinder... But wait, in some regards, we had that functionality already with the Sony imaging app on our smartphones.

Unless you were thinking of something more like this...

 

[Brownie]

So I always figured the "pro" cameras had the eyepiece in the center for ambidextrous reasons

In the DSLR days you were looking directly through the lens via the mirror, which reflected (hence the term 'reflex') the image through the viewfinder. It's stayed there because of tradition, along with the fake pentaprism housing.

There were a lot of weird cameras when digital first came out that moved things around. Having no more need for a film spool on the left side, Minolta shoved everything over to the left on some models. Lens, viewfinder, etc. Eventually sanity returned and everyone mercifully put things right!

 

[AlphaWorld]

I had forgotten how small the rear screens were on some of the early DSLRs.