For those who don't like the X100's...

Many people seem to regard the viewfinder critical to their photography, in this thread. I wonder about that.

I know I felt exactly that way, back in DSLR days. I remember I still harbored that feeling when I got my first Fuji Mirrorless. I mean, I love the beautiful, bright, huge viewfinder on my X-T2.

But, when I got the Ricoh GR, I learned to shoot blind, from the hip. Blind shooting can be astonishingly powerful. You can talk to people, while quietly "fidgeting with something", and without breaking eye contact or shoving a big box in your face, take a picture. This sounds way more creepy than it is. Imagine taking a picture of your child without interrupting your play. Or taking a picture of a scenery while walking/talking with a friend. Or taking a picture while riding your bike. Or driving a car.

Ever since, I alternate freely between viewfinder and back screen (on cameras that have both). And I am quite comfortable with shooting screen-only. Honestly, I used the X100T mostly hand-held, which probably explains why I didn't gel with it. Somehow, a fixed wide-angle just begs to be shot blindly, to me.

I wonder how much of my prior reliance on the viewfinder was essentially a vestigial phobia from my DSLR days.

Anyway, this should in no way be taken as a criticism of viewfinder-shooting. Not having a viewfinder is definitely a disadvantage. But, to me at least, there are certain styles of shooting that don't require one.