Going from DSLR to R... does the lack of a top deck LCD bother you?

jumpthesnark wrote:

CamerEyes wrote:

jumpthesnark wrote:

CamerEyes wrote:

Do you miss the usual dials on your dashboard when driving a car that has digital tachometer, speedometer? Do you miss having a key to open the doors of your car, and to start your engine? Do you miss receiving a telegram from your distant relatives, versus today's instant messaging?

Do you miss the point?

Welcome to the second generation of digital photography. You are the one missing the point.

The transition to modern mirrorless from your jurassic DSLR is not meant to be easy on people who may have developed stubborn resistance to make their muscle memories more malleable. That you are holding your decision hostage by that feature you are so afraid to miss is only at the expense of benefiting from better, faster, more sophisticated yet overall easier to operate cameras.

It's like demanding the return of physical keyboards in the iPhone or whatever popular Android smartphone is out there. Craving for dial up internet versus today's fiber because you miss the sound it makes when connecting.

The point, once again, is that I like the features and abilities that the R6MkII has and I'm considering a purchase. But it lacks a feature that I find useful. I will continue to find that feature useful for certain kinds of photography I do, where using the back screen and the EVF aren't the answer. Knowing this, I started this thread with the question of how long it took others who felt the same way to find themselves comfortably able to use the new gear without feeling that it's lacking something. I never, not once, said that progress is bad, which seems to be the theme of your replies.

Your insinuation that I am "stubborn" and "holding (my) decision hostage" isn't reflected in anything I asked. And most importantly, that insinuation and the rest of your post exist in your head, not in mine. You don't know how I work or what I do or what I need and want from a camera. You also don't know that I only have a "Jurassic DSLR." You have no idea of my experience and ownership of mirrorless cameras, you are only making assumptions.

That said, thanks for your input. It has zero value to me but maybe someone here will get some benefit from your replies. It seems like you just came into this thread to pick a fight. I do not know why. If my post made you angry for some reason that I can't understand, then I apologize for that. But if you're just doing this because you like arguing on the internet and you want to feel you won something, then here, have a trophy and show yourself the door.

In the first place, read this:

About the only issue I have with the design of those cameras is the missing LCD screen on the right side of the top deck. I am so used to checking important settings by just glancing at the LCD on my Canon DSLRs.

You added it "lacks a feature" - classic deficit thinking, behaviorally a sign of resistance to change.

That said, overcoming deficit thinking:

The EVF on both my R7 and R6Mii is populated with information most people who have made the transition find useful, if it too useful, in fact. It tells me the usual settings, not viewable in the traditional top window analog display, including the focal length at which I am shooting, etc. If the goal is to ensure you have the right settings before you click the shutter button, or just a comfort zone kind of thing that you need to glance one more time to double-check settings, both the EVF and the display on live view gives you much more information than what the traditional DSLR can. It can also be paired with a smartphone, where settings can be controlled and manipulated, from a distance. This is something that takes some getting used to, again, because most people prefer to shoot within the touching distance of the camera, whereas several new features in the RF-mount bodies allow greater flexibility.

My 7DII and 5DMIV allowed me to do some of these things. Having played with other mirrorless cameras before transitioning to the R series enabled me to become comfortable with new, more digital features. I went from Canon DSLR while using mirrorless Lumix, mirrorless Sony - where most of the settings and related information can be viewed on the EVF and display, anyway.

Muscle memory is a terrific thing. It enables a jockey to communicate effectively with his/her winning horse. A surgeon with his winning medical team.

This is photography - where technology is supposed to facilitate the creation of art. The sooner we integrate all these new technologies into our shooting styles and work flows, the better photographers we can become.