Live view display

This is intended as being a discussion of the live view function on your cameras; when you use it, how you use it, why you use it, and even if you use it;
one of the first things people notice about digital cameras is, many of the lower end, so called compact cameras don't even have view finders any more; with a camera having no view finder, the display on the back is all you have left; the second thing people find out, (especially if it's sunny) is that most displays range from, "can't hardly see it", to "completely worthless" if there's any sun light. This isn't quite as big of a problem with D SLR's as it is with compact P&S cameras, but it can still be a problem. As everyone knows, all D SLR's do have a view finder; the problem being, until you get up to the FX bodies, the view finders on, all? Most? DX bodies are.........well.......leave a lot to be desired; (especially if you happen to be more than about 14 yrs old, and if you have "less" than perfect vision; ( I'm WAY outside the ball park on both counts, and I'm thinking others may be also? )

I have personally been dealing with the problems associated with dinky view finders and too much sun/light to even see the LCD display now, ever since I quit shooting film and had to start using my F-5 for a paperweight. I have noticed a few of the "gadgets" that the aftermarket always seems to come up with, (such as the Hoodman loupe for the LCD), even bought a Hoodman and it's ..........better than nothing? Lately I have been noticing one of the advertisers on NRF has an even better "gadget" for the LCD; A company named Zacuto makes a whole line of rather "pricey" gadgets called "Z finders" which attach to the LCD and not only block out ALL the extraneous light, but also offer 3X magnification of it. I think these things are primarily aimed at people who shoot lots of video with their D SLR's. I don't do lots of video, but I decided to find out about our advertiser's gadget anyway, so I bought one. Describing it would require quite a lot of typing, which I'm willing to do, IF anyone has any interest in it. I will say this, (inasmuch as I don't think Hoodman is one of NRF's advertisers); actually it's not really fair to attempt to make a comparison because of the cost difference; it's probably better to say, the Z finder looks a lot more like something you would expect get from RRS; Gadget or no gadget, I still want to hear what others have to say about live view. ( I think I'm going to be using it a lot more than I have been.)