magnifying eyecup = awesome.

[mattdm]

With the economy how it is and all, hobby budget indulgences have been forced down from thinking "hmmm, FA 77mm or DA★ 50-135mm" to "what's under fifty bucks?" So, with the itch to buy somethin' camera related, I picked up the O-ME53 magnifying viewfinder (http://www.pentaximaging.com/accessories/Viewfinder_Loupe_0-ME53/).

After using it for a few days, I have to say wow — this is a must-have, especially for thirty-five bucks. I really wish I had purchased it before. The 1.2× magnification doesn't seem that amazing, but suddenly my ability to tell what's in focus and what's out of focus is improved by a lot more than 20%. It feels like double, in fact.

The only caveat is: it's no good if you shoot wearing glasses. I normally wear contacts, and with my eye right to the viewfinder, the vignetting is insignificant. I have to be a bit more careful about where exactly I put my eye, but it's easy to get the hang of it. However, when I tried with my glasses on, I discovered that the edges of the frame are significantly obscured, to the point where the status line is invisible.

So the bottom line is: if you have a Pentax dSLR and don't wear glasses, this is a must-buy. If you do, consider getting contact lenses.

I don't think Canon currently makes anything like this, but Nikon does (http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Eyepieces/25339/DK-21M-Magnifying-Eyepiece.html), and since it looks almost identical I assume the above comments apply to y'all as well.

[Phill D]

Same goes for Olympus too. I use one all the time.

[Csae]

!

I'd like to get a contact made for my prescription and just stick it in the plastic holder for my very own custom viewfinder :D

That'd actually be nice :( I know my camera does -3 +3, but thats not enough and its not the best.

Im pretty sure anyone could buy one from pentax/nikon/okympus and just take out the little glass and stick it in a canon viewfinder. I doubt that they would be different.

[Prospero]

Thanks for posting your findings.
I lost the eyecup of my camera years ago, so I always shoot without an eyecup. If I'll buy a new one I will definitly consider one that magnifies.

[raven15]

I have also considered an eyecup magnifying piece. When I looked at the Olympus one on Amazon I was surprised about how many reviews were by Canon users, does Canon really not make them? I am still on the fence about whether I would find it useful for my purposes, much as I would like a larger viewfinder.

[GaryS]

Interesting... Now I want one, that apparently Canon doesn't make. :(

[seanhoxx]

What about Sony? I bet they don't have one, so Sony will make a Sony only one at 3 times the price arghh! but interesting, I wear contacts and they are 'zoned' kind of like bi focals, the right eye is my close vision and my left is for my distance vision, a recent change in my RX. and I have found it difficult to see clearly in my viewfinder.

[Phill D]

Raven I was in two minds as well because several reviews I saw people complained about the Oly one falling off/ getting in the way. It seemed like the Pentax or Panasonic ones were better on the net. I bought the Oly one in the end at B&H, didn't try the others out though but they apparently both fit. Anyway mine has never been off the camera since I bought it, seems like a good fit & hasn't fallen off. Magnification isn't huge so don't expect miracles but I think it was worth the $35 I paid for it.

[raven15]

Alright, I'll look into the other (Pentax and Panasonic?) brands too. My budget is more limited recently, but I may have enough change left over to get such a thing this week. My eyepiece has been falling off pretty easily recently anyhow, after I removed it a couple times to clean it.

[jekostas]

I've been looking into some manual focus Hexanon lenses for fun... this might just be the thing.

[Visual Reality]

Wouldn't this skew your interpretation of focal length and framing?

[raven15]

No, it only affects the image coming through the viewfinder. The light coming through the lens and hitting the mirror doesn't change. It doesn't crop the image you see, in other words.

[Visual Reality]

No, it only affects the image coming through the viewfinder. The light coming through the lens and hitting the mirror doesn't change. It doesn't crop the image you see, in other words.
Read my post again :cool:

[Csae]

Hes right though, i get what you mean, if by what you mean is to pre-visualise the image before using the camera.

Ie training your eye to see in 35mm style, the magnifying eyecup wouldnt change the image that you would see, ie it would be the same framing, it would just be stretched bigger.

[raven15]

It would not skew your interpretation of focal length and it would not skew your interpretation of framing.

I hope that is more clear. :)

[Visual Reality]

Maybe I need to see a demonstration then...I thought if you magnified the image, the focal length appears longer than it is.

[raven15]

Actually, it may depend on the camera. It is meant to cure "tunnel vision" on entry level cameras by magnifying the image to cover the tunnel. If your camera doesn't suffer this problem, it may magnify the image so much you can't see the edges.

[mattdm]

Maybe I need to see a demonstration then...I thought if you magnified the image, the focal length appears longer than it is.

You can take an image from a 50mm lens and print it at 4"×6". Or, you could print it at 5×7½. The framing and the focal length are unchanged -- one's just bigger.


Actually, it may depend on the camera. It is meant to cure "tunnel vision" on entry level cameras by magnifying the image to cover the tunnel. If your camera doesn't suffer this problem, it may magnify the image so much you can't see the edges.

The viewfinder on even medium-priced and "prosumer" dSLRs tend to be small compared to even many cheap film SLRs. The key thing is that the eyepoint is reduced: in order to see the edges, your eye must be closer to the viewfinder. This is why I say it's a no-go with glasses (although some people seem to feel it's worth the tradeoff), and even without glasses it may take a little getting used to.

Even if you think your camera doesn't suffer from a poor viewfinder (the one in my K10D is actually pretty good), I still recommend you try this. You may be pleasantly surprised.

[raven15]

You preaching to the choir, I'm getting mine in the mail tomorrow :D.

[Phill D]

So did your world suddenly get bigger ;) ?

[raven15]

Yes... noticeably so ( I don't know what all the whiners were talking about unless they have glasses)... and it looks distinctly more Chinese too.

[Phill D]

Yes but I doubt that has much to do with the magnifyer ;). Look forward to seeing some shots of China.

[raven15]

Thanks. First I need to work on feeling comfortable pulling my camera out. Since there are four white people in this small town of 800,000 I already have people who stop in their tracks and watch as I go by, and if I am carrying the camera they eye that too (but less so with the pancake lens). So far many more Chinese have seen my viewfinder than I have seen through it.

[downtrodden]

So wait, i'm confused, canon doesn't make one, but... other brands will fit on canon cams right?

[Phill D]

I think that's correct but I'd wait to get that confirmed by someone who has actually done it for your specific camera before you buy.

[downtrodden]

Well I don't mind wasting 35 bucks and experimenting- but if someone knows for sure, that would help!

[raven15]

Several of the reviews on Amazon were by 30D users. I think a minor modification was required, but you'd have to look.

[raven15]

One unforeseen consequence of a larger viewfinder is that it is now too big. I have to keep looking at the corners of the viewfinder thinking "Is every thing good in that corner? How about in that other corner? On the top? Now how about the side? Ok is that first corner still OK? " Before, I could quickly assess the framing in my "tunnel" viewfinder in just one or two glances.

I'm not complaining too much though, as far as I'm concerned the magnifier was a permanent addition.

[Csae]

I was looking at this one not too long ago :

http://www.gadgetinfinity.com/product.php?productid=16893&cat=267&page=1

I'd find that very useful so i can really check my focus, then just flip it out of the way and check the composure. It'd be helpful for macro stuff and or just tripod related stuff like scenerys i guess.

I wonder if i could see any front/back autofocusing problems with it : o

Negative, is that i find it a bit on the expensive side, and it looks like it turns the viewfinder into a round thing even when its flipped up.

[raven15]

anybody bought from amazon?

I got mine from Amazon/Adorama
Olympus EYECUP ME-1 MAGNIFIER (http://www.amazon.com/Olympus-260234-EYECUP-ME-1-MAGNIFIER/dp/B000CBSGYE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1238389973&sr=1-1)



I was looking at this one not too long ago :

Too big for me. I just have the little add-on piece.

[downtrodden]

I just got the eyecup from olympus mentioned in the first post and here are my thoughts so far!

1. It fits without any modification on the 40D, with thaqt said however, there is some extra rubber padding at the bottom, like literally less than a millimeter, you'll want to shave off so the cup will rest neatly in place *not necassary will just make it fit better*

2. It's actually a minute improvement, but i can see a clear difference- for me and my blind ass, it will help with composition. You can still clearly see the camera settings at the bottom of the window and there is a little bit of vignetting in the corners, however, it's so small that it doesn't effect the image much or hinder your view significantly.

3. it stickes out from the camera a little bit so maybe my cheek or nose won't be smearing across my LCD as much now. (left eye dominant)


I would definitely recommend to any of my friends to pick one up. It's to me, inexpensive and effective. Not stellar and not a miracle- but just effective. If you're on a bydget and you have no problem seeing through your viewfinder than thgat 35 bucks would probably best be spent elsewhere.

[downtrodden]

PS: with all that said though, it doesn't snap into place like the canon eyecup does, so it can pop off...