Sony’s Electronic Viewfinder FDA-EV1MK and the RX100 M2 are a Great Pair

Sony’s Electronic Viewfinder FDA-EV1MK and the RX100 M2 are a Great Pair and this is why.

I got the Sony RX100 M2 as an alternative to having my Canon 5DMkIII strapped to me all the time. In between times of serious shooting I still want a camera with me (all the time) but without the strap and weight. In other words a pocketable camera. I go into why I got this camera here .

So I am happy with it…. right?   Well mostly.   But I have never had a camera without a viewfinder.  And I was having trouble getting used to taking shots at arms length (bent arms) while looking at the LCD.   In addition, the diopter adjustment on my DSLR took care of my reading glasses problem.   But now for the LCD…. I have to have the glasses on when I normally do not wear them unless I am reading or on the computer.   Add to that you can’t really hold the camera as steady if you don’t have it against your head.

But… a Sony EVF would fix that….

But I still wanted the pocketablility that the camera gives me.  Put a EFV on it and its not pocketable any more.

A couple days ago was a very bright day and  I had a problem reading the LCD. I had to use one hand to shade the screen. And I was constantly putting the LCD to my face….. Old dogs……

I called my local shop and they had a really good deal on the EVF’s.

I went down and checked it out. It actually looked smaller than I thought. And the screen was brighter with higher resolution than I was imagining. So I got it.

I spent the afternoon shooting. Here are some of my thoughts.

1. I had no problem with the bright conditions.  I can shoot in any light now

2. Shots are steadier because you are resting the camera on your face.  It made a big difference.  I am guessing a full stop, maybe more.

3. It feels more natural with the EVF.

4. It feels like its better for composing shots.   There is something about a viewfinder that makes you pay more attention to the composition

5. With or without glasses and with some diopter adjust I had no problem seeing 100%.  Some have complained about this but I did not see it.

6. Some have complained about how its a slip fit on the camera with no lock. Well mine felt pretty tight. Its not going to come off unless you really knock it against something hard.

7. It is too high priced.   It should only be about $200.

8. With the small eye guard on it will fit in my pocket….. But I would not do that on a regular basis.

So lets take a look at it.  BTW these shot were done with my iphone and I apologize for the dust.   I guess my bags need to be washed.

Here is the EVF with no eye guard.  Its really pretty small like this.  I thought I might work for me  in this configuration.   But without the eyeguard there is still an issue with bright conditions.

Here it is with the big eye cup or guard.  I think it takes up too much volume and the smaller size was just fine .

So here is a side view with the dipoter slider and the smaller eye guard.

The diopter can be set for normal eyes,  I set it to work without my glasses and without.  Very handy.   Some have complained that this slides to easily and moves.  I have not seen that so far.

Here is the other side with the on manual button.  I am not sure if I will use this as there is a neat little sensor in the upper left of the eye opening that senses that you are there and will turn off the LCD and turn on the EVF.  And when you pull away… the LCD comes back on.

(Aghhh… cant believe the dust…. gotta stop that)

Here is what it looks like from the eye side.

I could not show you with a picture but the view in the EVF is very clear, bright, and high resolution.  You can do manual focus easily with the DMF function.  And I also had good luck focusing without it.   Its not quite as good as the LCD in normal light conditions.   BUT… in bright conditions it was great!

So here it is on the camera.

Oh… and the EVF can be rotated all the way up.

So it has the same capability as the LCD for those low shots.  It will not help with over the head shots… only the LCD can do that…. but hey You have that already!

Here are some shots of the EVF in the Sony case and the case closed.  Its a well made case with a cool magnetic latch.  But…. its too big.   Where am I supposed to put it.   It would look odd in a pocket.  Its much larger, I think, than it needs to be.

So how did I deal with pocketabilty.   Well I already talked about how I do the camera here .

So why not do the same with the EVF when it is not in use.  Here it is sitting on another smaller eyeglass bag.

And here are the EVF and the camera in their bags.

Here is my conclusion. This EVF will provide a lot of good use for me. My plan will be to have the EVF off of the camera most of the time. So EVF will be in a separate small bag in the same or different pocket. All casual shots, where there are going to be just a few shots,….will be without the EVF. Easy out of the pocket and easy back in.

If am at a location where I know I will be there a while and will be taking lots of shots…. On goes the EVF until the camera goes back into the camera.

If I am going to be at a location for a much longer time and/or I will be taking shots primarily for microstock then the DSLR comes out.

As to the price…. well.  Its a great compact camera.  I think its the best pocketable camera with zoom capability and a 1″ sensor!.  I already spent $750… whats another $430 ( yea I got a good deal).   Even $430 can be a lot of money.  BUT… when you do microstock and its extra income….. Then $430 is not so bad anymore.

I think there is a chance that the images from this camera may be good enough for microstock.  I think my next blog post will be on how that works out.