Thursday, November 8, 2012

Nikon D600 Live View WYSIWYG Workaround

The Nikon D600's Live View Photo mode is not WYSIWYG.  Changing the aperture, shutter speed and ISO while in Live View Photo mode will not show any changes to the Live View Photo display.  You won't see any change to the depth of field, blur, or noise.  Changes to exposure compensation show up only within a range of +/- 3EV (or -3 to +1EV when it's dark).  Many people would prefer WYSIWYG although one advantage of the non-WYSIWYG is that it's easier to work with when you are using flash and you are deleting the ambient light.

Anyhow, I found out that you can see the depth of field in Live View Photo mode.  The trick is to select the aperture before you activate live view.  If you do this, then the Live View image will show the actual depth of field for the chosen aperture.  A couple of notes:
- After Live View is activated, changing the aperture will not show any changes to the depth of field in the Live View display.)
- If you select a narrow aperture, it will be harder for the camera to focus.
- When I want to change the aperture and see the change in DOF, I change the aperture even while LV is active.  Then I just press the LV button once to deactivate it and press it again to activate it.  It's smoother to me than exiting LV, changing the aperture, and reactivating LV.

6 comments:

  1. "When I want to change the aperture and see the change in DOF, I change the aperture even while LV is active. Then I just press the LV button once to deactivate it and press it again to activate it. It's smoother to me than exiting LV, changing the aperture, and reactivating LV. "

    Of course, this is the same number of steps, just in a different order.

    Anyway, thanks for the tip about using a large aperature to focus, then stopping down. I didn't realize the acutal DOF was shown in LV.

    I had noticed how little can be changed realtime. I have been dissappointed/frustrated with the LV implementation on the D600 and have used it very little thus far. I wonder if Nikon is purposely dumbing it down? I mean, why no DOF preview or histogram showing actual exposure BEFORE taking the shot?

    I have even considered switching to the Sony A99 with it's far superior LV modes, especially since the viewfinder can be used for either movies or stills. Have you tried shooting movies with the D600 in bright sun? What a joke...

    So, for critical work, based on what you say here, I think I'll 1.) use a single focus point (max aperature), focus on the subject, then set the lens to manual focus, 2.) Set the target aperature, switch to LV to check DOF and how subject fits into focus range 3.) Evaluate and set the exposure at target aperature, then 4) Take the shot.

    Do you put the eyepiece cover on when doing LV? I see that Nikon recommends this in the manual.

    Cheers, KLB (same Anonymous in handgrip thread)

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    1. Hi Ken. Thanks for checking out the blog.

      Re the steps I use, it is literally the same number of steps, but when I double-tap the LV button it is similar to doing both of those in one step (kind of like double-clicking your mouse). Try it -- I can almost guarantee it's faster than the normal way.

      Nikonrumors says there is a firmware update coming for the D600 that may address some of the Live View issues.

      I think the steps you use for critical work sound good but I recommend focusing while in live view, whether you use manual focus or autofocus (contrast detect) it will be more accurate than phase detection AF. So, to tweak your steps:
      1. Change to the widest aperture, switch to LV, focus on subject, after focusing switch to manual focus so the focus is locked.
      2. Change the aperture to the desired aperture, double tap the LV button to narrow down the aperture and show the depth of field.
      3. Set the exposure (ISO, shutter). If you also need to readjust aperture go back to #2.
      4. Take the shot (with mirror up mode and/or with exposure delay turned on), with a remote shutter release if possible.

      Yes for critical work I would find some way to cover the viewfinder because otherwise the light coming in from the viewfinder can affect the exposure. (One of these days I will do a post to show the difference.)

      Best regards,
      Mic

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  2. I am intrigued by the Hoodman viewing loupe. It looks like a well-made solution to better seeing the LCD in live view, especially in bright light, whether for stills or video. http://www.hoodmanusa.com/

    By the way, at 1400 shots, I have to clean the D600 sensor for the 2nd time. I only have the 24-85 VR lens and don't take it off except during sensor cleaning. I ordered the Visible Dust 7x inspection loupe, Sensor Pen and a FF sensor brush. I already have the Giottos blower and some wet cleaning supplies. This is annoying to have to deal with, but I guess it's the price to pay for being an early adopter. I sure do like the D600 results though!

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    1. Thanks Ken.

      Re dust sorry to hear about that. But i agree it's worth the trouble. Anyway i plan to do a follow up post soon re dust.

      Best regards,
      Mic

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  3. Any chance you know of whether or not the D600 will show exposure adjustments in LV?

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    1. Hi Rikki. Changing the aperture, shutter speed and ISO while in Live View Photo mode will not show any changes to the Live View Photo display. You won't see any change to the depth of field, blur, or noise. However, changes to exposure compensation show up within a range of +/- 3EV (or -3 to +1EV when it's dark). I hope that helps.

      Best regards,
      Mic

      Delete

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