<<It's rare that you see people use the viewfinder, most preferring to compose on the easy to see LCD.>>

Larry: I agree that it's tough to get sharp images when holding the camera away from your body, but the problem is created by the user.

Most digicams do have an optical viewfinder.

Well, they do today, but the trend is to digicams without any viewfinder; you must use the LCD monitor to compose.

I agree that this design is less than ideal.

IF they are going to insist on an LCD-only display, it would be nice if they would put it in a waist-level viewfinder configuration, like the old TLRs (and the Rollei TLR-lookalike digicam.) This would also allow for the use of a shading hood, which would improve usability of the LCD screens in daylight.

-EdT.

"The fault lies not in the stars, but in we ourselves". Some people never got the hang of using viewfinders with their accompanying paralax error; they were/are forever cutting off heads in close ups. Sometimes one has to take the time to learn how to use thr equipment and shoot a bit "fat" and crop on the easel.
But therein lies the rub; many folks are looking for the perfect shot w/o any post processing or after the fact thought about composition. While it is possible to do so, it does take a bit of experimentation and anaylsis to know where to cut off will be. Many, I suspect, find it easier to compose with the LCD rather than work at their photography.
BTW, wasn't the EVF supposed to solve the paralax error problem?

I would suggest you take a look at: www.hoodmanusa.com/

Hoods for LCD viewfinders have been available for some time. They are not expensive and work well. I am surprised the camera manufacturers apparently have not taken notice or the designers have never seen apparently, a camera with a folding hood for the viewfinder, ala Rolleiflex and many others.

Hi,
One of the fairly recent Leica/Panasonic digicams did have a very nice folding hood, ala a Speedgraphic back, but I think it is now history.

It's not just a folding hood that makes it work, it's a hood with a built in magnifier like the Xtend-a-view. That's what I've been using on all my prosumer digital cameras. It allows you to focus when you're holding the hood against your eye, very much like a SLR:
[url=http://photosolve.com/main/product/xtendaview/index.html]Photosolve.com[/url]

Hi,
I agree Larry. I sometimes use a Horizon 4X loupe for 2-1/4
film which I attach with a small strip of black gaffer's tape. It works like a charm and it has diopter correction to boot.

I think that the perspective here is wrong. The basic dsign of the digital camera is not flawed. I think that if you want to use a digital camera, and are concerned about the images produced, then your concerns should be brought into consideration when purchasing a camera. Perhaps a Nikon Coolpix 3200 would not fit you well; you should consider something closer to an d-slr, or even a d-slr itself. It seems to me that most point-and-shoot digcams were not built necessarily with quality in mind. Most people who buy them just want to use them for snapshots, and the LCD allows them to do this quickly. It seems to me that if you are seriouse abotu quality, you should purchase for quality.

Someting that does bother me are the sub-dslr cameras on teh market that are using lcd displays in the viewfinder. To me, this hinders compositoins and is almost a step backward!

I'm going to disagree. You're missing the point. It's not the people who purchase DSLRs or understand photography basics. Its the zillions of consumer digital camera users that have to hold the camera at arms length to see and compose on the LCD. They're the ones who probably average more unsharp images than not. If they had been using even disposable (film) cameras, they would be holding it up to their eye to compose. Call it the lure of the LCD.

I am new to digital photography...I had a Minolta 7000i (???) but did not take too many photos...I know this sounds silly, but film cost, going to pick up pictures, dealing with counter people who are rude, just never really got inot it...camera was much better than the idiot who owned it (me)...I just bought Olympus C-770 UZ on the net and await its arrival...looking forward to taking practice pictures at no cost...odd situation about purchase...I wanted the C-770 in black (net pictures of it look beautiful) but silver is the only color sold in the USA...black is sold only outside USA (why???)...tried two internet photo dealers in Britain, both had black, neither shipped outside UK...tried Ebay, one for sale, owner said he shipped worldwide from Britain, but it was used, not new...would really like a new one in black...anyway, looking forward to playing with new camera when it gets here...almost bought a Panasonic Z5 with 12X optical zoom (black, obviously) but went Olympus instead...I sure hope Olympus is a quality camera like my old Minolta...

Bob

Could not agree more. I don't like the trend of no view finders. My first 2mp point and shoot had a pretty good viewfinder that was rangefinder accurate. My latest point and shoot digital has one but it is all but useless. Being old school and still do alot of film it is instinct to use the viewfinder, I can't imagine someone learning now with the new stuff. I use a small tripod as a rule if I want a good shot with my digicam. What is needed is a "students" digital slr, I mean bare bones, no auto focus, dials for shutter speed, and a dial setting for apeture, manual all the way, put the money into the ccd or cmos and make the lcd like a viewfinder, it would save if money and end the glare problem with lcd's, whoever gets there first I think could create a loyal market with young and old photographers alike.

cld, there are several cures for the problem you are having with being able to frame up the picture.
1-buy an slr, more expensive than the p&s, but you get reflex viewing and full manual control including focus.
2-buy an electronic viewfinder camera, low res viewfinder may be a problem ,though.
3-learn how to correct for parralax error (caused by the displacement of the lens/viewfinder) with your current p&s. This is usually only a problem when you are up close, however. The same problem exists with a film or digital camera. What did you do before you had an LCD?
Many of the "prosumer" digitals have all the features you are looking for, manual control of exposure and focus, etc., as well as a rotating LCD that allows for better viewing of the image. You can also shade it with your hat brim.