How important is a live view?

well i have the a300 and i only use the live view when i'm in an awkward shooting where its hard to get my eye up to the viewfinder. so i would say if you have the extra cash go for it. but if your tight on money your not really missing out
 
I thought Live View was a bit of a gimmick but I knew in the back of my mind it would provide some use... and so it proved to be.

My photo agency sent me to photograph a band performing at London's Apple Store (quite marvelously Apple asked for me!). There were two photographers and we were plaved in a make shifted cordened off area behind about 8 rows of seating and in front of the people standing. The stage was not raised in any way. With everyone sitting down it was fine but the band came on and before they played a single note the front man told everyone that they should be standing up! Up they went and I couldn't see a thing! The odd glimpse allowed me to focus allowing me to switch the lens to manual focus. I engaged the live view so I could compose the shots from above my head. Naturally most of them were not sharp, especially as it was a badly lit stage so I had a small depth of field to play with. But a couple of them were and that was a couple more than I could have got otherwise. Photos uploaded to the agency - everybody was happy.

(My arty back of crowd grooving to the band weren't really any good...).

Still would never use live view if I had a clear sight of my subject. Ever.
 
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I always thought i was useless....

Find it much easier to position it to my eye. Pictures are more steady. Come out clearer etc..
 
I'm torn between the Sony alpha 200 and the alpha 300. One difference is that the 200 does not have a live view lcd but it does have a better viewfinder. It is the opposite with the a300. Both are on special today with two lens...a200 is $549 and the a300 is $599. I really have been impressed with the Sony cameras from what I've seen and read. Any advice between the two? Also, does anyone think I am waaaayyyy off base and need to consider another brand/model.

Happy Holidays Frank

A lot of people are saying that live view is useless, but it has its place. I use the viewfinder well over 99.999% of the time, but there are times where the camera needs to be held at some distance away from me. The only way to get a better sense of whether I'm getting the shot or not is live view (and I'm strictly talking about fleeting moments, not portrait sessions).
 
Another way to look at it is: Why is everyone including it in many of their cameras? There sure must be a lot of folks out there that do like live preview or I don't think manufacturers would be incur the extra cost in building cameras if people (general public) didn't want it. Live preview helps sell cameras, even if many who want the feature are coming from point-n-shoots.
 
I actually forgot that my camera has live view until I re-read this thread!
I guess that confirms I'm in the "I think it's useless" category.
 
Another way to look at it is: Why is everyone including it in many of their cameras? There sure must be a lot of folks out there that do like live preview or I don't think manufacturers would be incur the extra cost in building cameras if people (general public) didn't want it. Live preview helps sell cameras, even if many who want the feature are coming from point-n-shoots.

It's called marketing. There is a vast market for the shooter that wants to move from point and shoot to DSLR's. They used the LCD to frame their shots because 1. they didn't like, understand how to use the tiny viewfinder or 2. they had a camera that didn't have a view finder. To them that is what a camera should have.

Take a look at this forum itself. The most posted to forum with the most threads is the beginner forum. Scroll through the posts at the types of questions being asked.

Same thing with other things that are marketed. How many serious photographers bought the 5D MII because it does video vs the number that bought it for the real improvements it brought in the Canon line at that price point.

Look at today economy for example. How many people really intended to go out and buy a house with an over inflated value, at payments they couldn't really afford and were living off that over inflated home value? I doubt that you will find one person that says they did that. Now however we can count the numbers of people that fell for the marketing and bought those houses because they were convinced that they could make it work. That is the essence of Marketing, selliing eskemoes, ice makers in a blizzard at the north pole and making them happy they did.
 
I have a Sony A300. Live View is something that I only use when I want to take shots from weird angles with the tilting LCD.

Otherwise live view is not really a big thing. I would have been just as happy without it.
 

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