eyepeice magnifiers and extenders advice please

[ukshaz]

Hello all

I am new here, and am a novice just getting out of full auto. I have a canon 350d and I know that there are various eye peice extenders and magnifiers available, and though I know what I want to achieve, I dont know what equipment I need to do this so any advice / pointers welcome

These are the criteria

1. To magnify what I see in the viewfinder as due to eyesight issues, I have great difficulty being able to see when an image is really crisp and sharp ... I think it is, get it up on the computer and its soft ... lost count of how many times this has happened ..... and this is especially critical now as I have a new 1:1 macro lens winging its way to me which I cant wait to get my hands on
2. To somehow extend the eyepeice and maybe be able to adjust the angle of it ... (I love the D60 because of its flip out screen for this but cant afford it) ... so that I can more easily see into the viewfinder without having to crane my neck or get absolutely flat on the floor etc (Sadly I also have some back problems)
3. To achieve all of this fairly cheaply as money is tight at the moment and if it can all be achieved with one peice of kit, rather than two then so much the better

As I said before any pointers much appreciated

Many thanks
Shaz

 

[ukshaz]

Just bumping this as I haven't had any response , in the hope that someone will see it and reply.

Since I made the original post I have found that there is such a thing as an angle finder and went to jessops to try one out .... To see if it did all the things I hoped and was ok with my eyesight .... But sadly they didn't have any in stock .... In fact the assistant hadn't even heard of them and ironically I had to explain it to her.

Anyway, just wondering if an angle finder is what I need .... Any ideas ?

Thanks
Shaz

 

[Big Mike]

Are you only using manual focus?

Essentially, you should be able to take sharp photos, without even looking into the viewfinder. So if your shots aren't crisp and sharp, I think the first thing to do, is to diagnose why they aren't crisp and sharp.

The most common cause, is using too slow of a shutter speed, but there are many possible issues.

If you are trying to manual focus, then yes, it is fairly important that you can see the viewfinder rather well...but there are few situations where manual focus is a better option than auto focus.

 

[ukshaz]

Yes I have been using manual focus ..... I figured that if I am serious about getting off auto then that should include AF too ... As there may well be situations where I want to manually focus for some technical reason that I can't even begin to think of right now lol

Actually though, I know this is probably a stupid question, but do pro photographers tend to use AF or manual .... And if they do use manual mostly, then why ..surely its in focus or it ain't ... Whether manual or auto .... Just wondering

 

[fokker]

Pro photographers use the right techniques for the shot. That could include auto or manual focus, depending.