Best On-Camera Monitor for Still Photography

[Noisegate]

Greetings! I would like to add an on-camera monitor to my Canon 5dsr. I find the built in screen is just too small for my poor eyes to identify focus and depth of field using my Canon TS-E manual focus lens. It seems most, if not all, on-camera monitors are build for video but I'm sure some of you have experience utilizing these devices for still photography too. So, I'm wondering if you have any advice for me? I don't need any recording functionality and have a budget of $300 or so (more, if need be).

Thanks!

 

[jtk]

I don't know how Live View works but I do know that brightness and focus are a lot easier with faster lenses. Obviously zooms are darker and harder to focus manually but you might want to try fast Canon primes.'

 

[Kino]

Is it the Canon 5D?

Do you have an HDMI out port on the camera?

Yes, the mini monitors you can find, some really not that expensive, are made for Rec. 709 colorspace of HD video.

If you are going to use it just for focusing and composition, and are NOT going to judge color critically, then you shouldn't have a problem finding a monitor well below your price point.

Random choice:
Viltrox DC-50 HD Clip-on LCD 5‘’ Monitor Portable Wide View for Canon Nikon Sony DSLR Camera DV

Never used it, don't know about it's quality but no matter what you buy, unless you are shooting video, it really doesn't matter.

Will the colors be far, far off? No. Will they be close; pretty much.

All monitors need a power source, and most require Sony-style brick rechargeable batteries, so be prepared to invest in a few extras. Cheap misers like myself buy Wasabi Brand knock-offs on Ebay for a fraction of the cost of major manufactures and they work just fine and usually include a charger for in their absurdly low price.

So, yeah you can use a monitor, but unless it displays Adobe sRGB colorspace at 100% (and I don't know of any off hand that do), don't think of critical color judgements when shooting. Just use it as a glorified viewfinder...

 

[Kino]

Oh, and if you are interested, here's a CIE comparison of the various color spaces.

Look at sRGB vs Adobe RGB vs Rec. 709.

 

[Noisegate]

Thanks Kino and JTK. Color is of little importance to me as I convert 99.9% of my images to B&W. I've tried using the live view on board the camera (Canon 5d II and 5dsr) but found it way too small and "grainy" to be of much use. I wish someone made a monitor specifically for still photography as I have read some of the video monitors don't work well (for reasons I don't understand) for stills. I guess for $200, it is work the experiment.

 

[Kino]

Unfortunately, the HDMI connection on most DSLRs was added strictly for viewing on a flat panel HDTV, which does not match the color space in which still digital images are designed to be viewed and edited.

That being said, there ARE some higher end video monitors specifically designed for DSLR videography that have nice accessory functions like "Zebra" indicators to show specific brightness levels and some even have a focusing indicator function that outlines hard edges and turns from red to green when that plane is in focus.

I suggest you watch a few Youtube video tutorials on monitoring DSLR video with external monitors and see if any of these aids would help you shoot easier.

 

[jim10219]

You know you can zoom in on the Canon's screen to check critical focus, and then zoom back out to check composition, right? That's what I always do. I don't have a problem with it, other than the time it takes to zoom back and forth. Definitely not an issue for still lifes. If the screen seems too small for even that, you probably should have your eyes checked. Not everything is correctible, but a lot of vision problems are these days. And if you haven't had yours checked in a while, it's probably worth doing since you're having vision issues that most people don't have.

If you still need something larger, and none of what I suggested is going to work for you, I'd look to repurposing something that you already have. Try using something like a laptop, computer screen, or 4k HDTV. You're likely not going to find anything that does a better job than those within your budget, and those will likely not cost you more than the price of a cable. The dedicated viewing monitors are really designed for on-location video production where you don't have the time to zoom in and out to check focus, and still need a small and lightweight monitor that won't weigh you down or take up too much space, like a regular TV would. It doesn't sound to me like those are the types of problems you're running into.

 

[Noisegate]

Hey Jim,

I find the zoom function on Canon's screen to be somewhat useful but not perfect as it doesn't give me a good sense of the overall "big picture." I am not a technical shooter so I am usually doing some guesswork on the fly with regards to DOF which is critical for a lot of my photos. In studio, I can take the shoot and confirm I have captured the details via my computer. In the field, I don't have that luxury.

I do have a tablet that I can link but unfortunately, it is not bright enough for outdoor use. I suppose I could fashion a large format styled hood but was hoping for a little less fussy alternative. I have also experimented with linking the camera to my iPhone. It worked ok but presented it's own set of challenges.

Kino, I have seen a few Youtube videos on the subject. The focusing indicator function is of great interest. I think I'll spend the morning reading different reviews to see if I can narrow it down. Otherwise, I might just dig out an old black t-shirt to see if I can rig up a hood for my tablet.

 

[Noisegate]

Perhaps there is a name for this.....But no matter what the budget, you always have to make compromises. I've been buried in Youtube reviews and spec sheets and have not yet pulled the trigger because of this law. Found a couple units within my price range but they didn't tick all the boxes. Found a couple outside my price range that do tick all the boxes with the exception of one (budget). All that said, I'm stuck in analysis paralysis. Meanwhile, I went back out into the field and really tried to nail a couple shots using live view and my right angle viewfinder. The end results steered me right back to my research pages. Think I'll stick with my studio work for now.

 

[Noisegate]

Just in case anyone is researching this topic like I was, I thought I would update the post. I ended up with a 1st generation SmallHD 5" bright monitor. It came up on Ebay for an excellent price so I decided to jump on it even though I had a few "spec" concerns (resolution, brightness, touchscreen vs buttons, 5" vs 7" etc.). First, for me, this is a game changer. Being able to see a better, brighter, larger image at multiple angles (swivels and rotates) proved to be significantly improved over what my Canon is capable of on it's own. It was quick to impress and now I can't imagine shooting without it. Surprisingly, this improvement is without the use of any of it's focusing software. I think that will take some time to fine tune the software to my style and to be honest, I initially found it to be distracting at best. Still, I feel it's usefulness will grow on me as my skill to interpret the "data" improves.

Regarding the specifications, I was really caught up in a few things. The brightness, resolution and size were sticking points. Was a 5" screen too small? Was the 7" screen too big? And so on. I wanted it all but my budget forced some concessions such as lower resolution in order to have a brighter monitor. The lower resolution proved to be of no consequence so I am very happy with the brighter screen choice. The 5" version is great for it's weight/battery usage and is slightly less obvious than the bigger versions. Still, I can see how easy it would be to grow out of the smaller screen and move up to a larger size.

In closing, I highly recommend these monitors for anyone that struggles with their camera's built in screen. Now, if they only made one that would work with my film cameras.....

 

[Kino]

Glad you found a monitor that "puts you back in the game"!

 

[Noisegate]

Thanks Kino! I absolutely love it!