For decades cameras with interchangeable lenses have been single lens reflexes (SLR). There were a few exceptions, Mamiya TLR’s and Rangefinders but surely 90% of the serious cameras were a SLR. Which makes sense. Looking through the lens while composing has many advantages. Especially the wide range of lenses that can be used is very convenient. From long telenses to macro lenses and bellows, they all fit on an SLR. On other types of cameras this is virtual impossible. This makes the SLR the versatile workhorse for professionals and amateurs alike. The only drawback of the SLR is the fact that there has to be a moving mirror in the camera. While composing, the light is reflected by the mirror up to the ground glass, while during the actual photo making the mirror has to be folded out of the way to let the light fall on the film/sensor. This makes the SLR relatively bulky and mechanically complicated. The mirror also makes noise and induces vibration which can result in less sharpness. In addition to that, the distance between the film/sensor and lens also has to be longer. No problem for longer lenses but a severe drawback for wide angle lenses making them way more complicated to design.
Single Lens Reflex Camera
When digital photography was invented this didn’t change. Everybody was used to an SLR and basically (and sometimes literally) the manufactures slapped a sensor in one of their existing models adding a LCD on the back. Up to now the market leaders Canon and Nikon are still producing SLR’s as their main product lines.
The first sensors were not capable of producing video. The sensor would generate too much heat resulting in way too much noise and they would also drain the batteries very quickly. Later on the sensors became more sophisticated and live view and video was possible. These sensors made some smart engineers rethink the whole concept of the camera. Like a video camera it was now possible to have a continuous image on a LCD screen captured through the lens and in doing so omitting the large and complicated mirrorbox of the SLR’s. Add interchangeable lenses and the mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera (MILC) was born.
Mirror less interchangeable-lens camera
This results in way smaller, cheaper and lighter cameras while maintaining the benefits of larger sensors. Micro 4/3, APS and very recently with the Sony 7 also in full frame sizes. Lens design is easier too now especially for wide lenses resulting again in smaller lenses. Instead of a ground glass the photographer now looks onto a LCD screen in his viewfinder. At first these were not of that good quality but the latest are very fast and have good contrast, also in darker situations. A main benefit is that electronic view finders (EVF) are WYSIWYG. You’ll see exactly what you get, while traditional SLR viewfinders very often show you only 93% of what you actually are photographing.The histogram can be seen before taking the picture with a wealth of other configurable information and even exposure compensation can be assessed live in the viewfinder. Apart from that the EVF is always bright opposed to traditional viewfinders who turn dark when the light gets dimmer.
The only real downside of he MILC is that the auto focus is slower than in traditional SLR’s. The latest versions of MILC’s are getting faster but are not there yet and maybe they will never become as fast as an SLR. But for anybody who does not shoot sport or running wildlife there is no reason anymore to not use a light, small and yet high quality MILC. Main producers are Panasonic, Olympus, Sony and Fuji. But also Leica, Canon, Nikon, Ricoh, Samsung and Pentax make them.
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