ottocrat Posted November 19, 2009 Share #1 Posted November 19, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) OK this is probably a reaaaaaaaaaally daft question but I've never used a rangefinder 'in the wild'. In all the images I've seen of people shooting with a rangefinder, they hold the viewfinder up to their right eye leaving their left eye (and face) clear of the camera. Now the couple of times I've played with a rangefinder at a dealer's I instinctively hold it to my left eye which is the eye I always use to look through a viewfinder. It feels highly unnatural to hold it to my right eye. Is this a cardinal sin? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted November 19, 2009 Posted November 19, 2009 Hi ottocrat, Take a look here How do you hold your M8?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
dpattinson Posted November 19, 2009 Share #2 Posted November 19, 2009 No, many people shoot that way. You will just end up with nose-prints on your lcd. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pharyngula Posted November 19, 2009 Share #3 Posted November 19, 2009 I use my right eye and I keep both eyes open. That is one of the primary reasons why I enjoy the RF experience. That said, there is no question most people prefer one eye over another. I'm not sure whether this represents a natural dominance akin to handedness. I consider my right eye dominant and always view through cameras and telescopes with this eye (but always try to keep my left eye open when practical - less strain and more natural feeling). I'm confident, however, that you can learn/train to view with your non-dominant eye without much problem. My right eye needed a diopter correction for my M8 while my left was fine. For me, it was worth getting the correction just so that I could continue to use my right eye with the M. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andybarton Posted November 19, 2009 Share #4 Posted November 19, 2009 If you are right eye dominant, then keeping your left eye open and using the right eye might be an option. I am left eye dominant, and there's no way that I can use my right eye, keep my left eye open, and see the framelines in the viewfinder. It just feels completely un-natural to hold the camera way out beyond my head, too. Maybe it's because I started out as an SLR user. So, I use my left eye, and I don't worry about it. IMHO, the ability to keep the left eye open while using a rangefinder is way oversold, but then that's probably because I can't do it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsrockit Posted November 19, 2009 Share #5 Posted November 19, 2009 Never thought about this much, but I use the right eye... perhaps that is why I lovwe rangefinders so much.... seems to match right eyed people well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stunsworth Posted November 19, 2009 Share #6 Posted November 19, 2009 Left eyed here as well. No problems what so ever. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ottocrat Posted November 19, 2009 Author Share #7 Posted November 19, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) Haha, thanks for the SLR -> RF tips, how did you guess? Lifelong SLR user but that puts me back into the era of manual focus so I wouldn't have too many problems adapting to that again. Trying to get my head around the other aspects. If anyone has a link to an idiot's guide I'd love to see it! I'm bewildered by the range of lenses, adapters, third party widgets required, six-bit coding (bwuh!?!) etc... Oh and thanks for the replies everyone, so left-eyed people are not freaks, that's good to know! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ottocrat Posted November 19, 2009 Author Share #8 Posted November 19, 2009 Have a read of of my website: Epson R-D1: Why I chose it Thanks Rich. That's beautifully written if I may say so, and very much speaks to my own situation. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mc_k Posted November 19, 2009 Share #9 Posted November 19, 2009 no one "right" way for sure. I find it easier to focus by blocking one eye with the camera, so I use the right eye for verticals (shutter button down) and left eye for horizontals. You can get more contrast in the patch by centering your eye in the viewfinder, and I can center my eye more easily by pressing my nose into the camera. If I'm not focusing by rangefinder I prefer to do just the opposite. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrendanLynch Posted November 19, 2009 Share #10 Posted November 19, 2009 I'm left-eyed too - I like to think my nose prints help protect the LCD from scratches Shoot which ever way feels comfortable for YOU. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
garygsandhu Posted November 20, 2009 Share #11 Posted November 20, 2009 <----see my avatar Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_newell Posted November 20, 2009 Share #12 Posted November 20, 2009 Left eyed here as well. No problems what so ever. Ditto, 35+ years of M use with my left eye and no complaints at all. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bybrett Posted November 21, 2009 Share #13 Posted November 21, 2009 Have a look here! M8 Owner Sessions - a set on Flickr Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
epand56 Posted November 21, 2009 Share #14 Posted November 21, 2009 with my hands Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicoleica Posted November 21, 2009 Share #15 Posted November 21, 2009 I use my left eye with all types of camera. Besides feeling more natural to me, it gives me the advantage of being able to make use of my nose-pod for extra stability. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfermark Posted November 21, 2009 Share #16 Posted November 21, 2009 Having owned a Leica 8 for only a few weeks, I find a very natural gravitation to my left eye as well. I have tried both eyes, but left eye feels much more comfortable and natural. Funny I think as I never thought of this before purchasing my. Interesting post. Leica Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnguyen Posted November 22, 2009 Share #17 Posted November 22, 2009 I can hold my M8 with 2 fingers on the right hand now since I did the grip-tac update. it's a way better skin than the original one. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_newell Posted November 22, 2009 Share #18 Posted November 22, 2009 I use my left eye with all types of camera. Besides feeling more natural to me, it gives me the advantage of being able to make use of my nose-pod for extra stability. I would not have said that in public but I have noted that for years. I believe that the camera is in fact more stable when it's pressed against nose and forehead. The only disadvantage is lots of natural lanolin on the camera, but in days of yore that kept the vulcanite fresh. Doesn't seem to do anything for the PVC and other synthetics... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lars_bergquist Posted November 22, 2009 Share #19 Posted November 22, 2009 Eye dominance can be unlearned. I discovered this when I learnt to shoot pistols, ages ago. I am right-eyed, but lefthanded, which is an impossible combination, especially with large caliber artillery. I got myself a black eye patch, pirate style, and wore it over my right eye when on the range (ignoring the snide remarks). Three sessions was all it took. But I do still shoot cameras with my right eye -- and rifles too, because bolt-action rifles are not made for southpaws, so I have to fire them from my right shoulder! We people can learn quite a few tricks. Even ride bicycles. The old man from the Age of the m/96 Mauser Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andybarton Posted November 22, 2009 Share #20 Posted November 22, 2009 That's a reasonable point if you are learning to shoot, Lars, where use of the proper eye is critical to the success or otherwise of the shot, but for using an M, it's an irrelevance. People should be encouraged to use the eye with which they are most comfortable, not worry about using the "wrong" eye, IMHO Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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