Digilux 1 (ok I know it's history but ...)

[ndrookua]

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... I do hope there are some owners out there who can help.

 

I bought a used one recently with the cam looking real mint and fine. One problem ... the LCD. When I use it indoors, seems the LCD is very dark ... not the typical 'what you see is what you get' type. When I take a photo, the photo looks fine but the problem is during composition (half pressing the shutter button too), the LCD is very dark. Is this normal or should I send it in for a 'checkup'?

 

Thanks in advance.

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[pemayeux]

If I remember right, there was a brightness control for the display, it is embedded in the tools portion of the menu.

[ndrookua]

If I remember right, there was a brightness control for the display, it is embedded in the tools portion of the menu.

 

Thank you for the fast reply. Yes, I did try the brightness settings but that doesn't seem to solve the 'problem'. It just brightens up the screen which makes it really hard to look at outdoors.

 

What I realise is for example, I am in Aperture priority mode and shooting at f2.0 indoors. When I half press the shutter button, the screen brightens up for a short while then dims (again) ... and when the actual photo is captured, it looks fine (bright enough). I tried setting the ISO to 400 ... and indeed the screen brightens up before I even took the shot.

 

So is this normal for the D1 to behave this way? It's not like what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of case?

 

Thanks

[earleygallery]

Try it on P or fully auto - does the same problem exist?

 

I have an LC5 (the Panasonic version). The screen will appear 'dark' in some modes if the exposure isn't correct.

[ho_co]

Andrew--

I think that's normal. It shows you the image at full brightness only until you half-press the release, at which point the aperture stops down ready for the exposure, leaving only the shutter to fire.

 

Remember, neither the LCD nor the viewfinder shows 100% of the image, so I didn't use the LCD that much for composition. The camera already has a fairly high battery drain, so the less use the LCD gets, the better the battery life.

 

I also need the added stability of holding the camera to the face, but you may not be as flimsy as I.

 

--HC

[ndrookua]

James, yes ... when in P or auto, the display brightens up and looks much better. My concern is when using modes like aperture priority. It's kinda strange that the LCD looks way darker even when I have changed the settings. I do realise when setting it at high ISO it brightens up too, but let's say I do not change the ISO and take a photo .. the photo taken is much brighter then what's on the screen.

[ndrookua]

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HC, I suspect this might be the case too. When I half press, the display brightens up for a short while before dimming again. Looks like a 'normal' behaviour eh? I do use the viewfinder too sometimes, but was curious if the used unit I bought has problem with the LCD.

[ho_co]

Andrew, I was also often disappointed by the display brightness of the Digilux 1.

 

If you really want to revert to pure guesswork, try this:

 

I did some infrared exposures using a very dark red filter (not quite black to the eye). Even though it was bright daylight, evaluating the image on the LCD was impossible. I used the LCD hood that came with the camera, and shielded the camera and my eyes with a hat, and still had no way to tell what I was shooting.

 

From what you've said, I think your LCD is working normally.

[pastor_chuck]

The camera acts much like an early slr when on manual exposure. As you stop the lense down the view finder gets darker. In program, auto, and speed priority modes it should remain bright.

 

And though it is history, I use mine every week. I like the way it handles. I just wish I could upgrade the sensor to something with greater number of mp's and less noise at higher asa's and in dark regions of the photo.

 

pastor_chuck