Sony screen magnification: My Sony Nex 7 has a 'focus assist' function where a chosen part of the image on the rear screen may be magnified X 5.9 or X 11.7 In conjunction with the...

Griff Loc: Warwick U.K.

My Sony Nex 7 has a 'focus assist' function where a chosen part of the image on the rear screen may be magnified X 5.9 or X 11.7
In conjunction with the tilting screen and a tripod, I find this extremely useful for static subjects.
Do other cameras have a similar function?
Which ones?
[I've tried to google, but I must have asked the wrong questions!]

Cdouthitt Loc: Traverse City, MI

Griff wrote:

My Sony Nex 7 has a 'focus assist' function where a chosen part of the image on the rear screen may be magnified X 5.9 or X 11.7
In conjunction with the tilting screen and a tripod, I find this extremely useful for static subjects.
Do other cameras have a similar function?
Which ones?
I've tried to google, but I must have asked the wrong questions!

Olympus does (OMD and pen series). Mine is set up so that when I adjust the lens barrell to focus, it zooms in (up to 14x).

MtnMan Loc: ID

Griff wrote:

My Sony Nex 7 has a 'focus assist' function where a chosen part of the image on the rear screen may be magnified X 5.9 or X 11.7
In conjunction with the tilting screen and a tripod, I find this extremely useful for static subjects.
Do other cameras have a similar function?
Which ones?
[I've tried to google, but I must have asked the wrong questions!]

You can magnify the LCD screen image (live view) on all DSLRs I have had. The Nikon D5xxxs have a fully articulated screen.

But I feel the big advantage of the NEX7/6000 is that you can do it in the EVF. And you can program a button to do it.

Papa Joe Loc: Midwest U.S.

Griff wrote:

My Sony Nex 7 has a 'focus assist' function where a chosen part of the image on the rear screen may be magnified X 5.9 or X 11.7
In conjunction with the tilting screen and a tripod, I find this extremely useful for static subjects.
Do other cameras have a similar function?
Which ones?
[I've tried to google, but I must have asked the wrong questions!]

Yes Griff, several other do too and it's a useful feature too isn't it? My Canon SX-50 utilizes that feature.

aflundi Loc: Albuquerque, NM

Griff wrote:

...
Do other cameras have a similar function?
Which ones?
[I've tried to google, but I must have asked the wrong questions!]

Don't they all? I haven't seen a mirrorless that doesn't do that.

Griff Loc: Warwick U.K.

Thank you all for your helpful responses,
Now here is the pay off: fix a longish lens on your camera, install it on your usual tripod and focus.
Switch on maximum focus assist, and refocus.
Tap the barrel of the lens with a finger.
How long does it take for image to settle?
Are we surprised that sometimes our pictures are fuzzy?
Perhaps the multi-tripod owners might try some comparative tests, and let us know if all rigs are similar, or which rigs have the least vibration?
We might establish the important criteria for stillness. A tripod in a studio is one thing; a tripod on the side of a mountain, in a breeze, quite another.

Cdouthitt Loc: Traverse City, MI

Griff wrote:

Thank you all for your helpful responses, br Now ... (show quote)

With IBIS I'd be tempted to leave it on, even though it is mounted to a tripod, depending on the shutter speed, and how you are capturing photos...if doing landscape work, mounted to a tripod, I'd turn it off and use a 2-4 second delay with a wireless trigger (or touchscreen)

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Thanks for the heads up on visual zoom and focus... will check out my cameras today.

I have a Lope attachment for my super zoom Sony HX50. With that attached it blocks the sunling and has a lens so screen is magnified greatly... but a sunshield and in camera screen zoom you discussed is lot more convient.