The Camera in a Smartphone World Part 3

 

Traditional  This user interface originates from the mechanical cameras of the mid 20th Century. You have a manual focus lens with distance and depth of field markings on the barrel. Apertures are set manually via a ring also on the lens barrel with fStop markings. Shutter speed is allocated to a dial on the top plate. Film speed is usually set via a little window in the shutter speed dial. And that's all there is.

This system has the considerable virtue of simplicity. All adjustable parameters can be found on set-and-seemodules. Current settings can be seen at a glance without having to switch on the camera and without looking through the viewfinder. Of course when you do look through the viewfinder those nice clear set-and-see modules become invisible, just when you need them most..... oops.....

Modern  From around year 2000, the Mode Dial and Control Dial  interface became popular and is now  dominant. This interface allows camera designers to introduce the multitude of functions and modes which did not exist on manual film cameras. We have Auto, P, A, S, M Shooting modes, Focus Mode, Autofocus Mode, Drive Mode, Metering Mode, etcetera...........

Hybrids  There are numerous current model cameras which feature some attempt to blend the traditional and modern styles of user interface. Even cameras such as the Fuji X- series which promote their retro heritage and operation are really hybrids with autofocus and a mixture of old and new  style user interface modules. 

The recently released Nikon Df  looks to me like a head on collision between the traditional and modern systems with the resulting clutter of disparate control modules scattered about like wreckage all over the place. A fine example of how not to do it, methinks.

On my assessment, a well executed  modern user interface has the advantage in two ways:

1)  Time and motion analysis.

The operation of a camera designed to be controlled by the user (as opposed to one which operates automatically with little user input)  can be devolved into a series of tasks. For instance, adjust aperture while in aperture priority mode;  switch from aperture priority mode to shutter priority mode;  adjust shutter speed in shutter priority mode......... etcetera

It is easy enough for anyone so inclined to conduct a time and motion study which for each task examines

a) The number of actions required and

b) The complexity of the action.

I recently did this exercise when comparing the Fuji X-E1 (hybrid traditional) and Panasonic GX7 (modern) cameras. I found that for the great majority of tasks the GX7 required less actions and each action was less complex.

 

2) The opportunity cost of  set-and-see  modules.  

If the designers elect to put, say, shutter speeds on a set-and-see  dial on the camera top then they cannot put anything else in that location.  They might of course elect to stack dials and put, say, an exposure compensation dial on top of the shutter speed dial.

But modern cameras utilise a multitude of Modes,  such as shooting modes, focus modes, autofocus modes, drive modes  etc.....etc.

Setting modes is a Prepare Phase action. This takes place in the few minutes before actually making photos. In Prepare Phase the camera is held down from the eye.  Set-and-see modules are ideal for adjustments in this phase.

Shutter speed, aperture and ISO are primary exposure parameters which require adjustment in Capture Phase, when the user is holding the camera to the eye. The user needs to see readouts of these parameters in the viewfinder and needs to be able to adjust them without taking the eye from the viewfinder or shifting grip.

The consequence of all this is that if visual information about primary exposure parameters is allocated to set-and-see modules, that information needs to be duplicated in the viewfinder. It also means that the designer now has no room to locate Prepare Phase parameters (such as modes)  on set-and-see modules, so Prepare Phase parameters have to be accessed some other, ergonomically less streamlined way, such as via a menu or Quick menu.

Summary  Looking back is not the way forward.

The traditional, mid 20th Century user interface worked well enough on the  manual cameras of the day.  But on a modern electronic camera with it's multitude of features, functions and modes, a well designed version of the  modern user interface brings a much higher level of ergonomic efficiency.

The retro appeal  Notwithstanding the observations detailed  above, which by the way can be made  by anybody prepared to carry out the requisite time and motion studies, the idea of the retro camera continues to find appeal with some buyers.  Why ?

I don't really know. I don't think it has much to do with the age of the photographer, or even the person's experience with cameras.

I suspect it's part of the backlash which usually accompanies any technological development. The ongoing niche market for vinyl records might be an example of this.

Maybe some people yearn for the  idea of the simplicity of the good old days. Mind you, I suspect that if they actually had to operate a mid 1960's manual camera the reality might be rather less appealing.  In any event, the genie will not go back in the bottle.  Electronic cameras with all their attendant complexity are here to stay for quite a while.  The challenge for designers is to make that complexity manageable for photographers and at the same time design cameras which are enjoyable to use.