external monitor for digital camera

[Darryl]

I am enjoying using my new camera, the rebel xt. It has a video output, which would enable me to use an external monitor, which is what I'd like to do. Problem is the quality isn't good. I'd rather have the image which is sent via the usb port to view on a monitor. Using PictBridge technology, the camera sends a chosen image via that port, so I'm looking to find an lcd monitor which can use this signal directly. The built-in lcd display shows info if desired, so it won't matter if the external monitor shows that as well. (not likely to since the image is usually destined for a printer). In short, I want to be able to view a shot within moments after taking it, and in a quality that's only limited by the quality of the external display showing it. The camera can select the image to be displayed, rotate it, etc, so all the display needs to be able to do is just display the sent image. It does need to be portable, so I will have to power it from a dc source, which is the least of my concerns. I may carry the display with me, or I may just use it in the vehicle- this is more a problem of running it, which is something I can do easily. It won't require anything from the camera except an image file to display.

I didn't think this was going to be such a daunting task to find such a thing. There's a ton of display modules called picture frames, but all I've seen seem to require a memory card to be plugged in. This works, I'm sure, but who is going to stop, pull the card, plug it into the frame, download, select, view, then return the card to the camera for use again- not me.

An obvious option is to use a laptop with appropriate software, but that's overkill, and isn't particularly conducive to doing this either. Besides, it's not in my budget.

The available options are- backup camera systems for vehicles, some of which have a second video input, or dvd players, again ones which can work with a video input. Apparently, some GPS systems can display an outside source through a video input as well. The problem I have with these is the poor display of the signal from my camera, so I guess I have to say these really aren't options.

Anybody have any ideas?

[hpebley3]

Besides a computer (laptop, tablet, etc.) I'm not sure you're going to find anything. The USB connection doesn't send a video feed. It's a computer port which needs something that knows how to talk to it. And I believe the video feed is just NTSC or PAL (depending on a custom function setting) which, as you've found, isn't going to give you a high quality image. I don't know what your budget is, but I'm suspect your best bet to meet your technical requirements is going to be a tablet style PC.

[Joe Hoetzl]

What you sound like you are describing is usually called shooting tethered .

Have a look at something like this:
http://www.jibble.org/canon-tethered-shooting/

^this might be the best option since all that is really required is the ability to get the shot onto the pc. the batch file is doing the rest.

http://www.radugrozescu.com/photo-te...-tethered.html
http://photoshopnews.com/2006/12/06/...-in-lightroom/

Mac?:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9p4LD1SqWo


BTW, your TV is probably getting around 640x480 at best (usually).

[Darryl]

Well, I haven't considered a tablet type pc. There's something I can check into. How big to their screens get?

I looked around again today at picture frames, the ones that use your memory card as the input. Some of them deliver a very nice looking picture, and all of them produce a picture that's better than any of the dvd players I looked at. Dollar for dollar, the picture frames are better, but of course lack the interface I'm looking for. Some dvd players worked, and didn't seem to have the sync problem I was seeing a few days ago. Ah, but the limitations of NTSC video-

Now that I've seen how nice some of the frames are, I might just consider going that route anyway, even if I have to re and re the memory card all the time. I really don't want to do this as it can't be good for the camera or the card, or my nerves. The one thing I'll get out of it that I want is a high quality display of my images in a mobile environment. Can I put up with the inconvenience of the memory card issue- I don't know.

[Darryl]

Thanks, Joe, for the heads-up on tethered shooting. I have used the canon software, but have not had it set up for this. I'll look into that some more.

[smc1377]

Standard definition NTSC TV's have a resolution of 270x480 and though I'm not positive, my guess would be that the Rebel is outputting the video signal at that resolution. And as you've already mentioned, it's not good.

You got me thinking though. I have a Creative Zen Vision W that can copy memory cards via its built-in card reader. Its built-in 16:9 screen has a resolution of 480x272, which isn't great, but it does look great on its screen. However, it does have a composite output (red, white, yellow) that can connect to an external source that sends a signal at 720x480, which is DVD quality.

Just to confirm, I just took a quick picture on my 20D and copied the card straight to the Zen Vision W, then hooked it up to my HDTV. And sure enough, the resolution is great. Very detailed actually.

My guess is, you could simply buy an LCD monitor that has input for composite video along with the Creative Zen Vision W and it'll do the job for you. Not only that, once you copy the card over to the Zen, it'll act as a backup anyways since it'll be copying your images to its internal hard drive (30gb or 60gb).

However, depending on your purchasing preferences (new vs used), you might be creeping up into the price territory of a decent used laptop being that the Zen Vision W 30gb is anywhere from $270 and up brand new.

[clockdoc]

I recall reading an article where the photographer used a Polaroid DVD player that has a "video in" port as a secondary viewer to see what he has just staken. If I remember correctly it had a 7-8 inch screen and he had it fastened to his camera tripod. I tried searching for a link to the article but have had no success.

[jiminyClickit]

Darryl,

Glad to see this question; I've been wondering how much faster and more effectively photos could be taken if your live view was better than either viewfinder or LCD screen. My first thought was a video eyewear device, something I saw 10 years ago and could never justify the price. The price is now within reason, and for bigger bucks you can get a million-pixel display. The link is a lesser example:

http://item.express.ebay.com/Vuzix-i...mdZExpressItem

Let us know if you find a really good solution.

[smc1377]

Though probably not the solution for you, Darryl, I feel like I should just mention this for informational purposes.

There are cameras out there that do have high definition video outputs that'll hook up directly to an LCD monitor (or HDTV). There are two that I can think of and possibly more on the market.

The Canon Powershot TX1 has component outputs that'll output at 1080i resolution.

The Nikon D300 has an HDMI output that is selectable between 5 options: Auto, 480p, 576p, 720p or 1080i. Nikon added this feature to address your particular issue. But with an MSRP of $1800, this might not be a workable solution.

[Darryl]

Thanks for the replies. I did more checking around and tried the camera's video output on a few different lcd players. Only the ones costing $250 and up seemed capable of freezing the image, in other words display it without vibrating it. There was only one, a Panasonic I believe, that did any justice to displaying my images. At nearly $300, I'm halfway towards a new laptop, and probably all the way towards a used one. At that point I began to wish I had put out the extra moolah and got the rebel xti instead of the xt.

A couple things of interest- one of the picture frames, a Kodak, claims to be able to handle a camera directly without requiring the insertion of a memory card. It wouldn't work with the rebel xt, but I wonder if it would have worked with a Kodak camera. Another thing- I put a flash stick into the best looking picture frame (also the most expensive on display at the store) and viewed my images. They didn't look as good as the built-in slide show that was on the frame, though they look great on my monitor at home. I'm wondering if there was an issue with re-sizing my images to fit the screen. I'm going to re-sample some of my pics to 800x600 and see how well the frame handles that.

This hasn't been a particularly encouraging experience. The time I wasted looking for this particular solution would have been better spent working on my latest project- a better instruction manual for the rebel. I'm using MS paint and Irfanview to come up with some 4x6 inch 'info cards' with various images of parts of the camera- the viewfinder screen, the lcd info screen, and the various buttons and dials on the body of the camera. I've put a lot of text along with the images to describe things, and in a manner which is intuitive and makes sense to me. Once I have everything detailed on these cards, I'll have them printed, then assemble them into a 'booklet' which I can keep in the camera bag. I'll have a nice full color guide with readable sized printing and efficient reference material. Just going through this process is giving me an education on the use of the camera.