[Tom]

MCaver, you are drawn to the dark side, admit it! Alan, one thing I much prefer about composing with a viewfinder is that it eliminates most of the background noise and really helps you "see" the shot. When I first started taking pictures I was intrigued by how many times I thought something would make a good photo, only to take a quick peek thru the viewfinder and change my mind. Unfortunately, the optical viewfinders on most consumer digicams just aren't accurate enough - IMO you really do need to frame things with the LCD unless the viewfinder is TTL or electronic. Background noise is more difficult to block out when holding the camera away from you so I generally twist the LCD 90 degrees and look down (since the ground is a more neutral background). This also lets me rest the camera against my body to minimize camera shake. In fact, Cascade Hiker caught me in the act in this shot.

[MCaver]

[Alan Bauer]

That's true--I have long worked with TTL and I feel it just can't be beat in doing all work through the viewfinder. However your shot using the G2 is exactly how I too find myself holding the Coolpix 5000 if I have it and am shooting something like that. I tend now to only use it as my macro beast while using the D100...which I can use the TTL and be happy on all sides. Do you have the G3 now? I remember you had the G2 before. A close friend came back from 3 weeks in Canada with his and he sure loved it (gave it more attention than he did his wife, so she tells me!

[Tom]

I still have my G2. The G3 added a 4x zoom lens and a few other improvements, but it wasn't enough for the on my left shoulder to convince the on my right shoulder to upgrade.