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| OHCC LIVING | MARCH 2022 | 31 There's been a lot of interest lately in mirrorless cameras. What is the difference between a mirrorless camera and a DSLR, and why would you want to use one versus the other? On the surface, they look very similar, but a peek under the hood will reveal some differences. A DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera has light enter through the lens, bounces off a mirror, goes through a prism, and beams through the viewfinder into your eye. When you press the shutter, the mirror gets out of the way, so the camera sensor is exposed to light. The viewfinder goes dark, the shutter moves out of the way of the sensor, and your photograph is taken. Usually with an audible click. The viewfinder is optical, not digital, showing you the world as it is. All of that is fine, except for one thing: the mirror takes up a lot of space. The DSLR consequently tends to be a pretty big and pretty heavy piece of gear. For some this isn't an issue, but if you shoot all day, take a lot of trips, carry a camera all of the time, it might be too much weight to deal with. I separate my DSLR into body and lens to be able to fit it (and other stuff ) into my carry-on bag when traveling. Otherwise, it takes up the whole bag. In a mirrorless camera, the light enters the lens and goes directly to the sensor. The sensor is then digitally projected onto the camera's LCD and sometimes to an electronic viewfinder. When you press the shutter button, the sensor records data and you get your photo. Since there is no mirror, the camera can be smaller and lighter than a DSLR with a similar sensor size. And the photo can often be taken silently, which is important if you are a sneaky person. Benefits of mirrorless: • Smaller and lighter • Accurate preview of exposure • Manual focusing aids • Live histogram • Silent modes • Superior autofocus Benefits of DSLR: • Better battery life, due to less computer processing • Accurate optical viewfinders Which do you prefer? Both types can be found at various price points. Oh, by the way, if you own a smartphone, it has a mirrorless camera, or three. The Ocean Hills Photo Club is open to all residents. Annual dues are $8. We continue our difficult climb out of the COVID hole. Photography