LX100 Controls Part 2, The Modern System

Evolution of the modern control system. Mode Dial and Control Dial

I have used  The Canon Camera Museum to trace the evolution of the modern control system as Canon was at the forefront of camera technology throughout the relevant decades (but is no longer) and because the museum is an excellent chronological resource for descriptions of successive models.

Throughout the second half of the 20^thCentury  Cameras acquired an increasing level of electronic control. This enabled auto exposure, autofocus and the myriads of modes and functions which the modern camera brings to the user experience.  The makers had to find new types of  interface which could allow the user to access these new features.

In 1986 the T90  introduced the projecting handle with shutter button top left and forward on the handle with a Control Dial behind the shutter button.  This configuration continues in Canon and other DSLRs and ILCs today. It provides the right hand with a good purchase on the device and allows the right index finger to operate both the shutter button and control dial without having to shift grip with the other fingers.  The T90 had a Mode Button top left and an LCD top right so the user could see the effect of various actions with the buttons and dials.

The first EOS camera  was the 650 of 1987.  This was very similar in layout and ergonomics to the T90 but it had the new EF mount and autofocus.  There was an exposure compensation button behind the Mode button.

In 1990 the EOS10  replaced the buttons on the left of the prism hump with a Mode Dial. This appears to have been the first Canon SLR with a Mode dial.  For the first time it became possible to congregate many Prepare Phase settings in one location, easily viewed and easily adjusted. This represents efficient use of a set and see dial.

I used an EOS 10 for several years and found it to have generally good ergonomics. The same could not be said of its autofocus accuracy but that is another story.

Since 1990 most SLRs, DSLRs and mirrorless ILCs have taken Canon’s lead in user interface design with various modifications.

The photo shows a Canon EOS 300D of year 2000 with most of the modern control features in place.

Advantages of the Mode Dial/Control Dial system 

* It enables the user to see and access many modes and functions in one place. My Panasonic FZ1000 has 10 of these on the Mode Dial.  Most modern cameras which lack a Mode Dial still have those modes and functions which must be accessed in some other, generally less direct way.

* Adjustments in each of those modes or to any of those and other functions are made with the control dial. If this is well positioned it can be operated without disrupting grip on the camera with either hand and without having to take the eye from the viewfinder. 

Of course if the dial is badly positioned or designed, a circumstance seen all too often on recent cameras,  it becomes an impediment to operation.

* The user will soon become accustomed to moving the finger (index or thumb depending on the specific camera) on the control dial to turn one way for “value up” and the opposite way for “value down”.

* The key UIM in Prepare Phase is the Mode Dial which is a set and see type which is optimal for this phase of use.

* The key UIM for Capture Phase is the Control Dial  which is optimal for this phase as it is easily adjusted by feel, without the user having to look at it.

Summary  The modern [Mode Dial + Control Dial]  interface evolved to meet the requirements of increasing electronic operation, increasing complexity and increasing numbers of features, modes and functions on a modern camera.

If well designed it enables the user to quickly adjust all the primary and secondary exposure and focus parameters with the eye to the viewfinder and without having to shift grip with either hand.

It acknowledges the distinction between Prepare Phase actions which are carried out while looking at the top or rear aspect of the camera and Capture Phase actions which are made while looking at the subject through the viewfinder (or at the subject shown on the monitor).

So why have some  manufacturers of  some modern cameras gone back to a kind of hybrid version of the traditional user interface, with aperture controlled via a lens ring, shutter speed controlled via a dial on the camera top and in the case of the LX100 an exposure compensation dial on the camera top ?

I will  investigate this in the next post.