Any owners of a DW-1 (F2 waist level finder) out there?

[Niels - NHSN]

I got a DW-1 today and I can't seem to open it. Google didn't help - nobody have posted user instructions for such a simple device, understandably.

If you own one, do you mind telling me how you flip it open, please?

I think I have done what I can the gentle way. It may be stuck and I don't want to apply force where force shouldn't be applied. I feel very stupid.

Edited June 14, 2023 by Niels - NHSN

[John Di Leo]

I had one a while back, so I can't try on it now, but I think I remember that there was a little button or ridge on the shooter side that you'd push in and slightly lift.

 

[christopher_ward2]

Gently push button on rear right of finder in while lifting up. It should pop right open.

Chris

[Niels - NHSN]

Thanks guys!

10 hours ago, christopher_ward2 said:

Gently push button on rear right of finder in while lifting up. It should pop right open.

Chris

This did the trick, except not exactly gently. I had to push quite a bit harder than I would expect.

I observed that if the loupe is not pushed back in position prior to closing, the top gives a lot of resistance w. opening.

All is good now, thanks 🙂

 

 

Edited June 15, 2023 by Niels - NHSN

[Tom Fuldner]

Hi Niels,

Really eager to know your experience using the waist level finder for the Nikon F2. I often find myself shooting location portraits with a 28mm lens where I try to keep the verticals “vertical” in the background. This means I am often positioning the camera below eye level. With an eye-level prism finder, this can be a bit tedious and uncomfortable. I’ve been using a flip up eyepiece magnifier to confirm focus. This is also tedious because I can’t see the subject’s full face when the magnifier is flipped down. So, does the magnifier in the waist level finder provide the best of both: a full-screen view of the ground glass with sufficient magnification to make focusing on the subject’s eyes easy?

Many thanks in advance for your reply.

 

Tom

[John Seaman]

1 hour ago, Tom Fuldner said:

With an eye-level prism finder, this can be a bit tedious and uncomfortable

No knowledge of the waist level finder. You might try a DM-3 right angle finder. There's also the DW-2 "Chimney Finder" which provides a 6X magnified view of the whole subject from above,

[Tom Fuldner]

Thanks for your reply. I ordered the DW-2 “chimney finder.” 

Have a great day.

Tom

[Niels - NHSN]

On 5/9/2024 at 4:20 PM, Tom Fuldner said:

I’ve been using a flip up eyepiece magnifier to confirm focus. This is also tedious because I can’t see the subject’s full face when the magnifier is flipped down. So, does the magnifier in the waist level finder provide the best of both: a full-screen view of the ground glass with sufficient magnification to make focusing on the subject’s eyes easy?

Hi Tom

I see you have found an alternative. I hope it works for you.

Since you need a magnifier to achieve critical focus with a regular finder, I am almost sure the DW-1 wouldn’t have worked for you.
If anything, I find it more difficult to focus than the regular finder.