Viewfinder

In photography, a viewfinder is what the photographer looks through to compose, and, in many cases, to focus the picture. Most viewfinders are separate, and suffer parallax, while the single-lens reflex camera lets the viewfinder use the main optical system. Viewfinders are used in many cameras of different types: still and movie, film, analog and digital. A zoom camera usually zooms its finder in sync with its lens, one exception being rangefinder cameras.

History

Before the development of microelectronics and electronic display devices, only optical viewfinders existed.

Direct optical viewfinders

Direct viewfinders are essentially miniature Galilean telescopes; the viewer's eye was placed at the back, and the scene viewed through the viewfinder optics. A declining minority of point and shoot cameras use them. Parallax error results from the viewfinder being offset from the lens axis, to point above and usually to one side of the lens. The error varies with distance, being negligible for distant scenes, and very large for close-ups. Viewfinders often show lines to indicate the edge of the region which would be included in the photograph.

The Mountain

The Mountain (French: La Montagne) was a political group during the French Revolution whose members, called Montagnards, sat on the highest benches in the Assembly. They were the most radical group and opposed the Girondists. The term, which was first used during a session of the Legislative Assembly, came into general use in 1793. Led by Maximilien Robespierre, the Montagnards unleashed the Reign of Terror in 1794.

History

Origins

It is difficult to pinpoint the conception of the Montagnard group, because the lines which defined it were themselves quite nebulous early on. Originally, members of "The Mountain" were the men who sat in the highest rows of the Jacobin Clubs, loosely organized political debate clubs open to the public. Though members of the Montagnards were known for their commitment to radical political resolutions prior to 1793, the contours of political groups presented an ever-evolving reality that shifted in response to events. Would-be prominent Montagnard leaders like Jean-Baptiste Robert Lindet and André Jean Bon Saint-André were tempted by early Girondin proposals, and soon, many moderates – even anti-radicals – felt the need to push for radical endeavors in light of threats both within and without the country. It was only after the trial of Louis XVI in December of 1792, which united the Montagnards on a position of regicide, that the ideals and power of the group fully consolidated.