i fell to the same thing - expecting an onscreen display on the LCD. I felt really stupid at camerahouse when i took it for a test drive. - i was used to my Point n Shoot (PnS) dimage a2.
Can we view the picture before shooting with D70 ?
(Similiar feature with most of point-n-shoot digital camera)
the answer is no. The only way you can see what you are composing is through the viewfinder.
You have to remember that this is a SLR - single lens reflex camera. What you see through the viewfinder is the image seen through the lens bounced off a mirror which covers the shutter.
When you take a photo, this mirror swings upward out of the way and the digi sensor reads the image info in. (its a very hard process to describe without showing you in action)
PnS cameras dont have a mirror. What is infront of the lens is always seen by the sensor. - nothing obstructing or nothing that swings out of the way. - the viewfinder is usually an electronic viewfinder with its image based on what the sensor sees, or it is a small hole ontop of the lens. These as such dont give a full picture as a TTL (through the lens - what SLR uses) so if your doing closeup work you will notice what you compose is not whats happening.
of course it all makes sense if you take off your lens and have a look - better doing it with an old manual SLR which wont let bad dust into your dust sensitive D70. - you will see an inclined mirror, and you should be able to see out the viewfinder - from the lens barrel.
ill just show you a website which might help you see the difference between a PnS and a SLR...
http://stuffo.howstuffworks.com/camera7.htmNot really Onyx, what I usually see in that little window is perfect, what I end up with isn't
This is something i can only assume will come with time. It took me a while with the manual camera film SLR (and stilll very much learning) - to figure out why it looked so good through the viewfinder and rubbish on print. When you understand what is happening and how the camera sees, you will be able to dial in correct exposures etc and get the images as you see them. - You will also learn the cameras limitations - eg what shutter speed can i handhold at at which iso etc.
If you can get some basic books on 35mm SLR photography they will show you what is happening with the camera and about how aperture, shutter speeds, iso and other variables affect an image. And understanding of all these different elements will really help you understand how to get the best out of your camera.
Hope this is somewhat helpful,
thankyou for your question.
JD