New user issue - cannot take a pic when LCD screen is on

I know its me , and it must be a setting I will find in the manual, but man is this un-intuitive and frustrating....

I can take pics, thousands to date, no problem via the viewfinder. But when I flip the lever to active the LCD screnn and line up the shot, depressing the shutter does nothing ; cant take the pic...as if I am in 'read only' mode. Turn it off, I can take the pic no problem. For now I just dont use the screen, as I have lost too many opportunities.

So:

1) Why is this happening , and what setting do I have to change to fix it?

2) Why oh why is this the default setting !

Thanks

mm

I've noticed that in "live view" I have to not only press the shutter release button but to hold it down before the shot is taken. It's very different than when I'm taking shots thru the viewfinder in which a gentle press is all it takes. Is it possibly you're being too gentle with the shutter release button?

nikonpup said:

in live view you first get a red square, then when the shutter is pressed you will get a green flashing square (not focused) or a solid green square (focus ok) then the
camera should take a picture. PG 99 - 106 OF THE MANUAL.

Click to expand...

Or pages 44 - 50 in the paperback user's manual

Mojo Dave said:

I've noticed that in "live view" I have to not only press the shutter release button but to hold it down before the shot is taken. It's very different than when I'm taking shots thru the viewfinder in which a gentle press is all it takes. Is it possibly you're being too gentle with the shutter release button?

Click to expand...

No, not possible. No amount of pressure will take the picutre ; its clearly the 'hold' and focus aspect.

And that underscores the concern. Its a poor design if picture taking is a gentle press with LCD off, but press and hold and refoucs with LCD on.

This being the case, thats a bit of a dissapointment ; looks like I will rarely use the LCD for anything but setup. unless there is a way to override its behaviour, and have it work like viewfinder - ie gentle press.

Does the red focus box turn green at all when you half press the shutter in live view?
Have you tried turning the lens to manual focus mode & clicking a pic?

OK, depending on light, and focus, and the amount of time I wait, I can finally take a picture after a considerable delay. So its fairly useless for those 'special moment" shots. Good to know!

As Mojo Dave pointed out " I have to not only press the shutter release button but to hold it down before the shot is taken. It's very different than when I'm taking shots thru the viewfinder in which a gentle press is all it takes.

I also note that the manual points out that "Autofocus is slower in live view and the monitor may brighten or darken while the camera focuses. The camera may be unable to focus in the following situations.."

I could switch the lens to manual focus whenever I use Live view, but that just make the process even more cumbersome for a useability perspective.

Thanks for the feedback; at least I know its not me or just my camera.

The LCD is great for setup, after the fact review, help screens, etc., but I really can't see using it to take a picture! In fact the whole point of the articulating arm is a moot point now. I cannot shoot into a crowd and expect any results. But I will get the shot with the LCD off!!

Thanks folks for answering this! I recently bought my D5100 and have experienced this behavior too. I just hadn't gotten far enough through the manual to find the answer. And it might not have sunk in as clearly as this thread.

Justin

I know it's an old thread, but i have never experienced this. Taking photos in live view is just as easy when using the viewfinder. I took a bunch of pics of my dogs from floor level using liveview. Again, no issues. Very often folks come on here and have these really weird quirks with their camera. I'm just left scratching my head...

AC016,

I'm sure part of the problem is people wander to these forums, trying to figure out "What is going on with my new camera?". The same people haven't actually sat down and read through their product's user manual. The itch to use it right away was irresistible. Later on, they do the reading they should have in the first place. I know I'm guilty of this.