Mirrorless camera

How it is used

Now the main type of interchangeable-lens camera. Photographers often just say “mirrorless”: “I went mirrorless last year.” Advantages people mention are smaller bodies, silent shooting and seeing the exposure in the viewfinder before you take the picture.

Example sentences

1. My mirrorless camera is so quiet that guests don't even notice me during the ceremony.

2. Battery life is shorter on most mirrorless cameras, so always carry spares.

Common collocations

• full-frame mirrorless camera
• switch to a mirrorless camera
• mirrorless system
• mirrorless body

Related terms

• DSLRShort for digital single-lens reflex: a digital camera with a mirror that reflects light from the lens up into an optical viewfinder.
• viewfinderThe small window you look through to frame a picture. It can be optical, showing the real scene, or electronic, showing a tiny screen.
• sensorThe light-sensitive chip inside a digital camera that records the image. It does the job that film did in older cameras.
• autofocusA camera system that adjusts the lens by itself so that the subject becomes sharp, usually when you half-press the shutter button.
• full-frameDescribes a camera or sensor the same size as a frame of 35 mm film, about 36 × 24 mm. It is the reference size for comparing other sensors.

More terms: Camera Parts & Settings

• shutter
• white balance
• tripod
• manual mode
• aperture priority
• shutter priority
• megapixel
• memory card
• burst mode
• crop factor