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I just spent some time playing with a couple of Olympus micro four third cameras and I was surprised that when I took a picture, I felt the body of the camera jerking slightly. That's something I would expect on a SLR, since we have a mirror going back and forth really fast, but why is the same effect happening on a mirrorless camera? What is moving? Or am I missing something?

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Yes, electrons :) \$\endgroup\$
    – Paolo
    Oct 1, 2012 at 12:19

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All SLDs, other than the Nikon 1 J1, have a mechanical shutter. This is most likely what you hear each time a shot is taken.

Most of them use the mechanical shutter at the beginning of the shot and all of them use one at the end. The latest models omit the front curtain to improve shutter-lag but that is because they found a way to reliable discharge the sensor fast enough.

On Olympus and Sony SLDs there is also a stabilization system which moves the sensor. It makes a gentle noise throughout the exposure but you won't hear it unless you are in a quiet environment.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ I'm not familiar with the term SLDs, does it include mirror-less as well as DSLR? \$\endgroup\$
    – Pablo Fernandez
    May 5, 2012 at 21:42
  • \$\begingroup\$ @J.PabloFernández - I think he meant SLRs. Googling "SLD" turns up nothing. \$\endgroup\$
    – Fake Name
    May 5, 2012 at 23:01
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    \$\begingroup\$ SLD is Single Lens Digital. They have interchangeable lens but no reflex viewfinder. This are mostly mirrorless cameras but also translucent mirror ones (SLT). See photo.stackexchange.com/questions/7219/… \$\endgroup\$
    – Itai
    May 6, 2012 at 2:01
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    \$\begingroup\$ @Pablo - The term you were looking for is ILC: Interchangeable Lens Camera. This one covers SLRs and SLDs. \$\endgroup\$
    – Itai
    May 6, 2012 at 2:43

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