[m42man]

This (current) thread may be of interest:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-dslr-discussion/46978-my-k20d-katz...-pictures.html

[justtakingpics]

This (current) thread may be of interest:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-dslr-discussion/46978-my-k20d-katz...-pictures.html

Thanks. I wonder if the cheaper ones would do that well.

[m42man]

Thanks. I wonder if the cheaper ones would do that well.

As I mentioned earler, I bought a cheap screen over a year ago, but haven't yet taken the plunge and fitted it - so I'm perhaps not the best placed to advise on this subject!

However, I will say this:

From my film days (with MX and K1000), I usually avoided the focus aids and just used the clear part of the "ground-glass" screen to focus. I especially disliked the micro-prism ring, which I found was totally useless for focusing, and basically just got in the way.

When I've fitted the new screen to my K-m, my intention is to make use of the diagonal split-prism for focusing. The clear part of the screen will undoubtedly be better for focusing than the original screen, but I expect it to be somewhat darker than the original, so I'll be making use of the split-prism, I think.

Probably the only advantage the Katzeye (with Optibright) has over the cheap screens is that it's likely to be slightly brighter (plus the fitting kit may be more comprehensive).

Whether re-shimming will be more necessary with a cheap screen than with Katzeye is anyone's guess, but I suspect ANY replacement screen carries with it a reasonable chance that you'll need to re-shim. My intention is that, if focus accuracy is shown to be "out" by a small amount, then I'll ascertain how much I'll need to allow for this when I line up the images in the split-prism.

So, assuming you decide to give a replacement screen a try, my advice would be to search for a reasonably priced screen with a diagonal split-prism, and preferably no micro-prism ring.