I am going to use a digital back, so shimming will be the job of the day. As far as framing, I'm going to be on a tripod essentially all the time, so I'm hoping to do without. My rental experiences have been without any viewfinder and I seemed to get along ok, although that experience has been quite limited. I can always add the viewfinder later. I'll be backpacking with this, so I'd like to keep everything as light as possible (hence the 43 XL vs. the 40 HR). Also, I still need to spring for a back, so the pain in my wallet isn't anywhere near over. I'll see if I can survive for a while without the $1,600 viewfinder by shooting and reframing.
I don't have an iphone, so that's not an option for me. Maybe I'll carry around a masked-off plastic slide frame and duck tape it to the top! Alpa would hunt me down if I did that...
Dave
I have both a Horseman SW-DII and an Alpa STC. I normally use both without viewfinders, even when shooting handheld. I just sight over the top of the camera. I have both viewfinders but prefer to work fast and more importantly, light, so I leave them at home.
In any event, the VF's are pretty imprecise, so offer guidance only.
Pretty soon, the Phase One IQ backs will have 3fps liveview, so your screen on the back will give you much better compositional info than the VF. I currently shoot with P45+, P65+ and Aptus 12 backs and find even with these, just shooting a test frame gives me the info I want.
If you keep your head about 1 foot from the camera and sight over the top, noting where the imaginary centreline hits your subject, then shoot a test frame and adjust the imaginary line accordingly, you can get pretty accurate with practice. It's the same principle as sighting a shotgun.
To give you a practical example of this, I am an architectural photographer specialising in construction. I often shoot from a steel basket suspended from a crane atop a highrise building or on a construction barge offshore. As these never stay still (they swing and rotate), shooting from a tripod is impossible. This was one of the reasons I evolved the method above. I haven't missed a shot yet.
Given where the technology is headed with the backs, I'd suggest you put the money towards another lens. After all, lenses make pictures, not viewfinders.
Cheers,