Twin-lens Reflex Camera - Disadvantages

Disadvantages

• Few TLR cameras offered interchangeable lenses and none were made with a zoom lens.
• Because the photographer views through one lens but takes the photograph through another, parallax error makes the photograph different from the view on the screen. This difference is negligible when the subject is far away, but is critical for nearby subjects. Parallax compensation may be performed by the photographer in adjustment of the sight line while compensating for the framing change, or for highly repeatable accuracy in tabletop photography (in which the subject might be within a foot (30 cm) of the camera), devices are available that move the camera upwards so that the taking lens goes to the exact position that the viewing lens occupied. Some TLRs like the Rolleiflex (a notable early example is the Voigtländer Superb of 1933) also came with - more or less complex - devices to adjust parallax with focussing.
• It is generally not possible to preview depth of field, as one can with most SLRs, since the TLR's viewing lens has no diaphragm. Exception to this are the Rolleiflex, the Mamiya 105 D and 105 DS lenses, which have a depth of field preview.
• As the viewfinder of a TLR camera requires the photographer to look down toward the camera, it is inconvenient to frame a photo with a subject that requires the camera to be positioned above the photographer's chest unless a tripod is used. In these cases, the camera may be positioned with the lenses oriented horizontally. Due to the TLR's square format, the composition need not be altered.
• The image in the waist-level finder is reversed 'left to right' which can make framing a photograph difficult, especially for an inexperienced user or with a moving subject. With high-quality TLRs like the Rolleiflex and the Mamiya C220/C330 the waist-level finder can be replaced by an eye-level finder, using a roof pentaprism or pentamirror to correct the image while making it viewable through an eyepiece at the rear of the camera.
• The design of the leaf shutter limits almost all TLRs to a maximum shutter speed between 1/100th and 1/500th of a second.
• Certain photographic filters are inconvenient without line of sight through the taking lens - notably, graduated neutral density filters are hard to use with a TLR, as there is no easy way to position the filter accurately.