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September 05, 2009
[REVIEW—RICOH GR DIGITAL III camera]
Price: $1000
Does one thing well
The low-down: This is the latest iteration of Ricoh's niche compact, with a 10 megapixel sensor and a fast – f1.9 – 28mm fixed focal length lens. This is strictly wide-angle. And there is an optional adapter that converts the lens to 21mm film equivalent. Construction is rugged with an austere matte black finish. The 75mm LCD sports 920k pixels. There is an optical viewfinder available as an option. Controls are well laid out, if a little idiosyncratic. It doesn't take long to learn how to use them. The camera incorporates the extended dynamic range function, first seen on the Ricoh CX1. Two images are captured almost simultaneously at different exposures and merged in the camera to give better detail in highlights and shadows.
Like: This camera must be assessed against its own specialised intent. It does one thing – take wide angle photographs – and it does it well. We used it in tourist mode and found exposure and sharpness to be exceptional. As a camera for photographing buildings it is outstanding, showing little or no barrel distortion.
Dislike: The price. It is a lot to pay for a camera that is not, by any stretch of the imagination, versatile.
Verdict: This camera in its various forms has attracted a loyal customer base, and it's not surprising. Image quality is reliably good, and Ricoh make a point of the fact that they are not in the pixel wars, favouring better image quality over pixel numbers. Ricoh compacts have gained a deserved reputation for responsiveness, being just about as quick on the trigger as a DSLR. We did find that, for all its size and high resolution, the LCD was useless as a viewfinder in tropical sunshine. If we were buying the camera we would opt for the add-on viewfinder. The pleasure of using the GR Digital III lies in making you rethink your approach to photography. Can you live without a zoom? It can be fun.
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Posted by terry at September 5, 2009 12:53 PM
