The best features for the price in a high-quality point-and-shoot
Written: Jan 28 '01 (Updated Jan 28 '01)
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Pros: Phenomenal lens, meter, body, controls, capabilities. This is one amazing P&S!
Cons: Ricoh no longer sells film cameras in the USA.
The Bottom Line: Incredible lens, tiny magnesium body, intuitive controls, phenomenal meter makes the Ricoh GR-1 and GR-1s one of the most competent P&S cameras available today.
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| gkanai's Full Review: Ricoh GR-1 35mm Film Camera |
The Ricoh GR-1 and newer GR-1s are not your everyday point-and-shoot cameras. It exists in that middle ground of price between the average P&S (~$100-200) and the super expensive Leica, Contax, Konica and Nikon P&S cameras. It's unbelievably small and light and sturdy. It comes in a 28mm fixed-focal-length lens and a 21mm super-wide-angle version is to debut in 2001. It is a very sophisticated point-and-shoot with a lot of manual overrides for Program, AE, exposure compensation, different AF settings, and also comes in a "date" model which records date/time information on the film if you desire it.
Body
The GR-1 and GR-1s has a VERY thin (25mm) magnesium body that almost defies the imagination until you see it in person. It comes in both silver and black but I recommend the black version as it's not as flashy and hides wear better. Whenever I take out the Ricoh, people are amazed at how thin it is, and when you stop to think about it, it really is pretty impressive. The magnesium construction makes it a tough tiny camera.
Lens
The Ricoh GR-1 and GR-1s both use a 28mm lens with 2 aspherical elements. The lens is so good that Ricoh has made a version of the lens to fit the Leica M mount and that lens (made of the same glass) has gotten rave reviews from notoriously demanding Leica owners. It's a phenomenal lens but it is pretty wide for a point-and-shoot.
Features
The GR-1 and GR-1s are almost identical. The main differences between the GR-1 and the GR-1s are cosmetic: the "s" model has a backlit LCD, a slightly redesigned lens front which allows for filters and a lens hood.
Some features both cameras share include:
- exposure compensation from +2.0EV to -2.0EV in half steps
- AF assist infra-red beam for helping the focusing in low light
- flash and exposure compensation controls that don't change even when the camera is turned off
- release-priority shutter (allows you to take a picture out-of-focus if you so desire)
- warning lights for flash out-of-range or AE (too low or too high)
- shutter speed in viewfinder (can be hard to see in bright sunlight however)
- AF confirmation in viewfinder
- meter accurate for color reversal slide films
Controls
One continually amazing thing about the Ricoh GR-1/s is that the controls are VERY well designed with the exception of the on/off button. The on/off button is too easily engaged accidentally and most Ricoh users place a small piece of cardboard in their camera case to make sure that the camera doesn't turn on by mistake.
Otherwise, the controls are a model of simplicity and ease-of-use. Settings for the flash and exposure compensation are made manually with a slider and a dial and are obvious without scrolling through LCD screens. The controls for the different AF settings as well as the self-timer and the "T" (or Bulb) controls are intuitively controlled through small buttons on the top and managed with the LCD. It is a very easy camera to work with.
Availability
The GR-1 is now discontinued. The replacement GR-1s is not available in the USA but is easy to find in England, the EU, Japan, etc.
In Conclusion
The Ricoh GR-1 and GR-1s are phenomenal cameras for discerning photographers who want to have a tiny, high-quality point-and-shoot to augment or replace a larger camera system. The price is more than fair for the quality of the camera's body, lens and features. With a meter that's accurate for even demanding slide films, the Ricoh GR-1s is the point-and-shoot for demanding photographers. You'll be amazed at it's images and capabilities and it's compact size.
If you've enjoyed my review, please take the time to rate it!
Other resources
http://home1.pacific.net.sg/~kennetht/GR1specs.html
http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/9273/gr1.html
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/deltas/gr1index.html
http://www.photo.net/photo/pandsreviews/gr1.html
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 425
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Epinions.com ID:
gkanai
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Member: Gen Kanai
Location: New York, NY
Reviews written: 4
Trusted by: 10 members
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