Introduce you : Ricoh GR

Some people asked me about the camera that I use currently. So here I'm trying to introduce my new camera that I've been used since September : Ricoh GR. But if you expect something technical, I suggest you to read the review written by Wira or Steve Huff because I just can't write something so technical like that. I even haven't read the manual book so maybe I'll just write the review in my own way :D  

Here we go.

Long story short, on my first year of college my father bought me DSLR camera which I've been dreamed for so long to replace the digital pocket camera that I owned since high school. Canon EOS 400D it was. It became my best friend. We captured the moment, went to many places, and even made some money together. What made it even better was because my father also bought me the lenses : tele lens (Tamron 70-300) and fix lens (50mm f/1.8). I couldn't be more happier!

But, suddenly I feel so tired. At first it was because my camera gradually grew some errors and defect. Canon user must be familiar with Error 99 - the error that all Canonian afraid of. The screen was often blink, though the result is still great it's still a pain in the ass because you can't see the preview of what you've just photographed. Well actually no wonder, because it has been 8 years since I bought Antonio (the name that I gave to my camera - yeah I know it's lame). Just like human, probably he just getting old.

The second is because the body. The large shape and two lenses (or sometimes three) that I should bring everywhere (because I don't satisfied with the kit lens, at least I should bring one extra fix lens), sometimes made me kinda lazy to bring it. Even if I bring it, sometimes I just kinda lazy to take it from my bag when I want to capture something. Which took me an expensive price to pay : losing the moment. You can't repeat the moment so it's better for you to capture it as many as possible. There was a temporary solution, using my smartphone to replace the DSLR. The result is quite good. But, never trust your phone for printable photo, especially if you plan to print it on a large size.

Then I thought that I should get myself new camera. The compact one that I can easily bring everywhere without losing the ability to create the photo with great quality. After some searching and Googling, I don't know why I suddenly run to this very friend of mine, Wira. He recommended Ricoh GR because he himself also planned to buy it. You know what, the truth is I don't really care about the camera specification whatsoever. What made me so sure about this Ricoh GR was just because Wira sold his precious Canon EOS 5D and replace it with Ricoh GR. Haha!

Hello, have you met Richie? Photo by : Hardo.

Ricoh GR has 28 mm fix lens, so you can't zoom-in or zoom-out with this lens. But it's really not a problem because to me, it's a perfect range. Just like my favorite range of lens when I use DSLR camera. You can shoot everything. For landscape and scenery it's absolutely perfect because it's quite wide. To capture portrait there's 35mm crop mode so it's enough. If you feel that you're not close enough to your object, move your lazy ass!

Ricoh GR soft bokeh. Me likey.

The autofocus is fast in the daylight and fair in the dark. And what I love most is the Positive Film effect. It makes the color of your photo to be like film processed. The picture quality is sharp and stunning. Beyond of what you expect from a tiny camera like this. The video quality also great. It's more than enough to record the performance from your favorite band.

I really love the color from positive film effect!

Acceptable noise on ISO 1600

Video result from Ricoh GR:



You can also personalize your menu button so you can make it more comfortable to your own hand. Its small size make it easier for you to bring. It's just like I have my old DSLR camera with better quality and smaller size. Now I can say good bye to big camera bag!

Me, Hardo, Danceu. You can put a trigger to control studio lighting on Ricoh GR. Small but powerful!

A friend once told me, "Pick a camera that will make you feel happier when taking picture". And I did. :D

More result from Ricoh: Here, here, here, here, here, and here

**UPDATE**
Latest firmware update from Ricoh GR has been released!
What's new? Extra crop feature : 47mm! Now I have 28mm, 35mm, and 47mm 'lenses' . Yay!
More details here :D