Small Fixed Lens Compacts
Lately, I've been shooting the GF1 quite a bit. I've also found that I'm leaving it at home a bit on "faster" and more "spirited" group rides. Yet, I want to bring a camera with me on these rides, but it has to be light and it has to be fairly fast. Because of this, I've been looking at small compacts again and thinking about a fixed lens super compact to carry with me. Funny thing is, there are only about 5 cameras to choose from, 3 if you only consider current models from these brands.
- Ricoh GRD III
- Sigma DP2
- Leica X-1
Wow! When was the last time you actually only had 3 choices in a camera or camara accessory you wanted?
I can quickly rule the Sigma DP-2 out for operating speed reasons and the Leica X-1 out of cost reasons. That leaves the lovely Ricoh GRDIII. Let's take a closer look.
I've been following the Ricoh cameras for a number of years. I went to Japan several years ago and several of the people I met while on the trip were shooting Ricoh GX100's. I also followed a few blog sites from Europe where the authors were using Ricoh cameras. Everyone always told me the same thing, the build quality and the functionality were unmatched.
As I look more and more at the GRDIII, I think this is a perfect camera for riding. Here is why.
- Incredibly small. Dimensions are 108mm wide, 60mm tall and 26mm deep.
- Weight. Only 188 grams (without battery)
- Fast. Fast can mean a lot of things, but this camera has a bright and fast lens at f1.9 and has functions like snap focus that allow you to shoot quickly with a fixed focus distance without the camera searching around for a focal point.
- Takes AAA batteries in a pinch. You won't get many shots, but given the ability to use them and that AAA's are available almost anywhere, you have a reliable back up source. It also just so happens that my Princeton Tec headlamps also use AAA's so I usually have a spare set in my bike gear kit.
I'm pretty much set to add this camera to my list. I've sold LX3. I just want to do a little bit more research as I may also consider the Ricoh GX200 . To that end, I added some new reviews to the Ricoh camera pages. Here is a link to a 9 part review by Christian Sorega. It is also added to the Ricoh Blog pages.
RRicoh GRD III in Ricoh, Ricoh GRDIII
Reader Comments (6)
i love my gx100, but since i don't use the zoom very often i'd love a grd3 even more. it's faster (in terms of the aperture and also the raw buffer) and i'm sure the lens is of even better build quality, since it does't have to stretch over the 3x zoom range...
i'd say go for it!
Martn, you are a bad influence! I really think I will purchase one of these sometime in the near future. I must finish Christmas shopping first. We'll see.
I too have been shooting mostly at a fixed focal length lately, 30mm. Funny how that supports and plays into my thoughts too.
Beyond all that, I really want to buy and support Ricoh as I believe they are putting out the best handling compacts on the market and are actually listening and trying to cater to artists.
Hey Jason!
What about the Canon S90? It's not a fixed lens, but the specs and reviews on it are all coming up aces. That's the one I have on my short list for a bike adventure camera.
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0908/09081906canons90handson.asp
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/s90.shtml
- Erik
Erik, thanks for the comment.
Well....The S90 is nice, but in my eyes, the LX3 is still a better camera. In addition, the Ricoh GRDIII has a snap focus function giving me quicker handling and DSLR like handling with its controls.
I did go to the camera store to handle a S90IS. It is a very, very nice camera.
I'm still pondering and going back and forth a bit. I may end up just getting the 20mm f1.7 for my GF1.
The LX3 is puuurrrtttyyy! I need to get myself down to one of the big camera retailers in San Francisco and handle a couple of cameras. They'll look at me funny as I put on different cycling gloves (no fingers, light full fingered, rain gloves, winter gloves...) and try to use the controls one handed. ;)
My short list is now the S90 and the LX3. Thank you for giving me a quandry! ;p
The Ricoh is excellent, but there might be an issue with it's ability to do sports/action. One reviewer as far as to say it's best used for macro, family and landscape photography...but to never try for action with it. I can try to dig that one up again if you're interested. He was pretty detailed.
In the end it's just down to preference and style. You might be able to get it to do all the things that reviewer couldn't!
It sure is fun talking about them, though!
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