I know, I know. I can hear you bringing this up to me when I said “new year, no new gear.” After weeks of waiting, I finally have a new camera in my hands. I said goodbye to my fantastic but bulky Nikon D90 DSLR and lenses and traded all of those for this compact but powerful single-lens camera. See? It is a used camera and an even trade so that really doesn’t break the “no new gear” rule I set for myself now does it?
Yes, it is an older, used camera but still younger than the Nikon. Sure, there are newer models of the Ricoh GR but those are currently $1k and I just don’t think it is worth it, so here was the compromise. In my mind, this is currently the best bang-for-the-buck digital camera for street photography. I love the compact size, the superb image quality and high-ISO performance, as well as the ergonomics and handling. Looking forward to putting it through the paces soon.
The big things worth noting in the Ricoh GR:
- 16MP APS-C sensor (a DSLR-sized crop sensor in a compact camera)
- 28mm f/2.8 lens
- Ability to change from 28mm to “35mm crop mode”
- No anti-aliasing filter (sharp images)
- Solid magnesium alloy body underneath
The iPhone 15 Pro Max is still going to be my always-carry camera of course, and I still have a gifted-to-me Canon DSLR system in reserve as well. The other cameras in the arsenal are all analog film.
I usually take photos of urban landscapes, and street portraits, so this compact, but brilliant Ricoh GR is going to be perfect.