We’re in the middle of a compact camera boom. It started with the TikTok celebrity Fujifilm X100 VI, continues with the barely refreshed Canon PowerShot G7 X III and has scooped up a whole raft of second-rate compacts from yesteryear and bargain-bin point-and-shoot Amazon specials that anyone can afford and no-one should buy. What’s going on?
Ricoh
Ricoh is known for its copiers and office equipment but also makes a couple of niche compact cameras. It's also the owner of the Pentax brand under the Ricoh Imaging banner. It's not a major force in photography today but continues to update and add to its camera range from time to time.
New Ricoh GR IV officially announced with better sensor, better lens, better IBIS
Talk of a new Ricoh GR IV has been circulating for quite a while, so its announcement was only a matter of time. What’s interesting is not just what Ricoh has done with the new camera (or not done), but the way it presents the art of capturing moments as important – and it is. The GR is not my favourite camera, but Ricoh’s philosophy is refreshing in a market dominated by numbers and specifications and quarrels over whose cameras are better.
The Ricoh GR III looks expensive, limited and dated, so why would you want one?
By now the whole world knows about the Fujifilm X100 VI and its hipster following, but who knows about the Ricoh GR III? In many ways this camera is even more extraordinary, but while the images it captures are just as impressive, the image it presents is not. It looks old-fashioned, limited and expensive. So why does a small core of enthusiasts still rave about it?