Do you use a GRD?

[Dave Wilkinson]

I have just looked at the first couple of pages of the appropriate section, and saw nothing - but excuse me if there are already similar threads. For sometime now I have been considering a new pocket - digicam, and have spotted a Ricoh GRD complete with optical v/f, offered on behalf of a shop's customer, at what seems to be a reasonable price. Seems to be well regarded, - especially the lens!......do you use one?...please tell me about it, as I'm tempted. 🙂
Dave.

 

[kdemas]

Dave,

I had the original and still own the GRDII. Terrific "grab and go" camera with absolutely the best ergonomics in it's class. A great little camera. Lens is sharp, very high quality.

Enjoy!

Kent

 

[shiro_kuro]

I use a GRD 2 and absolutely love it and now that the the GRD3 is out you can get these very cheap ....

I usually shoot with the 21mm lens attached in snap mode and process the files in Lightroom 3 with some presets that I have and thats it ....it's a great camera with an excellent UI ,probably the best of any camera out there .... you can't go wrong for the price ... The original GRD is said to have better B&W jpegs but after processing the files the way I like it really never mattered to me ... Shooting raw files in the GRD 2 and 3 is great but in the original GRD it is painfully slow .. Get one ; )

Here is a link with some of my images taken with a GRD2 .....
http://www.fluidr.com/photos/23175528@N07

 

[Rick Waldroup]

I shoot a GRDII and I have the 21mm and 40mm lenses. And like shiro kuro, I almost always shoot it in snap mode. It is a great little camera. It has it's limitations, as most P&S cameras do, but if you learn to work with it, it prodcues outstanding images. Here is a link to a year-long project I shot, using mostly the GRDII. Riding the Rails.
http://www.pbase.com/rickwphotography/ridingtherails

 

[reuno]

I got a GRD but barely used it seriously as it suffered from the well known dust issue very fast. Beyond this problem the GRD is a really nice little cam and user interface is one of the greatest i've seen on a compact. black & white is also really great on the former one with nice contrast and really tight grain, heard it's not that good on the GRD2 due to noise reduction you can't disable. Don't know about the third one.

 

[rangefound]

I am seriously considering the GRD II but my only question is can it fit in a jean pocket?

 

[michaelshane]

I have the first GRD....Love it,No problems at all.I carry it in a jeans pocket a lot.

 

[-doomed-]

Had the grd2 traded it for a iiif, memphis loves it. It was fantastic but i found myself shooting more film than digi.

 

[filmfan]

I have owned two in the past. I liked them for what they were for sure.
Once you get used to using it, no other digital p+s will feel right again...

 

[cjm]

I have one and use it often.

 

[back alley]

i had one, nice camera, great lens, loved the snap mode. sold it.

 

[filmfan]

It turns out that one of the GRDs that I used to own is currently listed in the classifieds here.

 

[Spleenrippa]

I love my GRDII. It is a constant companion to my R3A or M3 🙂

 

[ernstk]

I have a GRD. I love it for the tonality of the B&W Jpegs straight out of the camera. The GRD is supposed to be better than both the II and the III in this respect.

The lens is excellent and it's extremely compact. I carry it everywhere with me.
Ernst

Ricoh GRD

 

[Y.B.hudson III]

GRD I a killer camera...drowned my first one in miso soup. CRIS (USA warranty provider) took 6 months to repair my second one... which a horse stepped on, a week after it's return. Love t' few pics I got with it 🙂

 

[Bobfrance]

I have a GRD and in my experience it is:

Good in daylight
Bad in low-light
Slow RAW write speed
Very fast shutter response (especially in 'snap' mode)
Very pocketable
Nice and simple interface (for a P&S)

Overall I think it's a good camera. I don't actually use it all that often these days, but I haven't got around to putting it up for sale yet. Probably because it's handy to chuck in a pocket or as a backup to my M8.

What I would really like is a small camera that works well at high ISO as most commonly use a P&S is in the evening. I'm hoping the next generation will be better, but for the moment I'm experimenting with fast film in my Ricoh GR1.