Pining for Ricoh... Help me, m4/3...

[Tom Diaz]

So, here's the thing. I got a Ricoh GRX-M not too long ago so I could use my Leica lenses on something costing less than another M-9. I knew the GRX line was not going to last forever, so I was sad but not disappointed to see it discontinued.

Anyway, the Ricoh wasn't quite what I wanted anyway. What I really wanted was something like the following:

1. Built-in EVF.

2. Focus-peaking or some other kind of focus assist feature for use with the Leica lenses.

3. Improved image quality with Leica M lenses vis a vis the older m4/3 cameras like the G1. The Ricoh is noticeably better with my Leica lenses than my Panasonic G1 or GF2; I don't know whether it's the bigger sensor or the microlenses or the two things together, but the improvement was immediately apparent.

4. Able to use m4/3 lenses, because there are a couple that I don't want to part with (the 45mm macro and the 25mm Summilux).

What do people think is coming down the road, or here already?

Aside: would m4/3 lenses cover an APS-C sensor? I'm wondering whether Panasonic and Olympus always have to use the m4/3 sensor. Don't get me wrong--I'm sure they can continue to improve the quality of m4/3 sensors, which is already good enough for me for many purposes.

Tom Diaz

 

[CliveC]

Don't Micro 4/3rds cameras have a crop factor of 2? That's worse than the GXR. It's a pity Ricoh never got around to releasing a full frame M-mount, though I suspect that would've been pretty darn expensive, probably $2k+

 

[Godfrey]

The Ricoh was designed for m-mount lenses and does the best job short of a Leica.

None of the mFT bodies does as well, I doubt they ever will. The Sony NEX 5n and 6 do almost as well as the Ricoh GXR. You should try a 6, but plan to give up your mFT lenses. Or just keep an mFT body too.

I bought an M9, but the GXR is still a great camera for me.

G

 

[Tom Diaz]

The Ricoh was designed for m-mount lenses and does the best job short of a Leica.

None of the mFT bodies does as well, I doubt they ever will. The Sony NEX 5n and 6 do almost as well as the Ricoh GXR. You should try a 6, but plan to give up your mFT lenses. Or just keep an mFT body too.

I bought an M9, but the GXR is still a great camera for me.

G

Why not a NEX-7 if I were going to Sony? Just curious.

Maybe this is an inaccurate statement, but I also have gotten the impression that Sony lenses are not as good as Panasonic lenses. I would not be shooting with the Leica M lenses all the time. For the Panasonic (or some Olympus model...) I already have the 45mm Macro-Elmar and the 25mm Summilux, with are both great. If I moved away from Panasonic I'd have to trade them in. Are there Sony lenses that are in the same league?

Tom

 

[kbg32]

Are there Sony lenses that are in the same league?

Tom

In a word, no.

 

[aleksanderpolo]

The NEX-7 doesn't play nice with RF lenses, it will exhibit purple edge for wide lenses. Do you not like GXR's mode 2 focus assist as you were asking about focus peaking?

 

[kaiwasoyokaze]

if i may indulge in dreaming anyways, i always wished i could get a gxr with a micro four thirds module. then i wont have to use those lumix and olympus bodies that come out every 3 months.

 

[Godfrey]

Why not a NEX-7 if I were going to Sony? Just curious.

As someone else said, the NEX 7's 24Mpixel sensor has issues with short-register RF system lenses. It's a great sensor for adapted SLR system lenses, however.

Maybe this is an inaccurate statement, but I also have gotten the impression that Sony lenses are not as good as Panasonic lenses. I would not be shooting with the Leica M lenses all the time. For the Panasonic (or some Olympus model...) I already have the 45mm Macro-Elmar and the 25mm Summilux, with are both great. If I moved away from Panasonic I'd have to trade them in. Are there Sony lenses that are in the same league?

I would keep a Micro-FourThirds body available just for use with those two lenses, if I had them. As it is, I keep a Micro-FourThirds body (the Olympus E-PL1 at present) around for use with some of my more oddball lens creations (like the adapted Cosmicar 12.5mm f/1.4 TV I built) and for pinhole systems like the Skink Pinhole because of the excellent in body image stabilization. Micro-FourThirds bodies also play well with my remaining FourThirds SLR lenses, the ZD 11-22 and ZD 35mm Macro.

The Sony NEX 6 looks like a great body to complement the GXR for use with my M-mount lenses, adding the in-camera EVF, better movie capture, WiFi and a few other details to the kit. I have no experience with Sony's NEX system lenses so can't say anything one way or another about them from personal experience, but the Sony/Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 lens for the NEX has been lauded quite a bit, and there are two very inexpensive Sigma lenses (19mm f/2.8 and 30mm f/2.8 for $199 together!) that seem to be outstanding quality.

No one camera does everything well ... For M-mount lens compatibility, so far nothing I've tried does as well as the M9, the Ricoh GXR, and the NEX 6. But there are some excellent Micro-FourThirds lenses, it doesn't cost much to keep a body for them if you already have two of the best.

G

 

[GaryLH]

In a word, no.

Plus one.

As a owner of a Nex 5n that I have decided to keep as a universal digital back.. Sony native lenses are not as good.. The best lenses for their cameras come third party, Zeiss and sigma. If u want to use any extreme wides on the Nex system, the nex7 is questionable.. Most people seem to be ok w/ using a freeware program called cornerfix to correct a lot of these issues, but ymmv. If u need a universal back, the Nex maybe best solution due to wider availability of third party adapters and the shortest flange to sensor distance, that u can even get a Pentax 110 to Nex adapter.

When I joined rff, I had justed picked up a GF1 kit and later a gh1. Outside of the third party lenses, I don't think they are as good as the m43 lenses. IMHO.

I use a Olympus omd for tele work. The in body image stabilization is the best of any camera I have ever used. But I still have all my old m43 lenses for it as well.. The new 16mp sensor is a major improvement over the m43 sensors of the past.

I also have a the Ricoh gxr.. Overall, the gxr w/ the m module cannot be beaten.. I actually like the Ricoh focus peaking implementation much better than the Sony. I wish they had developed an a16 m module.

A possible better alternative in the future maybe the next gen Fuji xp/xe camera. This is due to the focus peaking and split image implementation that was premiered in the x100s. Add to that their special m adapter which provides customizable lens correction info to be used by the camera. They already have a good mag implementation.

Good luck
Gary

 

[mh2000]

>>Sigma lenses (19mm f/2.8 and 30mm f/2.8 for $199 together!)

That is a closeout price for the original style lens. All the m43 bundles are gone. If you shoot Sony you should jump on this dea ASAP before it's gone. The lenses, with new (ugly) metal jacket are $199 each. I got a discounted 30 for $149 before the bundles were offered. The 30 is a very capable lens as is the 19 supposed to be.

 

[Tom Diaz]

if i may indulge in dreaming anyways, i always wished i could get a gxr with a micro four thirds module. then i wont have to use those lumix and olympus bodies that come out every 3 months.

Actually, yeah, that would suit me! It could be a 16Mpixel module for m4/3 lenses with the same kind of features found in the GXR M module.

If only the GXR line were not being discontinued. I think Pentax/Ricoh could make a lot of people happy if they took some of these points into account for future products.

Actually, I don't know when the GXR M idea occurred to Ricoh, but I think their GXR line would have been much more successful if that unit had been part of the original offering. Everyone would have seen the benefit of being able to work well with scads of Leica lenses from the past decades.

To answer someone else's question: I like both the focus-assist modes in the GXR M, very much. I use the one that has the shimmering outlines rather than the "grey one," because it's less obtrusive and has been accurate enough for me. (I usually shoot with lenses 50mm or shorter.)

So, Pentax/Ricoh: join the m4/3 alliance, produce a camera that can take those lenses and then also, by some kind of adapter--perhaps just a dumb manual adapter--mount M lenses, too. Better yet would be some kind of GXR-like module system that would allow use of the Leica lenses with an APS-C sensor. If you need a serious person to beta test all that, I am available.

Tom