Ricoh GR III
Ricoh's GR series of compact cameras has picked up something of a cult following since the arrival of the original GR1 35mm film camera in1996. The idea of creating a slim, pocket-friendly model with a super-sharp lens captured the imagination of many photographers, particularly those after a discreet and portable compact for shooting street or documentary-style images where the best camera is usually the one you can access in an instant.
In 2005 Ricoh made its move from film to digital. The GR Digital kept the ethos of the original GR1 and paired a wide 28mm f/2.4 equivalent lens with an 8MP 1/1.8in CCD sensor. By 2013 Ricoh had managed to squeeze an APS-C size sensor into its GR to challenge its Nikon and Fujifilm rivals. Two years later the Ricoh GR II arrived. This was another well-regarded member in the GR-series, but was a minor revamp on what we'd seen before. Since then Ricoh has delivered on its promise of releasing the GR III. This latest model has it all to do if it's to entice photographers into buying a fixed-lens compact, especially given that it costs £200 more than the GR II was in 2015.
Features
Like its predecessor, the Ricoh GR III features a fixed 18.3mm lens that is equivalent to 28mm in the 35mm format. While the focal length and f/2.8 maximum aperture are unchanged, the lens is slimmer and has a different optical construction that's claimed to deliver the clearest, sharpest images in GR-series history. Ricoh puts this down to the positioning of a high-refraction, low-dispersion glass element
