[odinkos]

So I've recently acquired a Ricoh GR and I LOVE it so far. Seeing how I pretty much only shoot Pentax the change between interfaces has quite the learning curve. So I've been looking around and I still haven't found an answer to two questions that I have regarding the GR.

1) Sometimes when I'm about to snap a shot and half press the shutter button I get a yellow warning sign that looks like this !(((@))). The @ is a little camera. I have no idea what it is but it goes away sometimes when I mess with the exposure comp.

2) Does the GR have back button focus. It's all I use on my other camera but can't seem to figure the GR out. I've got it to focus lock with the back button but a half push of the shutter makes it want to refocus.

Any help would be awesome! Thanks, and keep shooting!

[VisualDarkness]

Without having a GR I'm sure that the nr 1 is camera shake warning due to too slow of a shutter speed. When you put in exposure compensation the camera chooses a shorter shutter time, hence why the warning goes away, but the picture will get dark.

[nickthetasmaniac]

Yep the little yellow camera is a slow-shutter speed indicator.

The button on the back with the switch titled 'AEL - AFL' can be set for auto-focus, rather than the shutter.

[Q7streetshooter]

Hi..I am also planning to purchase the Ricoh GR also, how's it compare to the pentax mx1? Which is better when it comes to shutter lag,image quality ? And which one is better when it comes. To street photography?

Thanks

[odinkos]

I hate to deny the MX-1 it's due, but I would take Ricoh GR over it. Image quality is top notch, and if you can deal with the field of view being limited to 28mm then I wouldn't hesitate to grab a GR.

[DeadJohn]

Hi..I am also planning to purchase the Ricoh GR also, how's it compare to the pentax mx1? Which is better when it comes to shutter lag,image quality ? And which one is better when it comes. To street photography?

Thanks

I don't have direct MX1 experience. The GR is ideal for street photography, though, with features that I don't think exist on the MX1. Note that when I say "street photography" I usually shoot from the hip while wandering around Manhattan. My subjects are usually at close range, moving, and I'm dealing with a wide dynamic range because of sunlight bouncing off light buildings and deep shadows from other buildings.

The GR has nearly zero shutter lag with snap focus. Snap focus is like manual focus - you preset the focus distance and snap away. My usual GR setting for GR street photography is TAv mode, starting at 1/400 second, f8, snap focus locked at 1.5 meters. This works well in sunlight. In shade those settings lead to higher ISO than I prefer so I adjust the shutter speed and aperture to perhaps 1/200 and f5.6.

Image quality on the GR is fabulous. The APS-C sensor is much less noisy than the MX1 small sensor. I usually save everything in DNG format so I can adjust highlights and shadows with LR. The GR isn't as forgiving as the K-5 but it's far, far, far better than any compact camera I've tried.

The only downside is no zoom on the GR. Getting that zoom requires either a larger camera, or a small sensor with reduced image quality. Since I bought my GR mostly for street photography the lack of zoom was the best compromise for me.

[odinkos]

DeadJohn hit the nail on the head. I shoot my GR the same way since its field of view is great for hip shooting. It's a street photographers tool for sure. Love love love my GR!