Ricoh GR Digital II

Photo answers review

Photo answers rating

In the world of compacts, small is beautiful and the Ricoh GR Digital II proves that. The exterior construction is mainly plastic, but build quality is good with a solid feel. The Manual and Aperture priority modes give that sought-after creative control, whereas Program and Auto modes automatically assign settings according to the shooting conditions. There’s also a Scene mode with three options; Movie, Skew Correction (which automatically realigns converging verticals), or Text mode for capturing written documents.
The fixed wide-angle lens gives a view equivalent to 28mm on a film camera, however there are optional accessories available (visit www.ricoh.co.uk). These include lens attachments for both a wider 21mm and longer 40mm focal length. Both lens attachments will set you back £80 and you’ll need a lens adapter costing £23 on top. For framing up without having to use the LCD screen, an optical viewfinder is also available that attaches to the hotshoe; this has guide lines for both the 21mm and 28mm view, and costs £100.
Handling is comfortable, thanks to the rubberised handgrip and rear thumb rest that facilitates stable shooting. This is a speedy camera to use; in the creative modes a combination of well-placed buttons and scroll wheels give easy finger-and-thumb access to the ADJ lever and up/down scroll wheel. This allows intuitive navigating of menus so you can quickly make a change and get on with shooting. Combine that with the customisable Function button and direction buttons for adjusting Macro and Flash modes, and you have all the control you need at hand. To change between shooting modes you have to hold down a release button to turn the command dial – this did slow us down, and the release button seems unnecessary.
The LCD screen is crisp and clear with easy manual metering, thanks to an on-screen exposure bar that’s similar to the metering needle on a film camera and a Level indicator that ensures you lose those wonky horizons forever.

Verdict
The real bonus of the Ricoh GR Digital II lies in the ADJ level and scroll wheel that make using it as close as you’re going to get to D-SLR handling in a compact camera.