Why the Ricoh GR II is so Good for Street Photography Even Today

Street photographers have some wonderful cameras to work with. Nikon has the Zf, Panasonic has the S9, and Canon has the R6 series. Similarly, Ricoh’s older model, the Ricoh II, is perhaps the best option for those on a budget. How so? Let’s dive in.

The Ricoh GR II has a fantastic autofocus. You can use the focus and recompose method to get the focus, and the camera can focus well in daylight. In low light, it suffers a little, but that is also because it is a decade-old camera. The Ricoh model can focus on everything in macro mode, allowing one to get in closer to the subject.

The Ricoh GR II features a 16MP sensor, a 28mm lens, and a built-in flash. There is also a 3-inch LCD, weighing just 251g, and has ISO 25,600. Speaking of the image quality, the camera produces some wonderful images. In fact, you can’t shoot a bad image with this. The compact camera makes photography fun, allowing you to be discreet in crowded places. The colors are fantastic and deliver some wonderful JPEGs. “Fujifilm and Olympus tend to deliver really nice JPEGs, but the Ricoh GR II beats both of them in my opinion,” we added the review.

The lens also produces some nice bokeh, adding to the appeal of the camera. The sharpness is incredible, and it is evident when you are watching the photos on the LCD. When you switch from color to black and white, the results are more impressive. The RAW files have plenty of details, and you can recover all of it if the scene is over or underexposed.

The camera’s body is fantastic, with some buttons and dials at the top and the back, and it is built well. However, it lacks weather sealing, so it makes it challenging to take the camera out in the rain.

We used the Ricoh camera for 24 hours and the results is pretty amazing. As we added in the review:

I’ve spent a full 24 hours with the camera and I genuinely have to say that Ricoh is doing a whole lot right. From the low profile nature and how the camera slips into the pocket, to the really good battery life on top of nice RAWs and JPEGs (yes, sometimes I’m actually happy with what I get right out of camera), there’s a lot to love about this camera. 

The Ricoh camera can cost between $900 to $1200, making it somewhat expensive but still reasonable for an APS-C camera. If you are a young photographer, then this camera can do a lot for your journey.