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Lens Ring

Hi tol1l1yboy and welcome here! I'm afraid, the GRD 3/4 lens ring is definitely not compatible with the GR.
 
Hey the wonderful guys distributing Ricoh in Australia sent me the red ring for the GRD as well. Now a GRD with a neat little red decorative ring says "want me".

Finished bragging ;)

Tom
 
Tom,

Can I clarify if Ricoh Australia sent you the GR (5) ring or the GRD? I'm trying to get a replacement ring and am getting nowhere.

Thks
John

Sent from my Sony Tablet S using Tapatalk 4
 
John, I have both.

When the first buyers in Australia pre-ordered their GR cameras the local distributers threw in a red dress ring and a special strap for the GR. I think this was a "special edition" and not a regularly available accessory. But presumably they can be bought. Probably cost $2 to make and $40 to sell. They come in their own little package: "Original Red Ring - Limited" GRRING-R

They knew I was a long term GRD owner and sent me another complimentary red ring "for the GRDIII" which I suppose was old stock that they had left over unsold. In any case it did not fit the GRDIII/IV but is a perfect fit on my original GRD. So that was "happenstance". This ring is different in design and merely has an inserted red band, must upload an image. "Ricoh GRD Ring Red" L226-90 (also VS2A3) I might just have been lucky for a one-off.

If the GR red ring is cool and yells "look at me" then the GRD ring now being outrageously old is "cooler" and must be quite rare. The box has a red dot on it and presumably these rings came in different colours. I seem to recollect a special edition GRD with a blue ring. So I think I might just have struck it lucky.

Try Cory on 02 9552 8303 and see if they have any of these rings left. This sort of thing is usually too fiddly for dealers to be bothered with. They obviously did not know which camera the latter ring fitted as someone had written on the label "For GRDIII" But it is an "original" GRD ring.

Tom
 
Hi Tom,

I remember you from DPreview when I was a regular contributor, still pop along there but not as much, more or less settled with my gear now, I was an Olympus 4/3's man then, the GR is a little marvel, I had to get one.

I remember when I bought my new Olympus E1 all the critics said that the 4/3's idea would not last long, its not done bad, the new MD sounds great.

I have settled on the Sony System now, an a850 FF and an a65 with a bunch of lenses mainly wonderful Minolta glass.

Hoping all is well with you.

Baz
 
Focal reducer adapters

Baz

Still around, still wasting lots of my time "being opinionated" (grin). Yes the GR is a great camera and I have not lost touch with its ancestors either.

At least the M4/3 crowd drove a stake into the ground and made a stand with their sensor size and then built a system around it. Presumably it was reasoned that the 4/3 sensor was going to be good enough. Then some others decided to go one better with the aps-c in EVIL-type cameras. Again "fair enough" and the aps-c is a little bit bigger. Maybe there is room for both size sensors. But the band-waggon rolls on and the chant now becomes "full frame sensor or bust". Why? I reckon it is simply "because it might/can be done". Of course there are a lot of old lenses made specifically for the 35mm film format and they are begging for a bigger sensor to be used successfully on. Meanwhile the M4/3 crowd seem happy with their "small sensor" forever.

But over on the Sony forum those that are charging for FF NEX seem to be happily expecting new FF lenses to suit. Only a few seem to be barracking for the possibilities of using old MF lenses. Probably the same few that are happily using their old MF lenses on the aps-c sensor already (the 4/3 sensor as well). New for "FF sensor" lenses are going to be like the proverbial hen's teeth and just as expensive. And would you pay the entry fee for FF sensor and then want to hang a kit lens from it? I think Sony might just be making a "preening" camera body for the well heeled and the professionals. They will certainly have to up the firmware and ergonomics of the pretty basic NEX body lest they destroy their rumoured product as an everyman's glittery point'n'shoot.

As an owner of a Canon 5D (for years) and also a 30D and 50D I have difficulty at times figuring out which camera took what image without checking the actual file size and exif data. So the perceived wisdom is that upping to FF does not give such a big boost from aps-c or 4/3 as the latter two sensor give from the typical point and shoot.

Also there is the usual "we want it" going on as if it is expected that a FF sensor body is going to be much the same price as the existing aps-c ones. Next we will get the wails of "too expensive"?

The sleeper of course is the Focal Reducer adapter. I doubt if we have heard the end of these yet. First the brilliant design of my surname-sake in electronic form that makes my beloved Canon EF lenses finally work acceptably on a Sony NEX6 body. (Canon "where are you" - the EF-M is a joke, I want a pro-level version for my pro-level lenses, not a toy). The FR adapters even in dumb form are only the tip of an iceberg. I am sure that their lens performance will be improved over years and that 35mm format lenses will in fact give full performance on to aps-c sensors. The M4/3 versions are hot in the machine shop and should be available everywhere "real soon now".

So the idea of the FF sensor camera body will have the alternative of the aps-c body coupled to a FR adapter.

Consider the pros and cons:

FF sensor body - the MF lens is working at its designed image circle (full stop - but a good reason) The FF sensor camera body is likely to be more expensive than a corresponding aps-c body. Lack of native (new) lenses for the FF sensor body and when they arrive they will be expensive. Not as big a step up in image quality as seems to be imagined. Certainly not enough to make it worth while for more casual type shooters.

Aps-c plus Focal Reducer adapter: You can use your present aps-c or M4/3 gear and all the existing lenses specifically designed for this sensor size. The FR adapter is generally 5/6mm shorter than a plain adapter, therefore FR equipped cameras will be marginally smaller if heavier than the corresponding FF with MF lens. FR adapters give an extra stop in performance. FR adapters improve the good parts of the image but do also accentuate lens problems. (The latter might change if the adapters become more sophisticated over time). You don't need a new camera, just extra adapters and the price is coming down.

For the GXR M mount module. I have good reason to believe that a FR is possible for the LM mount and will be available in time. No use for RF lenses unfortunately but ex-slr MF lenses could be used. The ersatz FF mount module might just be a working FR adapter away.

Tom
 
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