Photo gear ...

I’m currently in the process of making more changes to my gear.

When taking candids, I found the Ricoh GR not quite as responsive as I’d hoped. Sometimes the slightest movement — even at high shutter speeds — resulted in an out-of-focus picture. The truth is, I think I’ve grown dependent on the image stabilisation of its predecessor, the GRD IV. (Although it features a smaller sensor, the GRDIV almost always gives a stable, sharply-focussed shot.)

So, regrettably, the GR has been returned (and refunded).

The fact is, over the last year I’ve tried a number of cameras. I bought an Olympus XA film camera, which I like very much and still use occasionally. Immediately following this I bought a Nikon D200, which I liked but found a bit on the weighty side. This was sold and replaced with a D90.

Although lighter, I still found the D90 a shade heavy after an hour or two. This prompted me to think about a smaller camera body, which led to me trying the X100, which I disliked (see my previous post on this).

In August last year I bought the Ricoh GRD IV, a really inconspicuous street camera, the only downside of which is that the small-resolution files don’t allow much cropping. (Still, the camera is very much a keeper.)

My latest walk with the D40 and 50mm lens led me to rethink my attitude to DSLRs. I’m now of the opinion that smaller, more compact entry-level models are still viable tools for street work, as they have considerable advantages: with a shorter lens they are almost as light and inconspicuous as micro fourth-thirds cameras, the nearest alternative in image quality, and tend to be considerably cheaper. (Thinking of Olympus OM-5 and Panasonic Lumix GF here). 

I was surprised to discover, for instance, that the D40's direct descendant, the D3200, has an amazing 24.2 MP, coupled with the same Expeed 3 processing engine used by Nikon’s flagship camera — the D4. The most persuasive argument in favour of my buying the camera, however, was the purchase price ... now only £304 brand new.

My final reasoning was the fact that, coupled with a prime lens such as the 50mm, this camera is capable of matching the image quality produced by more expensive DSLRs (and the best of the micro four-thirds cameras).

So with Nikon’s D3200 (and the GRD IV as my secondary camera), I look forward to my next photo walk (planned for next week).

Bright day in Bank Street (Nikon D40, 50mm 1.8G)

Making pictures (Nikon D40, 50mm 1.8G)

Routemaster (Nikon D40, 50mm 1.8G)

Photo walk 11 July — Nikon D40 + 50mm 1.8g lens

I just acquired a 1.8g 50mm lens, which I bought as my previous 50mm — 1.8D — did not autofocus with my D40. The ‘G’ version does, as it has an internal motor.

The 2013 Edinburgh International Festival (2-26 August) is only a couple of weeks away. It brings with it the Edinburgh Fringe, which, with its varied and numerous shows, always produces a fair number of street photo opportunities (these are inevitably promoted by participating actors and performers — who can be seen touting their shows on the Royal Mile, Edinburgh’s medieval thoroughfare).

I'm looking forward to photographing some of these then. Meantime, a few shots from my recent photo walk with the D40 and 50mm 1.8G:

Tom Gilzean

Maternal curiosity?

Plugged in ...

In the picture ...

Day in the sun

Plaid Piper

Stepping up ...

Ricoh GR: first photo walk ...

Got out on Monday 1 July to give the GR a more in-depth test. As I wrote in my last post, I’ve been experimenting with the settings to find the best combination for my street shots, as some of my first shots were marred by slow shutter speeds.

I also said in the last post that I had set the ISO at auto-high, with a max of 1600. With the F-setting at 2.8, I thought this would give me a fast enough shutter speed for the pictures to be sharp.

I failed to realise that, even with the ISO set on auto-high, the GR will always use the lowest ISO when metering the shot. This means that in good light ISO will revert to the lowest setting — 100. Most shots taken at this ISO with an aperture of 2.8 will use a shutter speed of 1/500 - 1/750.

You might think this would be adequate enough to ensure an perfectly sharp picture. Alas, it ain’t necessarily so. You see, I invariably take most of my shots at a slow walk. If the subject is also on the move — i.e, walking towards me — a shutter speed of 1/750 is often not fast enough.

As a result, at F2.8, I now alter the ISO setting to between 200 and 400. This should make sure the shutter speed is around 1/1000 or above.

I’m glad to say most of the ‘keepers’ on my recent photo walk are fairly sharp, but there were one or two instances where the shot would have been better if a faster shutter speed had been used.

By the way, I’m very impressed with the GR’s IQ — in several shots I was able to crop a fair bit without any noticeable effect on picture quality. The following pictures allow you to judge for yourself:

Whip hand

The graduate

Walter Scott Monument

Cityscape

Best foot forward

Keeping an eye out ...

Canine contretemps ...