Ricoh GR IIIx HDF Digital Camera

The Ricoh GR IIIx HDF is a premium digital compact camera featuring a GR 26.1mm F2.8 lens giving a 40mm angle of view in the 35mm format. It offers professional grade image quality in a compact, lightweight body - perfect for street photography. A large 24.24 megapixel APS-C-format CMOS image sensor with an anti-aliasing filter-less design and a newly developed GR Engine 6 imaging engine produces super-high-resolution images and a sensitivity of ISO 102400.
The Ricoh GR IIIx HDF features a newly developed, built-in HDF (Highlight Diffusion Filter), which is designed to deliver mellow, softened images with diffused highlight areas. This filter allows the user to add a totally different kind of visual expression to captured images, depending on the subject or creative intension.

Built-in HDF (Highlight Diffusion Filter
The GR II HDF includes the newly developed HDF (Highlight Diffusion Filter) to emphasize highlights and produce mellow, softened images. This special-effect filter is designed to diffuse highlight areas and create a blurred effect along the image’s edges, making it possible to capture images resembling those captured in film photography or movies. Since the HDF can be instantly switched on and off with a single action, it lets the you effortlessly alternate between two completely different visual expressions — clear, sharply focused images symbolic of the Ricoh GR series, and mellow, softened images captured by the HDF.

Other new features include:
- The colour of the shutter-release button has been changed to greyish silver to symbolize the easy shift of visual expression.
- The default setting of the Fn (Function) button has also been changed to the ON/OFF switching of the HDF. The user can also select another function as the default setting of the Fn button.
- The user can pre-program up to three white-balance settings as the base white balance.
- It is also possible to couple the base white balance with the White-balance Fine Adjustment function.
- The new model features Zone Select AF, which automatically sets the focus at the most appropriate point within the image area, after the user shifts the 3x3 focus area to the desired zone. The 3x3 focus area is identical in size to that of the Auto-area AF (Centre) mode.

26.1mm high-resolution GR lens
The Ricoh GR IIIx incorporates a newly developed 26.1mm F2.8 GR lens, which harmonises exceptional image quality with a slim design. Unlike past GR-series models which featured a 28mm wide angle of view for exaggerated perspective, this lens provides a 40mm standard angle of view in the 35mm format, delivering images with a more natural perspective and a more truthful sense of depth for a completely different type of street photography.
The newly designed optics incorporates two aspherical optical elements at most effective positions to reduce distortion and chromatic aberration to a minimum, while effectively minimizing the generation of flare and ghost images when shooting against backlight. In macro photography, the camera allows the user to move in on a subject to as close as 12 centimeters from the lens front end. Coupled with the standard focal length, it captures close-up images with a natural perspective, set against a beautifully defocused background. It also comes equipped with an ND (Neutral Density) filter, which closes the aperture down by two stops to capture high-contrast, high-resolution images with a variety of scenes and subjects and under varying shooting conditions. Its nine-blade diaphragm mechanism creates a natural bokeh (defocus) effect and a truthful sense of depth at open and larger apertures, while capturing beautiful light beams at closed-down apertures.

High-quality, high-resolution images
The GR IIIx incorporates a large APS-C-format CMOS image sensor with an anti-aliasing (AA) filter-less design and a newly developed GR ENGINE 6 imaging engine to optimize its image resolving power. With approximately 24.24 effective megapixels, this image sensor assures super-high-resolution images rich in gradation. It is also compatible with multi-tone 14-bit RAW image recording. The camera also features the RICOH-original accelerator unit designed to optimize the image data delivered by the image sensor, and provides a top sensitivity of ISO 102400 for super-high-sensitivity photography.

Compact, lightweight design
Despite the incorporation of the large APS-C-format image sensor and the newly developed optics with a longer focal length, the GR IIIx is designed to be extremely compact, functional and portable, in keeping with the GR-series concept of the camera as a pocketable imaging tool or a handy picture-taking tool. It also provides a host of user-friendly features — such as a short start-up time of approximately 0.8 seconds, control dials conveniently positioned next to the four-way controller, and effortless touch-screen operation — to enhance operability and allow the user to swiftly react to once-in-a-lifetime shutter opportunities. The exterior frame is made of highly rigid magnesium alloy to improve dependability and durability while being carried or stored.

Hybrid AF system
The GR IIIx features a hybrid AF system combining a contrast-type AF mechanism superior in focusing precision with a phase-detection-type AF mechanism assuring high-speed focusing operation. During autofocus shooting, this AF system detects the subject’s face or eye with precision, focuses on it, and indicates the in-focus position on the LCD display using the AF frame. When the camera detects multiple faces, it automatically distinguishes the main subject from secondary ones and indicates this on the focus frame. Photographers can also change the main subject with simple touch-screen operation.

SR (Shake Reduction) mechanism
Three-axis, four-step shake reduction: The RICOH-original SR (Shake Reduction) mechanism means that the GR IIIx effectively compensates for camera shake at the time of shutter release. The three-axis mechanism minimizes the adverse effects of camera shake caused by pitch, yaw and roll by as much as four shutter steps. Since the SR mechanism shifts the image sensor to the ideal position horizontally and vertically, the camera lets the user take advantage of the Auto Horizon Correction function to effortlessly optimize image composition.

High-definition LCD monitor with intuitive touch-screen operation
The GR IIIx features a 3.0-inch high-definition LCD monitor with approximately 1,037,000 dots. Its touch-screen operation provides swift, intuitive control of various camera functions, such as AF frame shift, menu selection, and image advance/magnification during playback. It also features an air gapless construction, in which special resin is inserted between the LCD touchscreen monitor and a protective cover made of reinforced glass, to effectively reduce the reflection and dispersion of light for improved visibility. The Outdoor View Setting allows the user to instantly adjust the monitor’s brightness to the desired level for greater visibility in difficult lighting conditions.

Image Control function to produce desired visual effects
The GR IIIx features a creative Image Control function, which integrates effect modes into conventional image setting operations. Using 11 basic Image Control modes, the user can easily adjust various parameters, such as saturation, hue, key, contrast and graininess, to the desired level and create their preferred finishing touch. A set of adjusted parameters can be added as a custom setting to the Image Control function menu.

Advanced image editing
The GR IIIx provides in-body RAW-data development, while allowing the user to edit a captured image as desired by adjusting such parameters as recoding size, aspect ratio, white balance, Image Control setting, and exposure compensation factor, all without the need of a PC. Since the camera reduces the time required for preview after the user adjusts the parameters of RAW-format images, it enhances the speed of in-body RAW-data development. The camera also lets the user retain the adjusted parameters after the initial RAW-data development is completed, making it possible to make minute re-adjustment of the already-developed image with greater efficiency. The camera’s image quality adjustment function for JPEG images is also upgraded: a newly added monochrome mode allows more minute adjustment of parameters in full-color images, such as filter effect, toning, contrast and sharpness, to create monochrome images with the desired finishing touches. The camera also provides such creative tools as a choice of aspect ratio (16:9 or 4:3)* and image rotation in 0.1-degree steps to facilitate the image editing process.

Other features include:
- Full HD movie recording (1920 x 1080 pixels, 60 frame rate) in the H-264 recording format
- New DOF Priority (Deep) added to the program line to prioritize the closed aperture setting
- Bluetooth and wireless LAN dual communication
- RICOH-original AA Filter Simulator
- Colour Moiré Correction function to reduce the effect of moiré during playback
- Interval Composite mode, effective in capturing landscapes with traces of the moon and stars
- Electronic Level to check the camera’s inclination