(Leica X1)
There is no better time to pay less for a comparably good older camera models than when most photographers are eyeing the new ones on their arrival. In the case of Ricoh's GR series, the GRD IV is now up for grab at a radically reduced price in Hong Kong's market – last month a new IV (white or black) was sold for around USD300 or GBP240; now a 6-month-old second-hand one can go as low as USD230 or GBP180.
As I am contemplating a used GRD IV, someone was once puzzled enough to ask me how different a IV is from those in my camera cabinets. My reply is short and to-the-point: they are different in their own way.
The cheaper price aside, the reasons why I consider the IV is that, as avid Ricoh users have surely learned from reviews, the new GR produces images somewhat lacking the colour characters as reproduced in those by the previous models in the family. The GR is, in fact, a very different camera from the sensor to the use befitting it. To street photographers, the bright f/1.9 and the extensive DOF of the GRD IV surely stand the them in good stead when shooting. As for the new GR, it's more about image quality than snapping and I dare say this means a departure from being a tool dedicated to street shooting.
But things at a cheap price goes faster than we know. Luck is needed in my endeavour.
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