Ricoh GR IV monochrome review: Why I love this camera that can’t shoot in color

I love black and white photography. I also love compact cameras that you can always have on hand. So I’m full marks for the Ricoh GR IV Monochrome, a fixed-lens camera that can’t zoom and can’t record color — at all. It’s a formula that makes the average person wonder: “Why?”

I’ve been testing the GR IV Monochrome for over a month, taking it with me everywhere and photographing everything. Let me explain how this expensive little camera will likely become one of my favorite cameras ever.

The Ricoh GR cameras are some of the most unassuming, no-frills cameras out there, and have been ever since they came out Imagine in the days of film. In the digital age, these cameras are pocket-sized cameras with a large APS-C sensor permanently attached to a fixed focal length lens. If you’re familiar with the popularity of Fujifilm X100 line, it’s like paring one of these elements down to the bare minimum – meaning no viewfinder or fancy aperture ring. the X100 And other sought-after street cameras like Leicas offer vintage-style photography and double as lifestyle accessories or shoulder-mounted jewelry (with prices to match). But the Ricoh GR is just that, a shooter, with unashamedly modern methods used. On top of the camera is the typical mode dial, with customizable user presets, not the old shutter speed dial.

GR IV Monochrome takes last year Rico GR IVremoves the color filter from the sensor, and replaces the built-in ND filter with a red filter (for one-click contrast adjustment using optics only). Functionally, the change to the sensor gives the GR Monochrome a high ISO range of 160 to 409,600 and makes it better for low-light photography (because color noise looks worse at high ISO than at pure luminance grain). It maintains the upgrades made with the GR IV: improved autofocus for its 28mm equivalent f/2.8 lens, a 26MP APS-C sensor, and 53GB of internal storage (supported by a microSD card slot).

Using the monochrome GR IV looks just like a standard GR IV, with key functions that help it succeed in impromptu street-style shooting. It turns on and is ready to shoot in less than one second, and at any moment you can quickly fully press the shutter to abandon AF and take a shot at a preset focus distance. Ricoh calls this camera Snap Focus, and it lets you easily shoot from the hip using area focus, a staple for street photographers. GR is all about spontaneity. The autofocus system has face and eye detection, but it’s only a serviceable assistant. The main way to use GR is to focus on a single point and move it quickly around the touch screen. Many professional photographers will hate its lack of an electronic viewfinder, but I’ve made peace with giving it up for size.

But being forced to see the world in black and white through this camera’s LCD screen is where the real magic happens. Any digital camera can be set to black and white mode, but not having that option forces you to look more closely at light and color. I pay more attention to my compositions and look for textures and colors that I might otherwise overlook when photographing color. I know the camera can’t see color, so I mentally adjust my eyes and creativity to match – knowing there’s no rescue or return to color after publishing. A more disciplined shooter might not feel like they need all of that, but I’ve shot enough with the GR IV Monochrome, other black-and-white-only cameras, and film cameras to know that I have fun when working with some limitations.

This is the same spirit that drives people to do this Back to analogue photography and Camerasor use Toy-like camerasbut the monochrome GR IV also opens up the ability to shoot at extremely high ISOs in almost any light. The GR lens’s f/2.8 maximum aperture isn’t quite as fast as the f/1.7 and f/2 lenses of the Leica Q and Fujifilm

The other big way the GR IV sets itself apart from its Leica and Fujifilm competitors is that this camera can actually fit in a pocket. I’ve ventured out of the house a few times with my Leica Q2 slung over my shoulder, without my camera bag, ready to go on a little adventure to take photos or capture memories with family or friends. But it’s also easier to drop the Ricoh GR into a purse, diaper bag, or even into a back jacket/trouser pocket. It turns any Take a walk or errand for a chance to engage your creativity. These are the fleeting moments usually reserved for the camera you always have with you: your phone. But with GR IV Monochrome, I feel more empowered and motivated to create something special and purposeful.

Am I creating grocery store artwork worthy of the white walls of a Chelsea gallery? No, but seeing my personal world through a black and white lens this good is magical. And there’s nothing wrong with feeling a little “arty” sometimes, even if you’re just auditioning for the art critic’s performance in your head.

The mundanity of our monotonous lives seems elevated when given the timeless quality of black and white. Lately, it seems more authentic to me and worthy of appreciation, since generative AI makes so much of our world seem fake. It has now become common to doubt Everything We see it as a potential deepfake or questionable hoax — even from our own government. Black and white images still look precious and real, at least as long as AI-obsessed tech platforms don’t fixate their Sauron of Enshittification eyes on this realm of the medium.

To be fair, cameras that can’t shoot in color aren’t new. Leica manufactured its own monochrome versions of S and M cameras Nearly 14 years ago. But with prices ranging from $8,000 to $11,000 and up, they’re often out of reach for the average enthusiast. in $2,199.95The GR IV Monochrome is not cheap but it is much better to have without it being your sole possession. And frankly, it’s less conceited and arrogant when your second, third or fourth camera – the “art” camera – costs no more than a used car.

I’d be lying if I said that’s not part of the reason I look into the GR IV Monochrome so much. I’d personally love to one day own a Leica Monochrom of some sort, but it’s hard not to opt for an all-round color camera when you’re spending this kind of money (which is why I own a Leica Q2 and not a Q2 Monochrom). But since Leica and mirrorless system prices crashed years ago, I can simultaneously look at the GR IV Monochrome and think, “$2200? That’s not bad,” and also “GR cameras were around $900 — what gives?”

The GR IV Monochrome’s daily companion status is what makes it so special. With this little guy in your pocket, with this kind of image quality and light gathering capability, it feels like a permission slip to capture a sense of true wonder wherever you go. The standard GR IV is the logical version you can get, allowing you to capture the vibrancy of your world. But the tougher GR IV Monochrome brings romance, gritty realism and magic.

Photography by Antonio G. Di Benedetto/The Verge