Hi, this is Wayne again with a topic “Battle of the point and shoot: Fujifilm x100VI vs. Ricoh GR IIIx”.
Stealth or style, incredibly compact or a long history of incredible color science. These are two of the most popular digital point and shoot cameras for folks who don’t want to break the bank. You have the RICO gr 3x for $ 1,100 and you have fujifilm’s x16 for $ 1,600, but which one of these systems reign supreme, I’m Becca. This is fullframe. Welcome, back bud hold on one second um.
I just want to State, maybe the obvious that is uh. The RICO gr 3x came out in September 2021 and it is also $ 500 cheaper than the Fujifilm x16 that came out last month and here at The Verge. We always review what we have in front of us now, and this is what we have, but in a lot of ways it’s last gen versus latest gen. So just keep that in mind all right onward.
I don’t know any other camera systems that have as loyal of fan bases as these two. You have the Fuji Fanatics that are posting aesthetically, colored and composed photos on threads endlessly, and then you have the RICO fans that have been privately sliding into my DMs. For the last 3 years, with photos of their family and friends, and attempt to get me to review one of these cameras and those differences actually describe these systems quite well, but before I get to the differences, I want you to look at this. One of these photos is from the Fuji and one’s from the RICO same here and here the point is: Rico has been on the left and Fuji’s been on the right and with the smallest color adjustments.
I’M talking just small changes to white balance, or contrast you can get nearly identical images from either one of these systems. They both have similar fixed focal lengths, that’s 35mm full frame equivalent on the Fuji and a 40 mm fullframe equivalent on the RICO, and both can capture a lot of detail with Rich color and contrast to accurately represent a scene again side by side. It can be nearly impossible to tell a difference between the images from these cameras.
So what actually sets these systems apart in, like a huge way, is how you get to those final images. The Fujifilm x16 is best known for its distinct digital film simulations that can provide beautiful jpegs straight out. The cam and new to the x16, which launched last month, is a 40.2 megapixel sensor, though, to many folks disappointment, it is still a PSC.
You can instantly have the desaturated colors of classic Chrome, the sharpness and contrast of across across across across someone will correct me. Thank you and advance and the vibrancy of Velva at the turn of the lens ring, or whatever button you decide to program it to. You.
Can even set the bracket settings to capture an image in three different simulations at the same time, and while many other cameras have a few new color presets Fuji films are based on real film stocks and tonally. They are worlds more pleasing and different than others, not to mention. There are 20 film presets in the x16, and I found myself filtering through them, often in bright sunlight.
I was bouncing between black and white options, of which there are many, but then I got hooked on the desaturated blues of classic negative and I did not want to stop taking photos of the sky or vibrant yellows. But regardless of what I landed on, all the profiles are are consistently pleasing all but sepia. That is.
I don’t understand why camera companies still include that preset, even on cameras that aren’t known for the presets. So if you know DM me or comment down below the RICO, g3x, on the other hand, has a 24.2 megapixel apsc sensor, and although there are color presets, they aren’t that unique or pleasing, which is why I just shot raw and that was totally fine for straightforward, Clean crisp results turn the gr2 to the gr3 Rico, reworked one of the most popular presets, which was the positive film effect for the worst. So now this camera almost solely relies on film recipes made by its users, I’m going to pronounce these names wrong and I’m so sorry, but shout out to Jacob iglot and Reggie bisos, from whom I got my presets, using the three custom user profile notches on the Top adjustment wheel, I set different, looks to quickly move between.
I had Reggie’s Fuji film simulation on U1 for matching photos quickly to the x16. A positive film look based on that of the G gr2 on U2 and a high contrast, black and white simulation on u3. But setting these up took research and time you have to really want a unique look or simply Love Camera blogs in order to tune the gr 3x to your liking. You can’t instantly take this camera out of the box and expect unique or interesting results, but once the setup is complete man, the RICO, R and the food you film, it kind of pulls in the rains.
Taking a photo on the g3x feels like being an undercover agent. The process is quick, it’s stealthy, but, most importantly, it is non-intrusive. The design of the gr 3x is so minimal that the camera sets off no alarm bells for a subject. Look at this thing. It might as well be a point and shoot from like 2008, I’m saying like 8 megapixels at best, I’ve been incredibly confident taking photos of strangers reaching my hand across train tracks or holding this thing above a proud, because absolutely no one thinks it could possibly be Capturing anything of importance, so they completely ignore it plus it’s hella small I mean its size, allows for it to be pulled in and out of a pocket on. A dime, Adam goo of at guoy best described this camera as a little pocket rocket and I think, he’s spot on because, despite the size and appearance of this camera, oh my gosh, it totally rips both an image, quality and speed. It can capture a moment. It’S a total sleeper on the other side of the photography experience you have the Fujifilm x16. This camera wants to be seen with its classic retro design, and you will want to be seen with it, considering how popular this thing is on social media. But it’s this same design that makes for a more relaxing thoughtful experience.
The dials have satisfying clicks that require purposeful movement and the large Rangefinder style you finder. It’S like calling to be put up to your eye, then internally, having all of the different film simulations encourage. You youu to really look at the colors in front of you and, like mindfully, decide how you want to portray them. It all adds up to a relaxing experience that instantly produces nostalgic results and you’ll want to brag about them. So, to put it simply, the REO gains all of its value by being small, quick and not compromising on image quality, whereas in the Fujifilm provides this like relaxing slow, Artful experience and it can produce unique results with no effort. There’S one last huge Hardware difference between these two cameras to viewfinder or not to viewfinder on the gr 3x, the lack of a viewfinder or articulating screen forces you to for the most part blindly take photos.
It’S both great practice at quick, framing, a very valuable skill in shooting Street and a total pain in the ass. When you just want to clearly see your subject and take your time with capturing a shot, there are, of course, Optical viewfinders. You can buy for the gr cameras, but again we are reviewing what is here. There are a few things I would love to see come to this camera in the next generation. One of them is an articulating screen. I really don’t think that would add that much bulk and then hear me out a pop-up evf, like of the Sony, RX100 cameras, chef’s kiss and then also just please bring back the flash. The x16, on the other hand, has both an articulating screen and one of the coolest viewfinders out there. It’S a hybrid Optical and electronic viewfinder that can show you an unobstructed view of the frame, an unobstructed view, with a tiny preview of the frame in the corner, or just fully the preview of the frame and then outside of the usefulness of this viewfinder. It is such a fun bar trick to show folks um, yeah they’re, totally dazzled by it. I’Ve been I’ve been doing that a bunch okay.
What I hope you’re starting to understand, is that these cameras are wildly different systems, even though they can produce very similar results and the only reason they get compared to each other is because the last version of this camera, the X100 V, was so hard to get That a need Rose for a second option, bada bing, but while they can produce similar results, they are made for entirely different photographers okay. But I’m going to pick a winner because y’all Get Saucy when I don’t pick a winner. So I’m going to pick a winner for you for ease of use. Uh features looks it is the Fujifilm x16 by a mile um. This camera is a blast to use and you look good doing it, but you will feel like you’re carrying it, which is why I’m saying if high quality photos without the bulk is what’s important to you. I cannot recommend getting to know the RICO more, but you will need to get to know this camera. It is not going to come naturally to you, no matter how long you’ve been a photographer or how often you used a point and shoot as a kid um. You have to get to know this system, and once you do it’s a blast and you can carry it anywhere without feeling like you’re carrying anything extra at all and if you’re still stuck look at the fan base.
Who do you align with most? I think that will put you right where you need to be anyway. I am Becca. Thank you so much for joining me today. Um this was another fullframe.
I appreciate you so much bud um. Let me know what you’re shooting with today. Let me know if you got a Fuji film, uh X100 six or a v uh wow, godp, speed, appreciate you bud man .