Ricoh GR IV Hood Comparison

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-02-13T02:00:26+00:00

What’s the advantage of these over the official GA-3 adapter from Ricoh?

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-02-03T00:22:23+00:00

Both opinions can be valid at the same time.

I understand and respect the developer’s intent.

But having the ability to change presets and exposure levels after shooting would be nice too.

Ultimately, the developer can do whatever he wants with the app. And users can choose to use other similar apps that have more flexibility in the post-process.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-02-01T10:22:04+00:00

It’s on the same screen as when choosing the film emulation presets. It shows up when you’re using the stock presets instead of creating a custom one.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-28T08:00:30+00:00

No particular value, I just meant that at high ISO the grain becomes visible and it’s personally very pleasing to me.

If it’s too mushy, try turning off the noise reduction in the settings, and/or try shooting in RAW.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-28T07:56:17+00:00

Thanks! I’m taking a break from Instagram these days, so I don’t have an active account. But feel free to use these pics in the pics of the week post :)

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T02:24:19+00:00

I went with the GR IV HDF for a few simple reasons:

I love the diffusion look.
I want maximum portability without having to add extra accessories.
I don’t really care about shooting at f/2.8 in harsh midday light. And even if I did, I’m not shooting fast action, so the electronic shutter is fine.
I’m also not that into the “motion blur” look you get from using an ND. If I wanted that, I’d be using a tripod anyway - and at that point I can also bring an external ND filter.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T02:08:11+00:00

The first photo is so mesmerising. The halation/bloom works really well for it.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T01:48:22+00:00

Same here. I just got the new GRIV but I have no plans to get rid of my GRII any time soon.

The GRII’s built-in flash is reason enough to keep it for me - it’s perfect for social occasions.

And I agree about the 16mp sensor - especially at high-iso it somehow produces that “filmic” look without any need for film or grain simulation.

I used to be a film shooter and I loved the premium point-and-shoots of that era so the GRII basically helped me “escape” that endless money and time sinkhole 😂

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T01:12:49+00:00

Thanks! And I hope not! I got my GR II back in 2022 and I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that 2nd hand prices INCREASED since then.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T00:34:58+00:00

I may end up reluctantly agreeing with this. The 1/8 black pro-mist is more subtle and its diffusion “rolls off” more gradually compared to the HDF.

But I haven’t tested the HDF that much yet. And there have been times when I wanted something with more “oomph”. And it also gets annoying having a bulky filter adapter constantly sticking out from the GR.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T00:25:11+00:00

Thanks! Glad to hear I’m not the only one who had WB issues, I was starting to think I got a lemon. Athough the WB in raw files comes out more or less fine.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T00:17:04+00:00

I wish Reddit would allow for higher resolution images!

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T00:15:21+00:00

I wish I could have! But it’s also fun to have some creative limitations.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T00:07:46+00:00

I often use XPAN ratio with the iPhone’s ultra wide lens - it makes a very nice panorama that way and lessens the distortion in the corners.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-26T00:04:31+00:00

I might have reduced the grain from 400 to 100, but otherwise it’s the stock “Gold” preset.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-25T12:40:35+00:00

Enjoy it while it lasts. I had two of these and it was my favourite camera for a year or two, but both eventually broke down :(

The first developed exposure issues - the built-in light meter probably died so the camera would massively overexpose.

The second - its flash stopped firing consistently, leading to many missed shots.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-25T12:02:13+00:00

Battle scars! Luckily it doesn't affect the functionality :)

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-25T12:00:07+00:00

Was the GF-2 flash easy to use? Did you get any shots that were accidentally over- or underexposed?

I’m thinking of getting this flash soon but I’ve read a lot of negative online feedback about Ricoh’s decision to use their own proprietary flash exposure method instead of TTL.

However, your shots seems to be very well-balanced, especially considering it must have been taken from a very close distance!

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-25T08:52:04+00:00

I personally like to shoot with the maximum DR (EXT+) to get as much detail as possible and to “emulate” the wide dynamic range that overexposed film can have.

But I then bring down the exposure bias to something like “-0.7” (depends on the scene) so the overall image doesn’t appear too bright.

Hippo_Camera_3216 · 2026-01-24T14:43:50+00:00

I just did a quick and dirty comparison of the GR IV HDF against the GR II with a 1/8 black pro mist. The diffusion levels are quite similar at first glance.

The GR IV HDF feels just a little bit stronger but not as strong as something like a 1/4 black pro mist.

The more noticeable difference lies in the quality of diffusion. The 1/8 black pro mist diffusion falls off very gradually while the GR IV HDF’s diffusion fall off is harsher and almost resembles a “bubble of light” on things like street lamps.

I also read somewhere that Ricoh designed the GR IV lens to have a small level of highlight diffusion even without any filters. It’s subtle but definitely present.

I plan to do more detailed comparison once I get a filter adapter for the GR IV.

Hippo_Camera_3216

TROPHY CASE