Ricoh has simply launched Grad ND Simulator – a perform that I known as “the good digicam function I’ve ever seen” when OM System debuted it earlier this 12 months – to its flagship Pentax cameras.
There’s only one factor: it is being launched as a “premium function”, which suggests it’s important to pay $79.95 to unlock it on the Pentax Okay-1 Mark II or Okay-3 Mark III (together with the Okay-3 Mark III Monochrome).
As you may think, I’ve ideas about each these factors.
To begin with, the know-how itself is sensible – albeit not fairly as sensible as it’s on the OM System OM-1 Mark II that originated it. Primarily that is an in-camera, software-powered ND grad filter; as an alternative of placing a bodily filter in your lens, the digicam does the be just right for you.
Merely dial within the energy you need, from -0.3 to -0.5EV, use the buttons on the digicam to decide on the position and angle of the grad, et voila – now you can shoot with a simulated grad. You’ll be able to see the distinction within the earlier than and after pictures by scrolling via the pictures beneath.
Picture 1 of 4
The impact seems to be nice. Clearly it isn’t being demonstrated in tremendous difficult circumstances, nevertheless it appears to work fairly nicely to me. The one factor I might level to is that the interface and implementation are much more primitive than OM’s model of the tech.
On the OM-1 Mark II, you possibly can both flip the publicity dials or simply drag and pinch the touchscreen to control the place of the grad. On the Pentax cameras, it is a lot clunkier and extra analog, as it’s important to push the AE-L button to toggle the rotation, then press the +/- button as soon as to regulate the place and once more to regulate the dimensions.
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As you possibly can see beneath, it is a lot much less slick than the best way OM System’s Dwell GND works (I am guessing there is no contact management as a result of the Okay-1 does not have a touchscreen) nevertheless it nonetheless does the identical job.
Okay, so the tech is cool and anybody who shoots landscapes would like to have this on their digicam. However would they need it sufficient to drop 80 bucks on it?
That is a very good query. As a result of on the one hand, it is a fairly transformative function that makes your digicam do one thing it merely could not do earlier than – and for the 6-year-old Okay-1 Mark II, that is an particularly huge deal. If nothing else, 80 bucks might be concerning the value of a single grad filter (and also you’d want a number of, to cowl all of your lenses, the identical manner the Grad ND Simulator does).
Alternatively, although, nearly each different producer provides away this type of replace free of charge, within the type of firmware.
Canon made the EOS R5 capable of shoot 400MP photographs. Nikon added the whole lot from customized menu colours to all-new AF topic detection. Heck, Fujifilm’s complete Kaizen philosophy is to ship enhancements and enhancements over your complete lifetime of your digicam.
Al this stuff are thought of a part of the service, once you purchase a digicam – not less than, a photographic digicam. On the earth of cinema cameras, it is customary observe to pay for brand new features on Arri and Panasonic cameras.
So this is not remarkable… however then once more, the Pentax Okay-1 and Okay-3 aren’t cinema cameras. Then once more once more, Ricoh does not have the financial institution steadiness of Arri or Panasonic.
Nevertheless you’re feeling concerning the price ticket, I feel it is nice that DSLRs aren’t simply alive and nicely, however the truth is now have an unimaginable computational images function that even 90% of mirrorless cameras do not have.
In case you’re a Okay-1 Mark II or Okay-3 Mark III proprietor and also you need to add the Grad ND Simulator to your digicam, head over to the Ricoh web site to buy an activation key (be aware that you will want to purchase one for each digicam on which you need to use the function). Due to Pentax Rumors for the heads up.
You is perhaps within the greatest Pentax cameras, which embody a few of the greatest DSLRs in the marketplace, together with the greatest Pentax lenses.