Using GR in-camera effects

Unless you're familiar with past Ricoh GRD cameras, many new users of the GR have probably not used its in-camera effects which Ricoh refers to as "shooting photos with unique atmosphere". You can select these effects either as a shooting mode or when processing a RAW file in the camera.

While I typically prefer to shot in RAW (DNG) and process my files with CS6, there are times when these fun effects come in handy.

Case in point. On my last day in Zion during our recent road trip I went out late in the afternoon to get a few more nicely saturated sunset images of the cliffs. Unfortunately, the clouds had come in and it suddenly got very windy making nicely exposed landscapes impossible. Rather than go back to the hotel empty handed, I shot a few RAW images plus a JPEG of the "B&W (TE)" and "Retro" effects. When I got back to my notebook, I then used Nik Color and Silver  Efex to add a little softening effect to give me the look and feel that I wanted for these images.

I like to think of these images as more illustrative and not my typical work, but it was nice to have a few files to work with and in essence not make my afternoon hike for images a total bust.

(Note: Click on any image to view a larger file.)

GR B&W (TE) image:

File edited with Nik Silver Efex:

GR Retro Image:

File edited with Nik Color Efex:

GR Retro Image:

File edited with Nik Color Efex:

Here's another example using the B&W (TE) effect as a shooting mode when selecting RAW +. The only thing I did to this camera produced JPEG was adjusting the levels slightly in CS6.

Finally, since I think this will be my last post of GR images from the trip here are two GR images shot in RAW (DNG) and simply converted to JPEG for posting here using CS6 and ACR.

My attempt at a casual ad for BMW. Our 530xi wagon was a pleasure to drive on this 4,000+ mile trip and it certainly enjoyed all the steep inclines and twisting roads.

Cheers,
Ned