In this blog, I’ll share my photography settings for the Ricoh GR IV. These are the settings that work for me and allow me to capture the images I want.

Camera setup is highly personal, so I suggest reading this guide with an open mind. Try some of the concepts, keep what works for you, and discard the rest. Through trial and error, you’ll gradually develop your own setup.

This is a high-level guide designed to get you started in just a few minutes. If you want a detailed breakdown of my Ricoh GR IV setup, check out the guide below. These guides are handmade by me, and purchasing them enables me to continue writing these ad-free blogs.

Ricoh GRIV Camera Guide

£18.00

This Ricoh GRIV set-up guide is designed to save you time and get your camera set up and working just like I do. This guide covers all GRIV variants.

You will learn what the major features do and why I chose to set them in a certain way. I will show you how to assign the buttons and custom menus in order to have the most important features at your fingertips. Finally, I will walk you through how I expose and focus.

This guide is not a replacement for your user manual and does not cover 100% of the features. It covers the features that, in my experience, 90% of the people use 90% of the time. This is based on years of photography and video experience.

This guide is best suited for those who want to be up and running quickly with a tried-and-tested set-up.

This is a digital download and not a physical product. The download is around 6mb.

Please note that due to the nature of digital products, refunds are generally not accepted. However, if you experience any issues, feel free to contact me and I’ll review your situation individually. You are welcome to use this product for personal or commercial projects, but you may not copy, distribute, or resell the files in their original or modified form.

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Custom Buttons

Let’s begin by configuring the custom buttons. Open the main menu, navigate to the Customise tab, and select Fn Button Setting. I assign the buttons as follows:

Fn: Set Snap — Enables or disables Snap Focus.
ISO: ND Filter — Activates the ND filter, which I use for slow-shutter-speed photography.
Drive: AE Metering — Allows me to select the exposure metering mode.
White Balance: Focus — Allows me to change the focus mode.
Movie button: Off — I don’t need this button, and its awkward position makes it difficult to use one-handed.

ADJ Mode

ADJ Mode is a quick menu that allows you to make adjustments from the shooting screen. You open it by pressing the rear thumb dial.

Because we’ve already assigned several functions to the camera’s buttons, we only need to use four of the five available slots.

Return to the Customise tab in the main menu. Just above Fn Button Setting, you’ll find ADJ Mode Setting. I configure it as follows:

Setting 1: Snap Focus Distance — Sets the distance at which Snap Focus will focus when activated.
Setting 2: Drive Mode — Allows you to choose between single, continuous, and other shooting modes. I use Continuous.
Setting 3: Touch AF — Controls how the touchscreen behaves. I use AF Point to move the focus point with my finger. Alternatively, I switch it off when I want to avoid accidental touches.
Setting 4: Outdoor View Setting — Controls the display brightness. I leave it on Auto in most situations but increase it to maximum brightness on sunny days.

Exposure

I take the vast majority of my photos in P, or Program, mode. This is an automatic mode in which the camera selects the exposure settings. However, you can override the aperture and shutter speed combination using the front and rear control dials.

For me, the Ricoh is a point-and-shoot camera that acts as a visual journal, documenting what I’m doing. I don’t want to focus on what the camera is doing; I want it to get out of my way. For that reason, Program mode is the most suitable option for me.

There are, however, a few essential settings to consider:

Exposure metering can make or break a photo. I use Multi for most everyday photography, Centre when shooting through a car window or another type of window, and Highlight when I want a high-contrast look with prominent highlights and shadows.
Auto ISO allows you to define the parameters within which the camera can operate. I set the minimum ISO to 100 and the maximum to 12,800. I set the minimum shutter speed to 1/160 sec. This gives me the best chance of avoiding unintended motion blur.

Focusing

I take the vast majority of my photos using single autofocus with Select AF. This allows me to focus on a subject and recompose the image if necessary. I also find it to be the fastest and most efficient way for the Ricoh to focus. The other modes have their uses, but I generally find them slower and less reliable.

For Snap Focus, I typically use either infinity or 2.5 metres. Infinity is useful when I want to focus quickly on the background while allowing the foreground and mid-ground to fall out of focus. It’s perfect for focusing on a city scene while rendering nearby people out of focus.

For street photography in chaotic environments, where I want people to be in focus, I use a distance between 2 and 3.5 metres. When shooting at f/8 or above, I find that setting the focus distance to around 2.5 metres produces excellent results.

Useful Settings

These are a few settings that can catch you out if you aren’t aware of them:

Full Press Snap — Activates Snap Focus when you press the shutter button fully in a single motion. I keep this switched off because I found myself triggering it accidentally. I prefer to know whether I’m using Snap Focus.
Link AE and AF Point — Links exposure metering to the selected focus point. I keep this switched off because I want the camera to meter the entire scene rather than only the area on which I’m focusing. It makes sense in certain situations, but for my shooting style, it’s more of a hindrance.
Shutter Button Setting: AF+AE Lock — When the shutter button is half-pressed, both focus and exposure are locked. This allows you to focus, meter, and recompose without losing either setting.