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2 4<br />
3<br />
a 35mm camera, there’s no auto option.<br />
Powering up is sluggish, but it’s only<br />
really noticed when you’ve forgotten to<br />
turn it on. It’s not really an issue as the<br />
shutter has to be cocked before metering<br />
anyway.<br />
Driving forward<br />
On the left hand side, a large circular<br />
window en<strong>com</strong>passing four dials with<br />
needles provides the first indication<br />
that this isn’t actually a film camera.<br />
It looks not unlike the gauges on your<br />
dashboard. It’s here that white-balance,<br />
image quality, battery life, and the<br />
approximate number of frames remaining<br />
are displayed. A pseudo film rewind knob<br />
is actually a super-responsive jog-dial,<br />
and is used for adjusting the settings<br />
in <strong>com</strong>bination with a well-placed<br />
lever sitting high on the camera’s back.<br />
In addition to a 3,008-x-2,000-pixel<br />
RAW file format (ERF), there are just<br />
two JPEG settings – one at full resolution<br />
and the second with a 2,240-x-1,488-pixel<br />
image size. The camera’s rear is<br />
dominated by a pull-out and rotating<br />
monitor, but at 2.0-inches it could easily<br />
have been larger. Nonetheless, it is well<br />
detailed, though the protective screen is<br />
highly reflective and difficult to see in<br />
bright lighting. It can’t really be angled<br />
either as the camera’s shutter design<br />
doesn’t allow real-time CCD viewing.<br />
It’s either out for setting the menu, or it’s<br />
folded away to protect it from scratching.<br />
Navigation of the menu is clunky,<br />
even with the excellent jog-dial – there<br />
are too many button-presses required<br />
to select any given feature. That said,<br />
there are only two settings that you’ll<br />
probably use regularly – film settings,<br />
and colour options. The latter allows<br />
mono shots with the further option to<br />
add digital photo filters for effect, such<br />
as red, yellow, and green, for portraits<br />
and landscapes.<br />
Film settings allows customization of<br />
edge definition, noise reduction, tint and<br />
saturation, as if selecting a traditional<br />
film for its particular characteristics.<br />
However, if you’re shooting RAW files<br />
then there’s little use choosing either<br />
option. Along with a copy of Elements 2,<br />
Epson supplies its PhotoRAW processing<br />
software, but it’s Windows only. Mac<br />
users have to make do with a plug-in.<br />
The R-D1 produced some excellent<br />
images, with careful use of the meter.<br />
Noise is very low due to the large digital<br />
5<br />
6<br />
SLR-style CCD – even ISO 1600 is usable.<br />
The life-size finder allows both eyes to be<br />
open during focusing, which is a major<br />
plus for a rangefinder, and quick grab<br />
shots can be achieved even without AF.<br />
The R-D1 is a niche product, but<br />
it’s an incredibly rewarding camera.<br />
The only concern is that, off the shelf,<br />
it only has frame lines for three focal<br />
lengths equating to 42mm to 75mm,<br />
but this is unlikely to stop the legions<br />
of M-type lens owners wanting to try it.<br />
Joanne Carter<br />
d 85
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