The Ricoh 500G, a classic 35mm rangefinder film camera

I take an in-depth look at this camera, how it works and real sample images taken on a recent trip, enjoy. Your contributions help me make these learning videos.
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[@rickyzagalo]

We all know, that what really matters is who is behind the camera, but with some photographers, you notice it more than with others :) Beautiful images you made. Rangefinders are really a different, quiet, calmed way of photographing, a kind of a wonderful back to basics. I shoot a lot with my Olympus 35RC, it's always a pleasure to me. Cheers

[@gatblau1]

Refreshing to see a skilled photographer such as you use one of these cameras. I just dug this camera out of my collection and serviced it. I’m looking forward to running a roll of film through it.

[@MariusG101]

Wow, you have superb photographic skills!

[@ianforber]

Great shots! I’ve had the Camera since 1979 and I’m still surprised by how good the lens is. For street photography it’s excellent because it’s so small and quiet.

[@mueslimuncher1950]

Excellent work as usual! 😁

[@kendesantis7319]

Great photos!

[@williamfalls5681]

Martin you never cease to inspire.😊

[@chriscard6544]

Your photographs are beautiful

[@phasephoto3265]

A fabulous review and a great watch.. Very enjoyable thank you

[@adolfosalvadorlopez9445]

Tutte belle foto. Grazie

[@robertyoung1777]

Great train engineer picture! Thank you for sharing your experience.

[@chexter-wang]

I got mine as first film camera recently, and I love it!

[@pedrosolorzano1]

nice little camera, thanks for the video.

[@michaelwhiles5282]

Not used for many years, light meter still OK with no battery issues, replaced the light seals - FP4 loaded - great pictures and a joy to use....

[@johnjon1823]

Very nice images, nicely framed, good subject matter. Your skills are quite excellent, great video.

[@f1remandg]

As usual all the hints and tips, logically produced, a great way to get started in photography on a budget so job done, just watched a guy who covers compasses and maps, no I’ve not lost it! The channel is called The Map Reading Company it’s a quick 4 min video on measurements or distances, when at the end you mentioned rule of thumb, it reminded me as that’s wha5 he tells you and could be very useful in photography when your not sure of how far the subject is. Anyway have a watch, it’s all power to your elbow and knowledge is a great tool!

[@youngwoolee4270]

Thanks for the video and nice pictures. I love my Ricoh 500G! It is compact and reliable camera, the results are very good.

[@michaelcalabro9617]

wonderful video!

[@tadwolujewicz3923]

I have this camera and it’s very underrated, but you, Martin, have brought out the best in the camera and your photos from the Whitby trip are superb!

[@mono432mono]

I wanted a review of one camera and got recommendations of several others I am now also hunting on eBay. This is a rabbit hole 😂

[@matthiassommer9317]

Erstaunliche kleine Kamera, wunderbar erklärt! Das Foto vom Lokführer gefällt mir sehr 👍 Vielen Dank Martin und Grüße aus Berlin Matthias

[@ankerwiedemann]

Mir auch. Einfach schön die Freude in seinem Gesicht zu sehen!

[@joaquinlluis]

Martín this was an outstanding video! Thaaanks a lot for such a wonderful review! I recently got a Ricoh 800 ees gifted to me by my gf and I’m trying to learn as much as I can from this cameras. This video was really really helpful! ❤️

[@vincecarnevale4406]

Had a 500, 500G predecessor great little camera, nice photos.

[@GeorgeK356]

Very nice episode about these wonderful little cameras, Martin. I have the Ricoh 35 ZF in my collection - it's not a rangefinder but the simpler Zone Focussing version. It also has distance markers between the usual Head and Shoulder, Full Length body, and Mountain detents. I've never put a film through it, even though I replaced the light seals as soon as I got it. It has the same 40mm f2.8 lens and exposure system. Your video has inspired me to shove a cassette of film in it and just enjoy the simplicity of it. Thank you George

[@andrewrothman7805]

Nice video and great results. My favorite fixed lens compact is the Konica IIIA, with a magnificent f/1.8 Hexanon lens, and automatic parallax correction. The viewfinder is incredibly bright as well.

[@andrewwilkin1923]

Hi Martin, great video. Agree this is a marvellous compact rangefinder, love mine. The later models had a bit more plastic in their construction so the 500G is the one to go for.

[@theoldunsshot1005]

Great review and super shots, Martin. That looks a nice camera (except the lack of a DOF scale).

[@alangamble3236]

Hi Martin, back in 1977 I bought a Mamiya 1000 DSX SLR on the recommendation of a friend. Whilst a great camera for the period it was a brick of a camera when hanging around the neck. A few months after its purchase I noticed a Ricoh 500G at a discounted price in a camera shop. Well I bought it and the Mamiya was immediately redundant. Yes it had a fixed 40mm lens but the results were excellent ( for an amateur). As you say such an easy camera to use. I still have it although it doesn’t get much use now. About 8 years ago I started collecting old 35mm film cameras and I have both the Zorki 4 and Kiev4a in my collection. I really enjoy your informed videos, looking forward to another.

[@Mucklegipe]

Thank you for sharing. Mine came with the rangefinder front window broken/missing, I replaced it with a bit of a clear music cassette case, scratching a matte part and leaving a central piece clear, problem solved. And they indeed do tale some great pictures, even if the photographer is not so good. Your pictures were great.

[@Maartenols]

Found this camera in a box on the attic of my mother. Light foam was indeed gone, sort of. Found a new battery and the light meter worked. Yes! Trying to fix the light foam atm. Thank you for this upload, it helped. And, some real good shots too. Ps. But I do wonder which picture was with the Ilford and which pictures were taken with the TRI-X Film, that's not clear to me. But. Thanks again!

[@jamesbarnes3063]

Nice images

[@mickcookson8009]

Nice little camera Martin with some nice shots from it..I have a Rollie 35SE great little camera but I struggle with it because of my big hands lol.

[@andrewcroft2570]

Great video, I've just recently bought a mint condition early Canon Canonet.

[@galaxy-dreams2405]

I found one just by chance at my work! they let me take it home and the only thing I can tell that's missing is the rewind dial thing (I found that an outlet screw fit perfectly so i could lift the release so I could check out the inside)! I need to replace the light-proof foam as well but I've been so excited to properly use it.

[@thegroove2000]

Your not too bad at this photography lark.

[@mamiyapress]

Very nice video and thanks for posting. I have 3 versions of the Ricoh 500 but the range finders are out of alignment, have you any tips of how to fix that problem ?

[@TristanColgate]

I got a couple of corkis (a 1c first, then a 4k), and while both are great, I did come to realise that I just don't really get on with range finders. They are fun, but I think I'm a little too keen on detail shots, and I'm so rubbish at framing that I need all the help I can get.

[@JimPollock-my6hb]

I bought one of these that was represented and fully tested however the meter didnt work - got a discount so that worked out - but I really wanted one with working meter. Found one in UK and the meter did indeed work - hooray! - and I've run my first roll of film through it and will report results back. Question - you mention replacing the foam seal insides, where does one find that kind of material? Thanks for all your cool info!

[@raywheat6035]

Hi Martin, Love your videos and I know you might have answered this question in the past but here goes again. Where did you get the digital frames from you use to display your prints?

[@martinhensonphotography]

www.digitalblackandwhite.co.uk/downloads/white-picture-mounts/

[@camerasam1]

Most enjoyable as usual, don't know why but the music reminds me of the TV show with Jack Hargreaves I used to watch as a boy with my Dad

[@johnmoore901]

That's because it is the same one as Jack Hargreaves used

[@camerasam1]

@@johnmoore901 Thank you John . Great memories watching that TV series with my Dad . Probably 50 years ago. Such a simple well presented show.. I believe it's on KZbin now. So looking forward to watching all over again ♥️

[@randallstewart1224]

For its full features and smaller size, it is surprisingly heavy. The lens, like most Ricoh cameras, is decent but not exceptional. I got one for nearly free because it was not working properly. (Metering issues, not good in what is considered an auto-exposure camera.) The problem was in the electrics, which I never figured out. Originally, I looked at it as an auto-exposure, rangefinder equipped alternative to my Rollei 35SE. Didn't work out. Like most small 35mm auto-exposure cameras of its generation, it uses shutter release pressure to operate the metering mechanism, making shutter pressure relatively high and long throw.

[@mnwhmrdrbt7423]

good video, hi from ukraine!:)

[@DavidGriffin]

What do you use to light seal it... i just got one from ebay

[@martinhensonphotography]

You can buy that on eBay camera light seals

[@JeffBishop_KB3QMT]

I was always pleased with the Ricoh cameras. I have the 500, 500G, and the 66 Auto TLR. I always get good results from them. I've had these cameras for over 20 years. For comparison purposes, I have these as well as numerous Nikon, Canon, Pentax M42, Zenit M42, and Pratika M42, and Minolta cameras, as well as the TLR's and three 4x5 cameras. I won't comment on which might be better than another but feel anyone would be pleased with the results from these Ricoh cameras.

[@jarsok245]

Hello, what is the diameter of the filter for this camera? Great material.. I subscribe to your channel and I am full of admiration. Greetings from Poland, Jarek

[@SchwarzPoet]

Hello, I have seen your videos about the Pentacon Six TL and the Contax D. Have you tried a camera from the Exakta Varex range, preferably the Exakta Varex IIa, or the Exakta Varex IIb or the Exakta VX 1000? Would be nice if you could do something about one of the three models as well. Best regards from Germany.

[@martinhensonphotography]

I bought one recently, near mint, unfortuantly the shutter curtains were riddled with holes so had to return t for a refund

[@SchwarzPoet]

@@martinhensonphotography You can change the cloth closure if necessary, there is definitely a store on the Internet where you can buy them, but you still have to cut them to size. They are not that expensive either. The Exakta is not that complicated if you have screwdrivers for precision mechanics. If necessary, there is also a video playlist where an Exakta is repaired. What you definitely shouldn't do, however, is to use the cleaning agents that the person uses. Watchmaker's oil for greasing is much better.

[@JJ-zm3uq]

Do you have a video of how to make the camera light tight? You told us in the video that its a 10 minute job and it is really easy to do. Now i am just starting to figure anolog camera's out so i don't know what materials to use to make the camera light thight. Can someone help me with this?

[@martinhensonphotography]

ntphotoworks.com/product/light-sealing-foam-sheets-10cm-x-24cm-self-adhesive-1-5-2mm/

[@Socrates...]

What do you think of the Konica iiiA , how would that compare to Leica of it’s time ?

[@randallstewart1224]

The Leica comparison would probably be an M2, and we'll assume a 50mm 2.0 Summicron lens. Apart from taking the 35mm full frame format and neither having a built-in meter, they are quite different. Konica IIIA has the better view finder, primarily because of its life-sized imaging. The Konica parallax correction is superior. The Leica has variable framing to accommodate different lenses; the Konica is a fixed lens, so doesn't need that feature. Konica is heavier, but both are strongly built. The optical performance of their basic lenses is so high that there is no practical difference between them. Konica - leaf shutter to 1/500; Leica - focal plane shutter to 1/1000. If you only want to use a standard focal length lens, the Konica delivers for about 15-25% of the cost of the Leica.

[@Socrates...]

@@randallstewart1224 thank you so much for this detailed reply, was really helpful.

[@---us7qf]

It is "very boxy." It reminds me of the Rollei 35 little cameras.

[@michaelhall859]

You still rating asa/Iso at 320 for 400 film and getting good results ? What if it's 200 film, change to 160 or 125?

[@martinhensonphotography]

Yea try it , just gives more chance of getting that shadow detail

[@makagio]

Do you still suggest dropping the ISO over a battery adaptor? So 400 ISO to 320?

[@martinhensonphotography]

yes try it and see

[@makagio]

@@martinhensonphotography do you suggest putting a filter on the Ricoh 500GX? I plan to shoot colour film

[@jarosawzon4272]

poor Russian copy of a great German camera. They usually scratch the film. Mine does that too.