john_ha

<p>Amongst my LX-3, DLUX-4, EP-1, F200EXR, Pentax W60, Fuji F30 and Ricoh GRD III, I reach for the GRD III almost always. I know the LX-3 is very popular and well known, but the Ricoh GRD III has the best usability of any of my small cameras. Well, of any small camera I've ever owned period! It's like a digital SLR in a compact. The rubber grip, metal body and dials remind you of a pro SLR. The screen rivals that of my Nikon D3.<br>

I like my LX-3 and DLUX-4 of course, but the controls are nicer on the Ricoh. The buttons are nicer to press. My fingers are always a bit sore after using the LX-3 for a while and pressing it's sharp little buttons. A minor point, I guess but important to me.<br>

I was reluctant in the past to buy the GRD and the GRD II due to poor image quality, but I pulled the trigger on the GRD III and couldn't be happier with it. The image quality is superb. It's my travel and street shooter. Also, it has the best macro performance of any compact I've used.<br>

I bought the GRD III with a bit of hesitation, knowing I had planned on buying the Leica X-1 when it's released. But after shooting with the Ricoh for a while, I'm not sure I would want to switch to the X-1's vastly inferior screen and poorer controls. We'll see next month.<br>

Yes, I'm a compact camera junkie. In 35mm, I also have a Leica CM, Ricoh GR1, Yashica T4 Super D, Leica Mini-3 (which is sweet!), and a few others I can't even remember right now.<br>

But in digital, check out the Ricoh, you won't be disappointed.</p>

I recently bought a second-hand Coolscan 4000 and tried this mod. I was unsure if it would work because I updated the scanner's firmware to the latest version. Bottom line is that it works!

I first used Jesse's page and photos as a guide to take the SA-21 apart. But I mis-read the two contacts to short and I took it apart again to remove the tape and wire I used. Thank goodness it didn't hurt the scanner.

Anyway, I dug around in Google Groups and found a way to do the modification without taking anything apart. It comes from a post written by one very helpful Mr. Kennedy McEwen. I quote the relevant part of his post here:

"Incidentally, for those who do not want to take the risk of opening

their SA-21 up and making a permanent solder link modification, there is an alternative temporary fix, albeit a little less reliable.

The two contacts of the link in question connect directly to pins 16 and 17 of the blue rear connector on the SA-21. Looking into the rear of the SA-21 with the adapter the correct way up, pin 13 is on the middle row on the left of the connector, so just count 4 and 5 pins across and you get to the two pins in question. These can be shorted together using some very fine wire - thin enough so that the operation of the connector contact is not interfered with. Then hold the link wire in place with some adhesive tape - Scotch Magic tape works quite well for this.

Before pushing the SA-21 back into the scanner, make sure that you

pierce the adhesive tape over each contact in the connector block with a pin. This will prevent the corresponding pins in the scanner being

subjected to additional pressure as the adapter is pushed home in the

scanner."

And here is the link to the page I found it on:

http://groups.google.com/group/comp.periphs.scanners/browse_thread/thread/f8b7497f7af6de1e/0885906849478e6f

Les, thank you so much for your very informative comparison scans.

I'm just curious to know if you are using the Epson film holders or the variable height holders from Doug Fisher (betterscanning.com).

I've read that optimizing the height of the film by matching it to your individual scanner's focus range can help you squeeze better quality out of your flatbed.