THE RICOH GR III HDF DIGITAL CAMERA

This point-and-shoot camera is even less obtrusive than your iPhone

This column has often discussed how the type of camera you have in your hand can dictate—and to a considerable extent enhance—the kind of photographs you take.

It’s almost a tail-wagging-the-dog thing. Pick up any Leica M series, from a 1930s III-model to the latest M11, and you’ll feel not just equipped but encouraged to hit the streets as a latter-day Cartier-Bresson. With a big Nikon or Canon D.S.L.R., you’ll be ready for sports and wars. Holding a medium-format Hasselblad or Fujifilm GFX, you’ll want to take landscapes and fashion shots.