I want disposable cameras to make a comeback a big way. Nothing compares to film, it just looks like memories. It’s convenient to be able to shoot film without the commitment of buying a camera + film and learning how to use it. imo, every person should go through at least a few disposable cameras in their lives! :)
Disposable and film cameras are taking off again, kind of like what happened with vinyl records. My favorite part about shooting film is the mystery of it. When you shoot film the intention is high since you have a limited number of (expensive) shots: These days a disposable camera costs $25 when you factor in development.
Later Cam gives you a disposable/film experience for less than half the cost. It's $12.99 for 27 photos delivered.
At first the app held your photos for 3 days (simulating a film lab), let you preview your photos in-app with the option to order select prints by mail. After dozens of user interviews it became clear we also need (or maybe only need) a print-first mode where all of your photos get printed and the first time you see them is when they arrive in the mail.
We support "party cams" so you can shoot into the same camera with family and friends. Everyone shoots from their own iPhone or Android. One of the coolest things we do is turn your prints into postcards so you can slap on a postcard stamp and forward them to friends.
The last few weeks we've been experimenting with weddings which has been a blast. We create a custom wedding camera matching your invitation or use your engagement photos. Guests can easily download the app and get into the wedding cam with QR codes on signs and table cards we mail out ahead of the wedding. A week after the wedding the newlyweds get all the photos in the mail.
If anyone is interested in a beta invite I'd love to connect.
A disposable film camera isn't a replacement for a digital camera, it's a replacement for a potato with analog film and the bottom of a beer bottle as a lens grafted onto/into it.
This article reminds me strongly of a pivotal passage in the novel Gain, by Richard Powers (which I can't recommend highly enough, although it's a downer). In that passage he describes how a disposable film camera is made.
Per the old is new again trend, anyone remember does disposable Fuji film cameras you used to take on vacation? Only had like 35 frames. You wouldn't dare take a photo every 5 minutes and run out of film on day one.
I couldn't understand having a nostalgia for a time when cameras sucked. At least go film. Hell, go for disposable film cameras or something. Cheap 35mm point and shoots rule.
Consumer film cameras are extinct as they have been replaced by digital. They are only carried by specialty stores now as people only use it as a hobby.
Anytime I see a photo taken on actual film, even though it's been digitized for posting online, there's a visceral reaction of beauty. To you point of DALL-E being the disposable camera, I feel those images are in fact "disposable". I feel nothing.
None, pre-digital camera days and I never owned a film camera and didn't buy any disposables. I had very little money that I didn't spend on techno records.
Film photography is such a beautiful and romantic process, with some ingenious technical solutions to make it all work, and still hold up pretty well with the end result compared to digital photography.
It's also a huge pain in the ass compared to digital, but damn I'm going to be sad if it ever gets completely phased out.
Million of people still use them both for personal and commercial use, especially medium/large format cameras. If anything they're the least likely cameras to get obsolete and the ones with the best proven long term usability. A 15 years old digital camera isn't really enjoyable anymore while a 40 years leica M or nikon FM are still mechanical beauties
There isn't much to repurpose, a film camera is basically a dark box with an advance lever and some form of shutter, can't really get much simpler than that. Most of them have interchangeable lenses which can be used on modern cameras very easily.
I'm still using my dad's 1978 Nikon FE every few days, the same that took my own childhood pictures. I'm actually selling my 2k$+ digital camera to go back to film only
Part of me knows shooting with film is ridiculous in 2020.
It's expensive, you don't get immediate feedback, old film cameras can often have light leaks, etc... But there is something magical about holding and shooting a film camera. You physically load the film. You can hear the film advance as you shoot. You take out the completed canister. When you get your developed film back you can see and hold the film that physically changed due to light coming in through the camera. In a world where everything is digital creating a physical image with light is kind of amazing.
I still mainly shoot digital. There are too many advantages to not shoot digital in my opinion. However, if you're a fan of photography I recommend giving film a chance. The experience is really special.
As someone who used to be very into photography, there are two other artistic advantages of a disposable camera or film cameras in general.
One, that you cannot see the photo you just took; it makes you more careful with your framing (similarly to your point about only having so many shots), and further helps you stay connected to the scene, instead of "chimping" the shot you just took.
Two, that because there is a period of time elapsed between when you take the shots and when you get back the results after the film has been processed, there is an additional delight factor when you get your photos back, and it can help you see your shots in a different light.
It's an interesting phenomenon that a technically superior implementation don't always mean the artistically superior implementation. Of course, a working photographer (working in news or sports) will sensibly choose the technically superior implementation; but the dilettante has more options, and I encourage all of them to explore those options.
Wow, I hadn't discovered Destin until now and love his style. I have the exact camera Destin shows at the beginning of the video and love it.
One of the big problems with film is the cost. I was surprised to find out last year that disposable cameras cost an average of $25 after you factor in development.
I've been working on a new product called Later Cam that turns your phone into a disposable camera and automatically mails you the prints. I just published this video about it last night:
https://www.tiktok.com/@latercam/video/7078825219833580843
I'm excited to watch this series over the weekend. This reminds me of a Boston-area envelope factory where I create all the envelopes for a photo delivery service I operate, NanaGram.co (Text your photos and we'll mail glossy, frameable 4x6 prints to your nana). USA manufacturing is awesome to see and support.
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