Why can’t they bring back compact cameras with real optical viewfinders? You mean like Camp Snap, RewindPix, Flashback? Kind of, but also no. Remember the Canon Sure Shot BF – which stood for “Big Finder” – I remember these point-and-shoot film cameras designed and marketed as having the the largest optical viewfinders available in a compact film camera.
In comparison to modern digital cameras with an optical viewfinder, outside of the Fujifilm X100VI, there is very few to choose from. Even Vtech has bigger optical viewfinders compared to most compact digicams, and that’s a TOY, for kids…
Old film camera + smartphone = the perfect vintage camera…
There was a period in time where people were buying TLR cameras (the ones with a large square viewfinder that you looked down to compose your shorts), and taking a picture of it with an iPhone and posting it to Instagram (etc), back when Instagram was limited to square photos – it was the perfect hipster combination.
Times have changed since then, Instagram lets you do any shape photos, and would prefer video anyway. Those TLR cameras have rocketed in price, becoming cool, trendy, and dare I say it, sometimes even useful for real photography (shocking I know).
Vintage digital cameras are back again – the compact “digicam” gives images that don’t scream HDR/AI or perfection like smartphone photos. And even 35mm compact film cameras are back in fashion, with people using them for actual film photography – at great expense.
But what if I told you, you could achieve the film photography look, but without the expense… simply find, buy, borrow, or rescue any old film camera – it doesn’t even need to be a working model. It just needs to be one with an optical viewfinder and hold your camera phone up to the viewfinder. For simplicity, you want a basic point and shoot, and not an SLR or through-the-lens / TTL model – although it should still work if you can see through the viewfinder.
Here’s some of the brands that made compact film cameras: Canon, Samsung, Nikon, Olympus, Minolta, Konica, Fujifilm, Ricoh, Pentax, Kodak and many many more brands made film cameras, all with varying sizes of optical viewfinder. With a smaller viewfinder, the image in the middle will be smaller, and there will be more of the scene reflected in the sides of the image. Experimentation is key, as light leaks can come from in front of the camera, as well as from behind.
So, the next time you’re in a charity shop, or on eBay, keep your eyes peeled for a cheap film camera.
You don’t even need to use a smartphone; you could use a cheap Toy Keychain camera (like the Life Camera S168) and hold this up to the viewfinder. Adjusting the position of the camera in relation to the viewfinder can get you a different look. With the S168 camera pointed through the viewfinder, I’m able to get a wider view than the camera would normally take – along with the additional distortion that gives the image a less-than-perfect look that many people associate with film photography.
So, what are you waiting for? Give it a go, and share your results with the world.
The views expressed in this column are not necessarily those of Amateur Photographer magazine or Kelsey Media Limited. If you have an opinion you’d like to share on this topic, or any other photography related subject, email: [email protected]
Related reading:
- Best 35mm film cameras
- Don’t believe the YouTube hype – you will never find a digital camera “shoots like film” and here’s why
- Do you want a digital camera that shoots like film? This is the closest options I’ve found
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