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Anyone can take a litany of pictures on their smartphone. But when it comes to film photography there’s added skill, patience, and vision needed to capture the moment. Lo-fi, crisp, and sometimes unpredictable, the quality of analog photos satisfies nostalgia for vintage aesthetics. Whether you seek to style black and white portraits or take candid snapshots, create captivating images with these intuitive and classic film cameras.
With the Fujifilm instax Mini 9 you can instantly snap and print 2.13 x 3.4-inch photos to tuck in your wallet, save in your pocket, and share with friends. This bubbly camera comes in lime green, ocean blue, and eight other vibrant colors. And for Disney kids—or kids at heart—there are Toy Story, Star Wars, and Frozen limited editions. Each Instax bundle includes a mini twin film pack with 20 exposures so you can waste no time clicking away. There’s even a selfie mirror and macro lens for close-ups.
First manufactured in China in 1981, the Holga 120N medium format camera with a built-in 60mm f/8 plastic lens is one of the most iconic toy cameras available. Its plastic body, modest design and minimal controls produce a dream-like aesthetic, vignettes, and unique light leaks. The Ilford HP5 Plus black and white negative 120 roll film—included as a bundle—can be shot in 6×4.5 or 6×6 frame formats, and f/11 and f/8 aperture settings to create stunning, distorted photos.
The first self-developing film camera was invented and made commercially available by Polaroid in the 1940s. The OneStep 2, a modern iteration of this iconic camera, is inspired by the original one step camera from 1977. It has a high-quality fixed focus lens with 0.6m to infinity field of view. There’s a self-timer function and powerful built-in flash for portraits, cloudy days, or indoor shots, plus a neck strap to wear on the go. The compact OneStep 2 comes in five bold colors to match your style—summer blue, red, mint, black, and white. Stranger Things superfans can capture all their strange, upside-down moments with a limited edition camera.
No camera is more beloved, convenient, or notable than a Kodak disposable. This recyclable one-time-use camera has a built-in 35mm Kodak MAX film with 27 exposures so you never need to load film or risk exposing a roll. In fact, the whole camera can be dropped off at your local photo lab for development and prints. It also has a flash so you can take quick pics anywhere at any time.
Introduced in 1976 and manufactured in Japan until 1984, the Canon AE-1—a 35mm SLR camera with electronically controlled AE and focal plane shutter—sold over one million units and is still on the market. This camera’s straightforward controls and automatic aperture make it perfect for new photographers. And if you want to experiment with a different lens, Canon Breech-Lock mount, FD, FL and R lenses can all be used. There’s also helpful information on the viewfinder, including aperture scale with meter needle and stopped-down metering which also serves as a battery charge level check mark so you won’t miss a shot.
