Retro Shutterbug

After scavenging the web for the industry of toy cameras' jewels such as the Holga or the Diana, I have finally found a loot of revamped lomography cams...at Urban Outfitters!

Diana Mini Half Frame

The variety was astounding... I couldn't believe they actually had the Fuji instant photo cam; you know, the one that replaced the Polaroid. The display was a splash of colour and a blast from the 1980's. I felt like a kid again. I managed to snap out of it long enough to channel my shutterbug mind in long enough to start thinking logically. I wasn't quite sure whether I wanted the 1980s Holga, the 1960s Diana or the Lomo Fisheye... I ended up with the Holga 135 (35 mm) and the Fisheye (35 mm). The Diana Mini Half-Frame (35 mm) will be on my holiday wishlist... ;)


You may have noticed that these "toy cameras", which are perfectly functional, are in fact film cameras. Why, would a digital photography student want an old school tool? Because it's retro, because it's a challenge and because it's fun! Also, I dig the degree of cool it provides. I figured that Urban Outfitters is carrying them because they cater to trends and hipsters.


Yeah... I know what you're thinking. I can no longer afford to be dressed to the latest fashions, I don't wear fluos or retro clothes and my teens were marked by the Skater trend. I have never ridden a banana-seat bike with front-side basket (for look and convenience), I haven't chewed genuine Bubblicious or been 15 since the beginning of the decade... So the "hipster" attraction? Really?


Maybe it's because I lived the 80s mostly through my brother and sister (who are in their 30s now) and part of my childhood memories were molded by their hobbies and interests and our humble family home. We always had enough but my greatest joys rose from the simplest pleasures. My mother seems to recall I had a thing for the theatrics. I loved dance, arts & crafts and photographs... Big surprise. Perhaps that dreamy, overly-colourful, grainy aesthetic appeals to the artist that was always inside me. Or maybe it just pulls on my heart strings.


I may not fool anyone as a hipster-poser, but I am most certainly optimistic about the funky shots I shall be taking shortly with my new toys, so to speak.


This shutterbug is conquering the image world, one clic at a time. I'll share my stunning successes and surprising mistakes...stay tuned!