Not only are more young people eschewing their smartphones and getting into traditional photography – with, I believe, the greatest enthusiasm since digital photography exploded in the mid 2000s – but now’s also the ideal time to be a fledgling snapper.
Why? Well, for starters, look at the sheer volume and diversity of available tools.
If you’ve only pocket money to spend, or are asking to be gifted a device, then there are standalone digital cameras available from Kodak, Camp Snap, Chuzhao, Yashica and more, plus plentiful ‘no brand’ options currently flooding Amazon.
Is anyone looking to make high art with this low tech? No, but that’s exactly the point.
To this selection, we can add equally accessible entry-level instant print cameras from Polaroid, Fujifilm Instax and Lomography, some of which, in the case of certain Instax models, allow for digital camera as well as print output. And that’s even before exploring what can be found second-hand via photo specialist retailers or the worldwide marketplace that is eBay. Added to this, every day there seems to be a new Kickstarter campaign to fund weird and wonderful new image capture alternatives to curb our smartphone obsession.
Of additional benefit to beginner photographers exploring their options, there are plenty of ‘proper’ cameras offering greater accessibility and reliability with it, providing the benefit of AI-enhanced subject-recognising autofocus.
The only issue for anyone starting out is that cameras from the traditional photo brands are a bit more expensive. Or more than a bit. In fact, there’s a sizeable price gap between the pocket money offerings listed above and, say, a compact point-and-shoot from Canon or Panasonic. For example, the PowerShot G7 X Mark III or Lumix TZ300, aka ZS300, respectively.
The same is true of Ricoh’s equally popular GRIV series, another excellent learning tool for anyone new to the hobby that doesn’t yet want to have to deal with interchangeable lenses.
OK, so I ideally wouldn’t recommend starting out your photographic journey with one of the key fob-sized toy cameras currently doing the rounds, as the novelty will soon wear off.
But the best thing about the present photographic landscape is that there is the widest choice available in a good 20 years. Even the output from a cheap low-tech camera will help its user’s images to stand out against a sea of glossily unreal AI slop, making such snapshots much in demand.
It will be fascinating to see where the beginners of today drive the medium tomorrow. But, naturally, it’s not just about the tools. They need to first decide on what their vision is and then how best to communicate it.
