Retro cameras are currently big business as, in an age of AI overload and digital burn out, we all crave for a return to simpler pursuits and a feeling that we are still in control.
So, it’s no surprise that photographic tools that give us the tactile satisfaction of turning dials, flicking levers and pressing buttons, also known as haptic gratification, are popular.
However, I feel there’s something else at play. The ever-lengthening gaps between new cameras being punctuated by almost exclusively heritage-inspired releases indicates manufacturers are more focused on resurrecting the past than they are on shaping the future.
And I get it. Revisiting what once worked well and was majorly successful is far less of a gamble for camera brands than clearing the decks and trying to sell us something wholly novel and new. The downside of this, though, is the rule of diminishing returns.
I can only feel so excited about something I’ve already seen many, many times before. No matter how beautiful its brass lens mount, aluminum construction, or how clever the incremental improvement in performance. Because I feel like the latter has only got smaller of late, between each successive generation. And if technology has already hit its plateau, is it worth me spending big money on something that doesn’t really add value to my existing setup? Just because, essentially, it looks cool?
Of course, I totally understand the retro appeal of cameras that make me feel nostalgic for gear and a time I never experienced the first time around. Or have only the vaguest childhood memory of, such as original Polaroids, Kodak Box Brownies and the cheap 110 film camera that was my first-ever photographic gift.
Nowadays we have that compelling blend of modernism and nostalgia via the OM System PEN, the Panasonic L10 and of course TikTok favourite the Fujifilm X100VI, all showcasing a classic design. I even liked the 1960s inspired premise of the distinctly bonkers Fujifilm Instax Mini Evo Cinema camera.
But do I really need them? Especially when, apart from compact retro toy cameras, they’re mostly priced at a premium? While certainly nice to have, my answer is probably no.
On a positive note, the lack of anything convincingly new when it comes to the latest heritage-influenced models has now led me to appreciate what I already have and work within my setup’s existing limitations. Perhaps if I do want innovation, that now needs to come first and foremost from how I choose to shoot.
