Instant Photography

It's 40 years since the first Lomo camera went into production, a Russian copy of the Cosina CX-2. That simple model spawned a global art-centred Lomography movement – which has now been embodied in the stylish and versatile Lomo’Instant Wide Glass.

Six years ago, Ukrainian startup Jollylook brought us a very retro-looking analog camera that produced instant-print photographs. The company is back again with the similarly old-school Eye, that converts digital photos into instant prints.

Back in 2016, imaging titan Leica announced the pricey-but-capable Sofort instant camera ahead of a public showing at Photokina in Germany. Now the company is having another bash with a second-generation hybrid instant snapper.

Fujifilm has launched a cute Instax camera that makes printing to instant film optional. The Instax Pal digital camera comes bundled with a Mini Link 2 printer, but can stow snaps to onboard storage for transfer to an app to add filters and stickers.

Though many of us will have an instant camera with us pretty much all of the time, printing out snaps can be a hassle. Polaroid cameras have a built in printer, and the company is going premium for its latest model – the I-2.

Many of the original instant-film cameras tended to be basic plasticky things, aimed at getting simple snapshots. Quite a few of their present-day descendants share that quality, although the aluminum-bodied full-manual SL645 is a big exception.

Fujifilm has added another model to its Instax family of digital/film hybrid instant cameras. The Mini Evo Hybrid comes with 10 built-in lens effects and 10 film effects for a hundred combined creative possibilities.

Polaroid instant cameras of old were big, blocky snappers with one-press simplicity and the ability to throw out self-developing photos. The latest addition to the family follows the same design aesthetic, but the Go is a fraction of the size.

Although many photographers like experimenting with old instant film cameras, the things typically lack the manual controls that are integral to serious photography. That's where the InstantKon SF70 Instant Camera is designed to come in.

In an age where instant photography means whipping out a smartphone and sharing the image with friends online, a boxy camera that produces self-developing prints seems like a huge backward step. But that's exactly what the Polaroid Now offers.

Although instant-film cameras have been making a comeback, they still tend to be simple point-and-shoots, like the original Polaroids. The SL42 is different, in that it's an SLR that uses interchangeable lenses and offers full manual control.

Polaroid has announced an official version of the Impossible Instant Lab from 2012, which turns smartphone images into physical prints.