How to Choose an Instant Camera

Instant cameras are more about producing an image than quality, but that is what makes them great. As soon as you take a picture, it is printed, usually, on a relatively small piece of photo paper, so you can give your friends a photo immediately. Some of the more advanced models are able to store images on a memory card and record HD movies.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Immediate printing of photos
Retro style photographs
Simple operation
Small and light
Inexpensive

Single purpose
Ergonomics

Common Questions When Selecting Instant Cameras

How long does it take to print an picture?

When the shutter-release button is pressed, the photo printing starts almost immediately. However, it takes 2 to 3 minutes before the picture is completely developed.

How can the settings be changed to affect the image?

The beauty of instant cameras lies in the imperfections or the photos it makes. These turn out looking somewhat surreal and with pastel colours and smoothed skin. As for the camera settings, some models allow you to choose the shutter speed and suppress or force the flash. If that sounds like to much, then you can just leave it on automatic and just capture the magic of the moment.

How big are the pictures?

The size of the printed photo depends on the camera.

Image size
Fujifilm Instax Mini - 86×54mm, of which 62×46mm is the actual picture.
Fujifilm Instax Wide Series - 86×108mm, of which 62×99mm is the actual picture.
Polariod Snap and Polaroid Z2300 Series - 76×51mm, These are borderless.

Can the instant camera store a digital image?

Instant Polaroid cameras can resemble a standard digital compact camera, in that they have a display, can store images on MicroSD memory card, and have a resolution up to 13MPx. In addition, it might also be able to record HD video and connect to a smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth.

Instant Cameras

Successors of classic Polaroid cameras
Photograph sizes up to 62 × 99 mm

What's important when choosing an instant camera?

Minimum Focusing Distance

This describes how close you can have the lens of the camera to the subject without blurring the image.

up to 30 cm - Fujifilm Instax Mini 70 , Mini 90

up to 40 cm - Fujifilm Instax Wide 300

up to 50 cm - Fujifilm Instax Mini 25

up to 60 cm - Fujifilm Instax Mini 8S

Shutter Speed

The shorter the shutter speed (shooting time), the less the image is affected by the movement of the subject or the camera itself. If it is not a sports shot, a shutter speed of 1/100s is sufficient. In order to capture dynamic events, cameras with a minimum shutter speed of 1/400s are best. Some cameras can be set to have a shutter speed that is longer than one minute. This allows for some pretty creative shots.

Power supply

Most models are powered by normal batteries as standard, but rechargeable battery models are also available.

Glossary - Instant Cameras

Maximum shutter speed

The maximum amount of time the open shutter allows the light to hit the image sensor. Longer shutter speeds are used for various effect shots using targeted blur.

Micro SDHC card

Micro SDHC card is used on mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras and other devices. It is a modern storage medium with miniature dimensions. The Micro SDHC card is often supplied with an SD adapter that can be inserted into older SD card devices.

Focus

Sharpening a photo means ensuring sharpness of what interests us most in the final picture. For the correct focus, you must select a plane that is parallel to the sensor. Everything that goes through the focus plane will be focused. - Digital SLRs make use of a faster focusing system with phase detection.

Dictionary of terms

Looking for another type of camera?

How to choose a compact camera with a removable lens How to choose a digital SLR camera