Christmas is almost here and there’s just enough time to sneak in some last-minute shopping for that photography lover in your life. I’ve been busy scouring the web to bring you five completely utterly beautifully strange cameras that are sure to intrigue anyone interested in taking photos over the festive season.
The great news is that these ever-so-odd cameras won't break the bank – all five models come come in at less than $100 and offer maximum bang for your buck.
Chuzhao TLR-style camera
- Best for retro gear lovers
Twin Lens Reflex (TLR) cameras hold a special place in my heart as they were used by one of my all-time street photography heroes, the late Vivian Maier. However, a TLR camera such as the Rolleiflex she used, can cost thousands and have therefore always been just a little too far out of my budget. That's before accounting for its expensive medium format film and development costs, too.
Enter the Chuzhao Retro Digital Mini Vintage TLR – a miniature TLR-style digital camera made in the same vein as retro TLRs, but implements a modern digital sensor and 1.54” screen for that top-down TLR shooting experience. This wonderfully charming camera hardly breaks the bank at around $55 / £45 and can produce 12MP images or Full HD video. Its physical buttons, dials and even film winding crank beautifully mimic TLR cameras of yesteryear but now perform digital functions such as turning the camera on, deleting images or setting the time and date.
It comes with 16GB of internal storage and is available in classic black or red colorways. I reckon this will be easy to use and fun for beginners, curious teenagers and even those like myself who simply love its retro charm. Measuring just 3.25” tall, it also easily fits into a Christmas stocking – what's not to love!
Kodak Charmera
- A superb low cost gift and every day carry
A camera on a keyring is exactly what you get with the Kodak Charmera and it lives up to its name with equal parts camera and retro charm. Of course, the image quality is limited by its tiny size at just 1.6MP, but that’s not the point – plus I’ve heard the younger generation are picking up early iPhone models for the ‘vintage’ look of their lo-res and equally lofi cameras, which certainly doesn’t help make me feel young!
For its size, the Kodak Charmera offers maximum cool factor and will be a surefire hit with any photographer in your life looking to add a nifty totem to their keyring. One extra fun element to the Charmera is you buy the box ‘blind’ and you won't know which colorway you’ve got until you open it up.
Kodak says there’s a one in six chance of picking up one of its six basic editions and a 1/48 chance of getting the ‘secret’ clear edition which I’m predicting could lead to a few Christmas day squabbles over who gets it. It sold out in a day when it was launched a few months ago, so you might need to scour the retailers linked below to find stock.
Camp Snap
- Best personalized gift and screen-free snapper
Customizing a camera is a brilliant way to personalize it and make it super special for the person receiving your gift. That’s where the custom version of the Camp Snap comes in, allowing you to stamp the photographer’s name (up to 10 characters) in a variety of cool colors in block capitals on either their arctic white or stealth black retro film-inspired cameras.
While made to look like a disposable film camera from yesteryear, the Camp Snap is a fully digital camera inside with a rechargeable battery rated for 500 shots, SD card and a USB-C port for charging.
One quirky aspect of the Camp Snap Custom is that it’s screen-free, with just a small shot counter on the back of the camera and a switch to turn it off and on. This low-tech functionality will be brilliant for the ever growing numbers of teenagers looking to reduce their screen time and adds that same magical uncertainty with every frame that you’re never quite sure what you’ve taken until you look back through the images later on.
Kodak Ektar H35N
- Affordable film photography starter
Haven’t you heard? Film is back! Although arguably it never went away. As a photography student over a decade ago I used to love shooting on cheap and cheerful film cameras and waiting for the photos to come back from the lab – it felt like total magic.
Rolls of 35mm film have however gotten rather expensive in recent years, so students and film enthusiasts alike will rejoice at the Kodak Ektar H35N which gives you twice as many shots from a roll of 35mm film as it only shoots on half the frame.
Its cool film aesthetic is complimented by a range of vintage colors including striped black, striped green, striped silver, glazed pink, glazed orange, glazed blue or a BT21 edition with a cool lilac gradient on the front. There are also options to buy as a bundle with film if you’re feeling extra generous this holiday season.
This 'N' version of the H35 is the 2025 model with improved quality thanks to its glass lens. I highly recommend this version over the original.
Fujifilm Instax Pal
- Best for app connectivity and instant printing
If there was a lookalike competition for the camera that looks most like Mike Wazowki from Monsters Inc, then I think there's no question that the Fujifilm Instax Pal in its pistachio green colorway would take the crown. Its oddly shaped, small, squat and round design isn't just eye-catching though, it's sure to bring a lot of fun to Christmas day festivities and is so small it can be placed just about anywhere, fitting right in the palm of your hand.
When you take a picture with the Instax Pal it can store up to 50 images on the internal memory or stream them to your phone wirelessly via the Instax Pal app. From here you can also pair it to a wireless printer like the Instax Mini Link 3 to print out photos with a white border to give it that instant film aesthetic, but parents will be glad to know it's a more affordable alternative to shooting instant film on directly Fujifilm and Polaroid.
I can see the Fujifilm Instax Pal being a hit with kids and teenagers who want to take loads of pictures and print out keepsakes of those fun, special moments over the festivities and it comes in a variety of colors including gem black, milky white, pistachio green, lavender blue and powder pink.
Tip – if you're keen on the printer too, you might make a saving by opting for a Pal and Mini Link bundle.
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