I was pleasingly surprised to find out that a picture I took this weekend was selected to be featured in Today’s Photos on Chicago’s Windy Citizen yesterday.
The interesting thing is that I shot this using an inexpensive “lo-fi” digital camera, the Aiptek Pencam SD. The design of this little cam is about 10 years old, shooting photos sporting all of 1.3 megapixels. There isn’t even an LCD screen to preview or review photos, just a roughly accurate optical viewfinder.
But I really enjoy shooting with the camera because of the combination of its simplicity and unpredictability. In many ways it’s a digital equivalent of a toy film camera like a Holga, frankly only less expensive. What I like shooting with such a camera is that it encourages you to let go of technical details and focus on taking the picture, often taking more risks because you can’t just review your photo and adjust.
The fact that anyone else likes the photo taken with this $19 lo-fi digital camera is just more evidence for the old adage, “the best camera is the one you have with you.”
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