Toy camera user: November 2002
Member of tc.com: March 2003, after the site was
revamped. I began snooping around in the fall of 2002. What motivated you to start shooting toys initially and what continues to inspire you? Conceptually I’ve always liked pinhole cameras, but I’ve never been able to stick with them to get it all working properly. I finally made my first pinhole camera in 2002. It was a simple 110 film size thing and the photos were awful and not much besides blurs of color. While researching pinholes, I discovered the ladies Diana & Holga and the TC website. While visiting Tucson I found a HOLGA and have shot with toys since. It’s become a hobby that I tend to every day, and I’m sure the TC community has much to do with that. Plus, I like to tinker.
Was there a particular photographer that inspired you to shoot toy cameras? My friends Warren Padula & Elaine McKay are pinholers. They sparked my interest in pinholes back in the mid 90s.
Is there a particular toy camera photographer that inspires you? Jonathan Bailey.
Do you have a favorite toy camera? Nothing in particular. However, my Ansco Panda is a real cutie. The lens is a bit too sharp and he’s a bakelite box, which I don’t truly consider a toy. I could be swayed (about the toy-ness) if I knew who the target consumer was for the loveable Panda.
Do you have any advice for someone who is just starting out with toy cameras? Shoot more rolls, develop your film and get into the chemistry of making a print. At least that’s my own personal plan.
DAMION RICE
Toy camera user: 3 years. Got bitten by the Lomo bug
after meeting Mr Ed Wenn. I couldn’t afford a Lomo, so brought a Holga! Never looked back since.
Member of tc.com: 3 years
What motivated you to start shooting toys initially and what continues to inspire you? I always had a fleeting interest in photography, more to compensate for a bad memory and as a tool to record various outings with the band I was in. The toy aspect allowed me to develop (with varying degrees of success) the artistic & creative
side of that. I think being around bands a lot,in that whole D.I.Y Punk scene , the plastic cameras thing was a perfect combination.
Was there a particular photographer that inspired you to shoot toy cameras? The first toy cam shots I saw were on Mike Barnes Diana site which included a gallery of his work and galleries by Don Brice & Gordon Stettinus. All of those people inspired me and still do! Is there a particular toy camera photographer that inspires you now? Waaaaaaaaay too many. That’s the cool thing about TC.com. Its chock full of people with a quality attitude and quality output. There’s no real sense of competition or snobbery. Just a good bunch of people with a shared love of plastic!
Do you have any advice for someone who is just starting out with toy cameras? Persevere! My first few rolls were very disappointing. But very soon, you learn the quirks, your eye gets better. Before you know it, you get that elusive roll where every picture is a winner. Then you’re hooked!
SKORJ
Toy camera user: As a kid, my brother and I fought over
his Diana F - it was 1969. Does that count?
Member of tc.com: Since early 2004
What motivated you to start shooting toys initially and what continues to inspire you to shoot them over and over again? I bought my first digital camera (a Sony Mavica) in 1997. Emboldened by its promiscuity, was inspired to start photography again. I was then caught in the false mega-pixel race. I rebelled by not using my hot technology, but my original gritty Mavica. A photographer friend gave me a Holga and told me to get on with making real photographs. I swapped my digital for a Polaroid, grabbed a Diana from a junk store in Melbourne, and found a Fujipet in Nagano. Was there a particular photographer that inspired you to shoot toy cameras? Is there a particular toy camera photographer that inspires you now? Charles Sheeler, OWL, Daido Moriyama and Araki form the core of my non-toy inspiration. The toy camera came second. I am still trying to develop and exploit them for my own message. There are a number of toy camera photographers that inspire me now - you know who you are.
Do you have a favorite toy camera? What is it and why is it your favorite? My toy camera list is small. A Fujipet, a Diana, a Holga and a Color Pack. I enjoy each differently; while the Fujipet is easy & fun to use, the Diana can really surprise. The Polaroid is just impressive - size, operation, noise and output.
Do you have a favorite technique? Or any personal words of plastic wisdom you can elaborate upon and share with us? My favorite technique is the pan/blur - capturing the feeling of movement on an otherwise static medium. I also enjoy wide-angle and panoramic work. My only words of wisdom for plastic photography are to not take it too seriously. Do you have any advice for someone who is just starting out with toy cameras? Recognize what your camera can do, and try to exploit this.
GORDON STETTINIUS
Toy camera user: 14 years
Member of tc.com: A little over a year
What motivated you to start shooting toys initially and what continues to inspire you to shoot them over and over again? As a student, I tried all kinds of cameras and at some point I purchased a Holga just to see what it could do. Borrowed a Diana camera for a little while about the same time. So, I was just looking for something a little different and these were cheap experiments. The style of images and the incidental characteristics really worked for me. I liked the awkward cropping and light leaks. Basically these cameras seemed prone to a casual grace. Things look good and the living is easy.
Was there a particular photographer that inspired you to shoot toy cameras? I learned of Nancy Rexroth’s work very early on and that struck me as significant on a couple of levels, both personally and by the fact her work is received as a serious photographic body of work. It helped me realize that the view cameras and zone systems were not necessary to articulate an idea. Emotions don’t need fancy language. As far as contemporary photographers... There are a number of photographers whose work turns me on. But I don’t know how many of these sometime users would think of themselves as toy camera photographers. Anyway... too many to name. I will say that there is a lot of good work posted regularly on tc.com and this is a great source of inspiration.
Do you have a favorite toy camera? Diana for daylight; Holga for situations requiring a flash. Do you have a favorite technique or modification? I have been messing around with modifications for the year or so I have been hanging out at toycamera.com but the jury is still out on these newer images.
Do you have any advice for someone who is just starting out with toy cameras? I’m sure that someone has already suggested ‘Shoot a lot of film‘ and ‘Buy yourself some Gaffer’s Tape‘ so I will bravely and originally suggest ‘Look at a lot of photographs.’ All the time.
LEON TAYLOR
Toy camera user: about 2 years Member of tc.com: About 1 year
What motivated you to start shooting toys initially? I bought my first Holga after seeing some pics on another web forum and liking the results. When I printed my 1st toycam prints,I was hooked.
Was there a particular photographer that inspired you to shoot toy cameras? No particular person started me off, but all toycamera shooters inspire me to keep going . Do you have a favorite toy camera? I only really use a Holga - I don’t like the new Holga lenses though. Whenever I get a new Holga, I swap the lens for my old one. The new lenses are too good.
mod so it overexposes 400 film, then control highlights through development. That way a good detailed neg is achieved and a great starting point for printing.
Do you have any advice for someone who is just starting out with toy cameras? Don’t take it too seriously, enjoy it for what it is, just a piece of badly made plastic
Anything else you’d like to add? Yes.