I Have a Hybrid and Support your real mom & pop store...

 

Ordered the new Instax Evo Wide today from the gang at FIRESIDE CAMERA in San Francisco. 
The camera above is not that one - but more on this camera in a minute.

Anyone looking for gear and want to support a REAL local small business (not another chain store with multiple locations) - pay them a visit.  Fireside is in the Marina District so there's tons of things to photograph and a lot of food and bars and stores to visit AND.... sad to say.... You sorta feel safe in the area unlike most parts of the city.

The camera above is the junior version of the new Instax Evo Wide.  The Mini Evo.  

Both Evo cameras are out of stock everywhere.... so I did the old "camera quest" and believe it or not, WalMart had two in stock.

Granted this is a pure point and shoot.  A hybrid because it is a digital camera with an Instax printer built in.  The plus.... see before you print, apply electronic do dads and effects.

It's sorta analog in that the image is on Instant Film.  One thing, I am having a blast just snapping away!

Learning the gear and finding the one...

 So far this quest has been slow thanks to the flu bug that really has hit hard this time around.

Here's where I am at on the quest.

The Mint designed and manufactured cameras have been great.
However, because the wide is a rangefinder style, my minimum focal distance is about 3'.  Ok for some stuff but the power of the image sometimes requires you to get close.  This reminds me of all the Leica rangefinders I use to shoot.  Love a majority of it but not being able to get close is a pain.

The TLR gives me that style of photography which is in itself a lot of fun.  I can get really close but only after clipping on a macro lens.  Almost like the Rangefinder, the parallax issue is there.

The original Polaroid SLR690 (which will need some repair thanks to me dropping it and knocking the mirrors out of adjustments) still works and that sonar autofocus is still unbelievable and so damn accurate.  But not being able to focus does have it's drawbacks.

The i2.  I really want to love this camera but it's a viewfinder/rangefinder sort of affair and mastering the parallax is difficult.  Also this camera needs a lot of light in order to produce a good image.  Even with the flash on, it's been a challenge.

The winner is Dr.Land's SX70.  This one is the modified Mint version called the SLR670.  The time machine attachment adds to the fun of using it, however with a flash (like the image above), I have to allow the SX70 to do it's thing.

Being an SLR, I can accurately see what I am going to get in terms of framing and depth of field.  It comes down to the "using of the camera", the SX70 can get within 7" without any attachments and super close with the close up lens (which I bought years ago when an SX70 accessories kit in mint condition became available).

So the 50 year old design that is still super cool and still in some ways ahead of it's time is still the best tool so far.

and the quest continues....

Comparison - Mint RF vs Fuji X100V w/ Instax Wide printer

 

The journey continues.  Since I am homebound due to not being able to talk (damn cold), I decided to venture to my backyard again and do some of that photo learning stuff.

The images on the left were taken with the Mint RF70 and using the built in meter to tell me what settings to select.

The images on the right were taken with the Fujifilm X100V transferred to Lightroom and then exported to Gmail and then printed on the Fujifilm Instax Wide printer.  This is to keep to the theme of using Instant Film

Keep in mind these photos are only minutes old and will improve over the next few hours.

I expected the X100V images to be overall far better since it's a digital camera.

What I didn't expect were the clarity of the Mint images.  Granted exposure and time the photos were taken varied widely but I was impressed with what the Mint was able to produce.

And so the learning curve continues on....