First thoughts on the Camp Snap Camera

Back in 2023, I came across the Camp Snap Camera and wrote a blog post about whether it'd be a viable alternative to using my iPhone camera all the time. Well, this Christmas I took the plunge and asked for one as a gift so I thought I'd share a few honest thoughts on the camera so far, along with some images.

There's no real set-up required, once it's out of the box you just turn it on and start snapping photos. The first thing I noticed was a slight lag on pressing the shutter and the photo being taken. We're talking literally like half a second or less but just enough that you notice so I quickly learned it's not a camera designed for any sort of action shot. Most pics I've take of the kids so far end up with motion blur simply because they don't sit still long enough. That said, for shots out and about it works perfectly fine as a way to record the places you visit.

Out of the box, it's set to the "default" filter which you can change by downloading the filter files from their website. While it's easy enough to do, you just plug the camera into your computer and drag the file onto the camera's file system, I feel it could better. I've already emailed Camp Snap about a future model having the filters pre-installed and have a small physical switch on the camera itself.

Not only would this be easier, but also allows you to change modes while you're away from a computer. This has tripped me up a few times already. I quickly realised that the black & white filter offers a better result (in my opinion) so tend to have that one installed but when you're out early and trying to catch the colour of the sky at sunrise, I find myself reaching for my phone...

I'll be honest, the photo quality isn't amazing which does play into the "retro" feel but I look forward to a future model which retains the screen-free ethos but catches up a bit with the times in terms of photo quality. For now though, I'm mostly snapping stuff for Instagram or just to share with family so when viewed on a smaller screen, the quality doesn't suffer all that much so it's not super-terrible but probably on a par with iPhone's capabilities about 10 years ago, if I were to guess.

The one last bit of critique I've got is purely down to the fact that I'm used to using a phone or a digital camera with a screen so what you see on-screen is what actually gets shot. The viewfinder is slightly misaligned with the lens so what you see through the viewfinder isn't exactly what you'll photograph. Not a major issue but there've been a few occasions so far where the image composition is slightly off.

I've been fairly critical of it so far so I'll write a few positive things to end on.

When I've been using it, it has helped keep my phone in my pocket so I'll be bringing it along on various trips we've got planned this year as my alternative camera.

It's small, compact and lightweight so it's easy to carry around in your coat pocket.

It's easy to use so the kids can have a go at taking photos without worrying about it breaking. I've not crash tested it but the fairly low price-point means it's not the end of the world if it broke (unlike the financial cost of replacing a broken iPhone).

It's not a total phone killer, it's certainly not an alternative to a DSLR but if you approach it at face-value as a simple device aimed at reducing screen-time while having fun just looking for stuff to photograph, you'll get along just fine with it.

I'll definitely be keeping an eye on future developments as well as other cameras I've seen cropping up in this space.

For now, I'll leave you with a selection of photos I've taken over the Christmas period.