Sofia Boccaccio, News Editor
Graphic by Sofia Boccaccio
Imagine standing in front of a beautiful sunset with your friends and pulling out your phone to take a picture. Pretty realistic, right? Now imagine taking hundreds of photos, trying to get the perfect angle, lighting and pose. Suddenly, you look up and realize you’ve missed most of the sunset because your face was glued to your phone. Yes, you might walk away with your new favorite picture, but it’s also possible that hundreds of those photos will sit in your camera roll for years. All for what?
Nowadays, people will do almost anything for the perfect photo to post on their Instagram. After taking dozens of pictures, they’ll go back to their camera roll, analyzing every little detail. The hair, the outfit and the face all need to look perfect. Maybe you don’t like the way you look. So you take another photo. And another. And another.
I’m guilty of this too.
There’s nothing wrong with taking cute pictures with your friends, sitting down together later, looking through them and choosing your favorite ones to keep. But when taking pictures becomes more about perfection and repetitive cycles of asking for “just one more photo,” the photoshoot stops being fun. Instead of enjoying the moment, a new focus on creating the perfect version of the memory ends up blurring it.
This is where disposable cameras come in.
With a disposable camera, most of those worries vanish. You can’t immediately look at the picture you just took. You can’t zoom in on your face or decide you need to retake it. Instead, you just take the picture and move on with your life.
That’s exactly what makes it so fun.
You might be wondering, “This doesn’t apply to me, so why should I use a disposable camera? My phone works fine.” Well, it’s great that you asked, because I have just the answer.
Disposable cameras make taking pictures more exciting. Most disposable cameras have a limited number of shots, with some averaging around 27 pictures. You can’t take 50 versions of the same sunset. You have to make each picture count. And sometimes, the best photos are the imperfect ones.
Additionally, by putting your phone down and embracing a new way of documenting your life, you might find that you are more present with the people around you.
Over the summer, I used a disposable camera and learned this firsthand. I wasn’t constantly worried about getting the perfect picture. Instead, I grabbed the camera spontaneously. Sometimes I would say, “Let’s grab a quick picture!” Other times, I would take a photo without even telling anyone, just hoping I could capture the moment before it passed. When I got the photos developed, not every photo was perfect, but I believe that is what made them so special. These photos weren’t edited or staged. They were authentic.
Using a disposable camera requires patience. You can’t see the photos instantly because you have to wait until the film gets developed. But when you finally get the images back, looking through each photo allows for you to relieve those memories, almost like opening a time capsule. You may even discover a photo that you forgot you took!
So, the next time you have an event, a birthday, a vacation or a night out, I encourage you to leave your phone in your pocket. Instead, take out a disposable camera and take some pictures that may have some flaws. Learn to be okay with the fact that not everything needs to be polished and in 4K quality. You might even find that you enjoyed yourself more by unplugging and living your life through a different lens.
