World Toy Camera Day
Toy cameras are inexpensive and very simple cameras capable of taking photos; however, due to their simple lenses, they cause optical aberrations. They were designed to be easy to use for children but still capable of capturing a photograph.
Although historically adults paid very little attention to these cameras, they eventually began to use them to capture some interesting pictures. This not only inspired a style of photography called Lomography but also inspired a holiday known as World Toy Camera Day.
This day is observed annually on the third Sunday of October and encourages everyone to use toy cameras to capture their own artistic vision.
The History of World Toy Camera Day
Interest in using toy cameras to take artistic pictures is a movement that originally began in the 1990s. People began to notice the weird effects in these camera photos caused by their simple lenses. These include distortions, vignettes, lens flares, light leaks, and other optical effects. It allowed people to create effects on photos that can only be replicated using software on digital photos.
Becky Ramotowski, an American photographer, became inspired by Pinhole Photography Day and decided to create a day where the toy camera was the primary tool. Toy cameras allowed people to take photographs that were unique and sometimes had an eerie nostalgic feel to them. These distorted and blurry photographs were an art form in themselves, and she knew it.
Some Fun Facts About Toy Cameras
Even though toy cameras can be bought from a variety of websites nowadays, there aren’t many people who know much about them. That’s why we’ve decided to list some facts about toy cameras that we think all of our readers, and anyone interested in Lomography, might want to check out. Let’s take a look at them below.
- Toy cameras started being produced on a massive scale during the 1960s.
- The toy camera Diana was produced in Hong Kong during the 1960s and 1970s.
- During the 1990s, Russian factory Lomo PLC began producing the Lomo LC-A camera.
- A Chinese camera called the Holga is considered to be the successor to Diana.
Observing World Toy Camera Day
All that’s required for people to observe World Toy Camera Day is to find themselves a cheap toy camera and start snapping some photos. Once photos are taken, they can then be shared with friends and family members or even uploaded to websites dedicated to Lomography. No matter how a person observes this holiday, they should just take the time to use the hashtag #WorldToyCameraDay on social media to spread the word about this day.