The photos are grainy, poorly lit or pixelated. The flash has washed out the subjects or illuminated only a portion of the scene. There may be a tiny orange time stamp in the bottom right-hand corner.
But the photographers don含羞草研究社檛 mind; it含羞草研究社檚 what they含羞草研究社檙e going for, said 20-year-old Anya Chigak.
含羞草研究社淚t captures the vibe a lot more than a clean photo taken by your phone.含羞草研究社�
Like many of her peers, Chigak has embraced compact digital cameras 含羞草研究社� a token of the past she hopes will keep her tethered to the present.
The marine biology student from Cambridge, Ont., pilfered one from her mom and purchased the other second-hand for $10. Neither can produce the quality of the camera built into hersmartphone.
Chigak was in Grade 10 when she started using her mom含羞草研究社檚 old digicam from the mid-aughts, wary of the allure of her phone含羞草研究社檚 notifications and looking for a way to capture memories while staying in the moment.
The results also match her esthetic sensibilities.
含羞草研究社淚含羞草研究社檓 very into antiques and vintage,含羞草研究社� she said. 含羞草研究社淚 work at an antique store and I collect records and vintage clothes and cassettes, so I含羞草研究社檝e always liked the older look of photos better.含羞草研究社�
They remind her of the contents of her parents含羞草研究社� old photo albums, which she always preferred to the well-lit, perfectly crisp and immaculately edited pictures that populated her social media feeds.
Selma Purac, a professor at Western University含羞草研究社檚 faculty of information and media studies, said the digicam is just the latest in a long line of out-of-date technology to capture the youth zeitgeist: vinyl, yes, but also disposable cameras and instant cameras, reminiscent of old Polaroids.
含羞草研究社淭hese are artifacts of an earlier time, and I think that makes them kind of transportive,含羞草研究社� Purac said.
Her students and those younger than them, the ones embracing the digicam trend, came of age during the COVID-19 pandemic and are entering a precarious future shaped by climate and cost-of-living crises.
含羞草研究社淎nd then there含羞草研究社檚 the mental health crisis that含羞草研究社檚 been brought on by their engagement with digital media,含羞草研究社� Purac added. 含羞草研究社淪o this desire to reach to a mythical past, a more positively framed past, kind of makes sense.含羞草研究社�
That framing of the past is a key ingredient to nostalgia, she said.
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含羞草研究社淭here is a real simplification underlying most nostalgia. Nostalgia is memory that necessitates forgetting. It含羞草研究社檚 memory that necessitates erasure, because what we含羞草研究社檙e doing is we含羞草研究社檙e reaching back to a perceived simpler time.含羞草研究社�
Emma Soper, a 23-year-old linguistics student in Hamilton, can put an exact year to that time: 2011, when she was nine years old and got the digital camera she still uses today.
含羞草研究社淚t含羞草研究社檚 comforting to go back to a time when there was less responsibility and things felt more like someone else was deciding for you 含羞草研究社� it含羞草研究社檚 kind of a break from the mentality of: 含羞草研究社業含羞草研究社檝e gotta figure this out on my own,含羞草研究社櫤卟菅芯可鐫 she said.
She also likes that the photos she takes with the digital camera aren含羞草研究社檛 necessarily for sharing.
含羞草研究社淚t含羞草研究社檚 not like, 含羞草研究社業含羞草研究社檓 gonna upload this to VSCO and adjust the contrast and the sharpness and the saturation and make sure I have a nice caption,含羞草研究社櫤卟菅芯可鐫 Soper said. 含羞草研究社淚t was just, smile for the camera, and that含羞草研究社檚 it 含羞草研究社� even though I know full well I will likely post some of those pictures on Instagram.含羞草研究社�
Cedrick Pizarro has perfected his process for sharing the photos from his digital camera.
The 20-year-old flight services student from Toronto has become his friend group含羞草研究社檚 de facto photographer 含羞草研究社� and unlike Chigak and Soper, he含羞草研究社檚 editing his pictures. He uploads them to Darkroom, an app in which he含羞草研究社檚 created preset filters to enhance the retro feel.
Then, Pizarro shares the photos to his Instagram stories so his friends can see them and ask for copies.
But Pizarro is using more than just his digital camera: he also takes photos with his phone and an Instax instant camera.
The phone is good for videos and immediate sharing, while the Instax photos feel more spontaneous.
含羞草研究社淭here含羞草研究社檚 no second take,含羞草研究社� he said of his digicam. 含羞草研究社淲ith the digital camera, you can take more and more, while Instax only has 10 (sheets of film.)含羞草研究社�
In that sense, the digital camera is unlike the phone and the film camera, he said.
含羞草研究社淚t含羞草研究社檚 so fun taking photos without knowing the outcome,含羞草研究社� he said. 含羞草研究社淵ou can see it in the camera, but it含羞草研究社檚 so small含羞草研究社f you take a photo on your phone and then you see it, you含羞草研究社檒l want to redo it.含羞草研究社�
An added bonus?
含羞草研究社淲hen I was a kid I wasn含羞草研究社檛 able to use the digital camera because it could be broken easily,含羞草研究社� he said. 含羞草研究社淪o now I get a chance to take pictures whenever I want.含羞草研究社�
Nicole Thompson, The Canadian Press
