PhotoStudious

I know that there are a lot of reviews for this camera but I will give you my opinion and experience on the Digital Harinezumi. I first discovered this camera when I was looking around the internet and I ended up stumbling upon this video. So I ended up writing to Superheadz to see if I can get a hold of their camera. And to my surprise, Superheadz replied and told me that I can order straight through them. The Superheadz staff was really helpful and they have excellent customer service.

In less than a week, the camera arrived from Japan to the United States and I was surprised to see a couple of postcards from Japan. It was really a nice touch through them since I am a sucker for excellent customer service.

My first impression of this camera is that it was very small. I can place it in my palm and grab it comfortably like an egg. It is very light since most of its parts are made of plastic and I can fit it in my pants pocket and jacket pocket with ease.

What I like about the Digital Harinezumi 2 is its simplicity. It has a simple menu of changing from color to black and white, two ISOs to choose from, a video mode and you can turn off the sound for silent recording. That is suprisingly all the features you can find in this camera. There are no bells and whistles like high definition video, flash or auto-focus. 

With the Digital Harinezumi, simply turn it on and press the shutter. It is that simple to use and because of its simplicity, I usually shoot about 200 images a day with it. It is really fun to use and it is really free from all the settings that you need to setup beforehand. Making images has never been this simple.

My first memorable experience with the Digital Harinezumi 2 is that I brought it to a photo shoot. It was a photography workshop and I was with other photographers who had their Digital SLRs. I just simply wanted to go with something simple and different so I ended up bringing the Digital Harinezumi along. It was amazing that the models were open to the idea of me shooting a very small camera and some of the photographers were surprised that I even brought one and kept asking me what kind of camera is it with an inquisitive look. 

During that summer, I also took the Digital Harinezumi with me for travel. I really enjoyed how small it was to pack along with my other film cameras. I travelled through China and the Philippines for an amount of time and it really held up during my travels. When I was photographing, people did not really notice me holding the camera because of its small size. Because of this, I can get really close and take photographs closer than usual. I also took videos and with an 8 gig memory card and with that you could still have space for more images. 

The only thing that I had a problem with the Digital Harinezumi is that the screen could easily break. In the middle of my travels,  the screen broke because it was hot and the camera was in a black bag. I know it was my fault but a product like this should stand up to inclement weather.

All in all, it is a real joy to photograph with a camera like this because of its simplicity and ease of use. You could easily create images and videos. Creativity with this camera is endless since you can see a couple of examples on the internet which I find really amazing. For the price, I think that it could easily be a gift to someone who is curious about photography or someone who wants to do something creatively different. 

Here are sample images and videos that I took below: 

 Photoshoot with the Digital Harinezumi - Under the shade with overcast

Bus ride in Manila, Philippines 

MRT ride in Manila

Scorpion eating in Shanghai

The Fujifilm Instax 500AF is the professional line camera out of all the Instax Wide cameras. I know that there are some reviews around the internet about this camera but I will give my impressions about the Instax 500AF from actual tests that I made. There are a lot of features that the Instax 500AF has that helps give the user more options in their exposures and focusing abilities.

My first impression about the Instax 500AF camera is it has a sleek rectangular design rather than the rounded design of the Instax 200 and Instax 210. Also it feels a bit smaller than the Instax 200 and Instax 210 but in the end it is still a big camera. For me, the Instax 500AF is a perfect camera to bring to a party since it catches people's attention and they can't wait and see the images magically appear with the Instax film. The Instax 500AF is also a great conversation starter when I do street portraitures.

One of the features that the Instax 500AF has is its auto focus. When I use the Instax 500AF, it is easy to focus since you don't have to worry about the hyper focal button on the side that the Instax 200 and Instax 210 has. You just simply depress the shutter button halfway to focus, compose then take the shot. But then the disadvantage of this feature is that if you plan to go to an aquarium or try to shoot across a glass surface, you will end up focusing on the glass instead since the autofocus will initiate on its closest subject. 

The Fujifilm Instax 500AF has smaller frame lines to guide your composition as you get closer to your subject to avoid parallax. The camera also has a tripod mount plus you have a self timer and the ability to actually turn off the flash in low light which the Instax 200 and Instax 210 don't have.  

But the thing to watch out for this camera is that the framing is wider than what is in the viewfinder. The viewfinder is tighter while on the actual picture is a couple millimeters wider. So if you plan to take portraitures or landscapes make sure you have tested the camera beforehand and know the actual framing in your head. Another thing to watch out for is when you are under the shadow a building expect your pictures to be dark even if you put the setting to a lighter mode. I am still figuring this problem out so if you have any suggestions then feel free to comment.

A lot of people ask if there is a difference in picture quality between the Instax 500AF, Instax 200 and Instax 210. In my opinion, the Instax 500AF delivers a sharper image than the Instax 200 and Instax 210 since it uses its autofocus but not by much. But when it comes to color and overall image, I feel that the Instax Wide film delivers the same colors from all three cameras. So I don’t really see any difference in results. What I see though is the ability to have control over the settings and the ease of changing them since the controls are at the back of the camera rather than the side of the camera.

So If you prefer sharpness, the ability to turn off the flash, to use a tripod and self timer then get the Instax 500AF but if you plan to just use Instax Wide film then just go ahead and purchase the Instax 200 and Instax 210 since they are much cheaper.

Because of its rarity, the Instax 500AF it is very sought after by collectors and die hard Instax users. Also another problem of finding one is that the Instax 500AF is hard to come by. You can see it on eBay but prepare to pay a premium price on it during different buying climates. The recent price on the Instax 500AF as of March 2012 was $600 USD that came with 100 exposures of Instax Wide film.  It was a Mint in Box camera but if you plan to get a used one it will cost around $275-$350 USD depending on the quality of the camera.  Also I would look into www.jauce.com since it is like the eBay of Japan and you can get great deals with the Instax 500AF.

So that is it for my review on the Fujifilm Instax 500AF and if you have any questions about this item feel free to comment. Also here are some test shots that I took down below. 

Like I said the Instax 500AF will focus on the glass first because of the auto focus. 

I was framing on the feet of the two pedestrians but since the actual framing is wider I got a little bit more space in front of me on the street. 

Instax 500AF in window light 

Fuji Instax 500AF on a clear sunny day. 

I got this camera last year at a camera show in used condition. My first impression about the Fuji Instax 200 is obviously its bulky size. The camera could easily be mistaken as a child's toy for its color scheme but its performance is worth taking note of. At that time, I already had an Instax 500AF so it peaked my interest and I brought the Fuji Instax 200 home.

Finding film for the Fuji Instax 200 was easy since both the Instax 500AF and the Instax 200 use the same wide picture format film. I was ready to go and went out to test drive the strengths and push the camera to its limits.

The Fuji Instax 200 performs well on sunny environments. You have to be aware that if you are in a shaded area the Fuji Instax 200 will shoot its flash automatically. Even if you turn off the flash and the environment is dark the flash will automatically fire. 

You have to zone focus meaning that you have to set the focus to 0.9-3m setting if you are close to your subject or else your picture will become out of focus. If you are shooting landscapes and beyond 3 meters, you have to set the focus to 3m to infinity.

Looking at the viewfinder will give you an estimated framing when you are up close. To remedy this you have to have the framing higher or else you will cut out the top part of your subject. This is because of the parallax problem like many viewfinder cameras have. 

What I really like about this camera is that it is a social camera. What I mean by a social camera is you can bring it to a party and people will take notice. In my experience, they will comment about it size and ask you "Is that a camera?" Ask soon as they ask, take a shot and then show them the film. I always had a positive reaction while the picture developed right in front of their eyes. 

Here are pictures and video of the camera and also test shots that I took. 

You can see a lot of reviews about this camera but I will make my own about how I feel about this camera. What I love about this camera is its single focal lenght. The 80mm f2.8 lens lets you concentrate on the picture. You do not need to change lenses to see if you need a wide angle or a telephoto lens, pretty much you are stuck with one lens. This has an advantage of letting you look more into the quality of the light you have and the composition of the picture. 

Caption: I use this camera occasionaly for street photography, Here is my setup minus the camera bag

Another advantage of this camera is the use of 120 film. Now you can have a Rolleiflex 2.8f shoot 220 film but my version shoots 120 film. The reason why I love to shoot 120 film is because of the size of the negative. It beats a digital full frame sensor anytime because of the shear size of the 120 negative. Also the 6x6 frame is very pleasing to the eye and is perfect for fine art pictures and portraitures. 

Honestly, I really don't like the weight and carrying my Rolleiflex 2.8f around for street photography. It is just too nice for me to be carrying a nice camera to be honest I do not really want to drop a camera older than me. But I still do since I love how and currently studying Vivian Maier's pictures and body of work.

Now you ask "where can I buy this camera?" There are plenty of stores that offer this camera at a fair price. One of them is KEH What I like about KEH is that you can return the camera if you are not satisfied with it. So if you are new to Twin Reflex Cameras you can test drive the camera and see for yourself if you like it. Another place is eBay. These cameras on eBay costs around $1,000-$3,000 depending on the quality of the camera. A fairly used one would cost around $1,000 while a mint version would cost above $3,000. 

Here are pictures of the camera with the leather case.

Here are sample images that I took:

The film that was used was Kodak Tri-X and Kodak 320TXP

This is the Yashica T4 also known as the Yashica T5 in Europe. The Yashica T4 and T5 are the same camera with a different name to cater to different parts of the globe. The camera is a auto- focus point and shoot camera. And even though it is a point and shoot camera, there are certain features worth taking a note of regarding this camera.

First of all, the camera has a 35mm f3.5 Carl Zeiss Tessar lens. The lens has notable sharpness and that is why the lens is also known as the "Eagle Eye". Also the lens has more of a darker lens meaning the lens has more contrast, a characteristic of Carl Zeiss lenses.

Another feature asides from the normal viewfinder of the lens, the Yashica T4 also has a "Super Scope". The Super Scope is a Twin Lens Reflex like viewfinder perfect for those low angle shots. The camera is perfectly made for people who want to shoot from the hip and also for people who want to shoot above the head because you can look at the viewfinder like a periscope. 

Finally, the Yashica T4 is weatherproof. This features enables the photographer to take the camera outdoors, the beach, and anywhere there is inclement weather like rain or snow. Even though the camera has a plastic body, the plastic body is strong and can take a beating from heavy use. 

There happens to be different versions of this camera namely the Yashica T4 Slim, Yashica T4 Super Scope, and the Yashica T4 Super D. On the internet auction sites like eBay the camera could cost around $200-$350 depending on which version you purchase. The plain Yashica T4 cost around $150-200 and the Yashica T4 Super Scope and Super D cost around $300. (As of January 2012)

The camera is worth buying because not only it is used by the famous photographer Terry Richardson but because this camera also increases in value over time.