The NYT in Jan this year on a niche trend of using digital cameras from the 2000s instead of one’s phone:
“When I look back at my digital photos” — from his actual camera — “I have very specific memories attached to them,” Mr. Sondhi said. “When I go through the camera roll on my phone, I sort of remember the moment and it’s not special.”
“People are realizing it’s fun to have something not attached to their phone,” said Mark Hunter, a photographer also known as the Cobrasnake. “You’re getting a different result than you’re used to. There’s a bit of delay in gratification.”
I’m sure you’ve noticed this too. Clicking pictures with one’s phone takes a few seconds each. But right after, you spend minutes editing every one and sharing them with the right caption. Not to mention reading and responding to notifications on those photos. It’s easy to lose the moment.
I’ve never had a high end DSLR camera, but on a trip to a national bird sanctuary a few months ago I broke out my old Sony HX-9V digital camera after several years. It had a much better optical zoom than my iPhone and conserved my phone’s battery:
Digital cameras are probably a sane middle ground between the film cameras of old and the connected phone cameras of today. I hope they stay.