Yes, You Can Get Cool Freebies When You Finally Buy That Instant Camera You’ve Been Wanting

Taking photographs is a snap these days (no pun intended). Anyone with a smartphone (literally all of us, basically) can just click away, take hundreds of photos, selfies included, and call it a day. But if you’re someone who finds the vintage aesthetic sensibility appealing or simply yearns to dabble in the analog way of doing things, Polaroid-style snaps are the way to go. 

There’s really something about the nostalgic hit you get from retro-style photography—and how you can just pop vintage-looking prints in your wallet, stick on your mood board for display, or put in an album for posterity. 

While instant cameras may have had their heyday back in the ‘70s, we’re seeing (and enjoying) a massive revival of these snappers in the last few years. 

What’s an instant camera?

Picking up a 35mm film camera is arguably the most traditional and proper way to shoot old-school images. The only downside is waiting for your rolls to get developed, though. 

Enter the instant camera—a tool that lets you point and shoot and have your pictures printed and ready in just a few seconds or minutes. It’s a good melding of the old and modern in a compact, portable, and sleek build. 

There is a myriad of instant cameras in the market right now, but one go-to brand that comes to mind is Fujifilm. Thanks to its popular line of Instax cameras, more and more people are being given the opportunity to pick an Instax of their choice and go back to the (cool) basics. And we’re all here for it. 

The Instax mini 11

If you want to dip your toes into film photography, we recommend pocketing the Instax mini 11. This latest Instax iteration has a basic point-and-shoot functionality that also lets you get a little creative with your frames. 

Why we love it

It comes with a handy built-in selfie mode (yay!) that reduces the minimum focus distance down to an arm’s length, which means you can get clear selfies and close-up shots every time you click. Something to take note: According to Fujifilm, there’s a slight shift between what you see in the viewfinder and the actual photo during close-ups, so it’s ideal to aim just a little to the right of your subject for best results. 

That being said, you actually don’t need any photographic skills or knowledge to use this model. It has a high-performance flash that automatically calculates surrounding brightness and adjusts its shutter speed accordingly. The result? You can just fire the camera to snap up memories and capture bright backgrounds and subjects even in dark scenes. 

A world of colors

Apart from the uncomplicated usage, the mini 11 also comes in five yummy colors (bonus points for that!). You can choose from blush pink, sky blue, charcoal gray, ice white, or lilac purple. 

Did you know you can even get the Instax mini 11 with extra goodies until July 31? Just head on over to Colours Foto in SM City Bacolod to score the Instax mini 11 Prism Package for only P4,999. 

The package includes your choice of Instax mini 11, 10 sheets of the Instax mini mermaid tail film variant, an iridescent camera case with strap, a mini album, and a holographic sticker set. 

If you want to shoot and share your photos in an instant and on the fly, the Instax mini 11 Prism Package can get you started. It has everything you need and more to get that funky wave of nostalgia.