My recent batch of photos (Nuclear Sunset, The Inside Out Band Tour, and Outer Cape 2019) are the first rolls of film I’ve gotten back using Sunflash disposable cameras. These bulk cameras online were available cheaper than Fujifilm or Kodak and I decided to try an experiment. Once I received the cameras and peeled off the paper cover, underneath were single use cameras from a variety of brands. The “single use” cameras had been opened and new film was placed inside it. The cameras were then taped up with electrical tape and the Sunflash brand paper cover was placed obscuring the original camera.
I like using single use cameras for a few reasons. They are simple, easy to use and I’ve noticed the smaller and cheaper the camera, the less people pose or react to having their photo taken. I like the stealth element, and of course I can physically destroy them in a way I would never do to a normal film camera. That being said, the wasteful element of this practice has been bothering me for awhile so it was exciting to try and use cameras that were being recycled.
Out of the 20 Sunflash cameras I ordered, probably about half were defective. Either the film would snap or get stuck, the numbers would stop progressing, or the button to take the photo wouldn’t work. It took the unpredictable, chaotic part of my process and amplified it tenfold. When I started with this first batch soaking the cameras using my film soup technique, I was pretty nervous. These cameras aren’t sealed in the same way the single use cameras I’ve used before have been and the results were going to be even more unpredictable than normal.
I started off with light and quick film soups with a typical base of alcohol, soda, detergents, spices and chemicals. The rest of the process (rinsing in cold water, drying out for a few days, freezing overnight, thawing again and drying) were kept the same. I was very happy with the results but I wish more of the cameras worked.
What do you think of the results?