Our bad cameras.

We need to tell you about our favorite gear.

Since the advent of time, artists have tried to make nice things worse. Don’t believe me? Well, that’s just like your opinion, man. BUT didn’t Monet try to make things fuzzier? Didn’t Jackson Pollock drip a bunch of stuff on a canvas and force people to recognize it as art? And let’s not forget the humble Neanderthal — crudely smudging soot on the wall of a cave like an ape.

These artists were not interested in capturing the most crisp and clear reproduction of their ideas. Nay. They were simply looking for vibes.

And isn’t that we all are after? Vibes? We’re in the age of film grain, blur, and generally a low-def approach. These techniques signal vibes and a departure from our hi-def reality. No one wants a perfectly polished photo or video and that’s really good news for us here at Rabbitwolf Creative. Because we do not know how to do that.

Here is a comprehensive list of the bad cameras we use to make our ART.

Stephen’s List of Bad Cameras

Sony RX100 V1 (JAPANESE VERSION)

Ok, so this camera isn’t bad. But I did a bad thing when I bought it on eBay. I didn’t read the description very well and I was shipped a camera that is stuck in Japanese. Apparently it’s something about the camera being manufactured for Japan. Anyways, it doesn’t really matter because it’s super simple to use, but sometimes I wish I could read the menu.

I try to take it most places I go.

Like backpacking trips.

Or just to watch the Solstice.

Yashica T4

This also isn’t technically a bad camera. We are using “bad” in the sense that these cameras do not produce a crisp 8K RAW file. Actually, in New Mexico (where I’m from), if we say something is “all bad” that actually means it’s rather quite good.

I paid $600 for this camera on eBay. Donald J. Trump gave me the $600 during the pandemic and then I used that money to buy one of the more HYPEBEAST point and shoot cameras out there. It’s easy, fun to use, has a flash, but definitely not worth $600. I’ve enjoyed using it and every time I receive my scans I have a healthy balance of being bummed I botched a few shots and then surprised how good a few came out. Film photography mimics life.

A woman, mad at me, in Chiang-Mai, Thailand.

Also in Chiang-Mai.

My wife not in Chiang-Mai.

Sony Handicam

We started using these for productions around 2019. It gives a real Dad-at-a-soccer-game vibe and adds a lot of character to our films. They are super light and have incredible zoom — which is very fun. I brought one to Chamonix in 2021 and made an Oscar-nominated short film. See below for proof.

If we could, this is the only camera we would use. That’s how much we love it.

My Mom’s 35mm Pentax

This one is bad because the light meter is broken and I haven’t tried to fix it. I have a light meter app that I use occasionally when this bad boy’s loaded with a fresh roll of Portra. When I don’t use the light meter app, the photos aren’t very good. But when I do use the light meter app, they are actually pretty nice photos.

(Left to Right) Three of my favorite people in the world.

A very old camera took this photo.

Ryan’s List of Bad Cameras

Super 8 Film Camera

Around 2017 I emailed a man on Craigslist about this camera. I was looking for a Super 8 to shoot some film on an upcoming vacation and knew next to nothing about Super 8 cameras — and I still don't know all that much. What I saw on the internet was "super8" and thought "that's probably what I want." So I drove to the Valley, gave the guy $20, asked zero questions about the appliance, and went home. 

What I ended up with was a Honeywell Elmo Super Filmmatic 104. I've never researched it and can't imagine it's a coveted item. I'm pretty sure Honeywell made microwaves and I am not positive they are still in business. Either way, it's what we use when we want to shoot some retro (read: bad) looking footage. There is an enormous gash across the front element of the lens that makes the images really sing. We've used it on plenty of shoots over the last 6 years and it's always a fun thing to bust out. 

One fun thing about the Honeywell is that you can shoot offspeed. It burns through a roll of film twice as fast if you hit the slow motion button, so we do it sparingly because film is expensive and barely justifies the cost.

Here is some stuff we shot in Badwater Basin back in 2022. 

Olympus Stylus Infinity 

This is my point and shoot film camera. Of all the cameras I've ever owned, this is probably my favorite. I do not think about anything, I literally just point and shoot. I've run through three of these things over the last few years and find the image quality to be pretty good. If conditions are not perfect, this will give you a bad image. When they are perfect, buddy look out. The camera is unfortunately not very durable. The last one I had I dropped in a bathroom at a trailhead in Sedona and the front lens flew off. Maybe that’s more of a me problem.

You can get these for like $100 on eBay. And then there's the cost of film, which is outrageous and again, barely justifies owning it. In my humble opinion. 

Here are some of my favorite shots over the years. 

That’s it for this week. We hope to keep using our bad cameras to make stuff for ourselves and for our clients.