Lo-Fi #ShittyCameraChallenge: The Kodak EK2 instant camera

Lo-Fi #ShittyCameraChallenge: The Kodak EK2 instant camera 

A few months ago I became aware of the next #shittycamerachallenge, known as #instantregret. This time the challenge was for instant film cameras, and although I have a cheap Polaroid 600 camera I was never really happy with it, partly because it was a pain to use, but nowadays the price of Polaroid film is extortionate: 20€ for just 8 shots. 

So I started looking for alternatives to Polaroid, and of course Fuji Instax is the obvious choice. Somewhere along the line I came across the 'Pleaser', an obsolete instant camera from Kodak that used a handle to eject the film instead of motorised rollers.

Although I found a Pleaser, and was tempted, I didn't want to spend 50€ on a camera that I  might never be able to use. Then I came across this unusual camera, the Kodak EK2, on a Portuguese website called OLX for 20€.

The EK2, or The Handle as it was known (for obvious reasons), was produced from 1977 to around 1982, when Kodak lost a lawsuit to Polaroid and was forced to stop production of its instant film and cameras.

It's a strange looking and really basic camera. The viewfinder is above a large carrying handle built into the camera. The protruding lens has a large shutter button  on the right hand side, and below the lens is a lighten/darken dial to change exposure. It used Kodak PR10/PR144 instant film, which is no longer available, and the hand crank is used to eject the film through the rollers for development.

When it came the camera was in the original box (slightly tattered) with the original battery and the neck strap still wound into its paper wrapping.

Luckily, when I opened the camera there was an empty cassette inside, which hopefully will make getting the camera working again much easier.

#Kodak, #Handle, #Instant, #Camera, #classic, #Instax, #repair, #Wide, #OCC22, #OldCameraChallenge, #Retro, #Vintage, #InstantRegret, #believeinfilm,