The Wrong Advice Newsletter — Issue #67 — Point & Shoot Film Cameras

John Picciuto
2 min readJul 8, 2022

5 Reasons To Buy a 35mm Point & Shoot Camera

My journey with film photography has taken me all over the gamut when it comes to gear. I’ve owned everything from the Leica M6 to my personal favorite, the Hasselblad 500CM and a million others in between. Today, I want to give you 5 reasons to go pick up a cheap 35mm point and shoot camera:

Point and shoots are fun!

35mm film isn’t that expensive. A roll of my favorite 35mm color film, Kodak Portra 400 is $12. Toss in another $13 for development & prints from the Unique Photo lab and for $25 you’re all set!

Memories

The best part about point and shoots is the memories. For $25 a roll you have the ability to have some really great keepsakes for yourself. Grab a photobook and start collecting memories. Photo prints also make for great gifts when you want to hand some photos out to friends and family!

Affordable prices

You can probably pick up an affordable point and shoot camera for $50 or less. Don’t get me wrong, a Contax T3 can set you back as much as $2,000.00 but you can easily thrift a cheaper alternative. Additionally eBay and Facebook marketplace are two great places you can find a good point and shoot for cheap.

Great Entry into Film Photography

Point and shoots are a great entry point into film photography. Because a point and shoot takes 95% of the guesswork out of shooting film, it’s a really easy way to get into the hobby. Disclaimer: film photography addiction is a real disease lol

Delayed Gratification

I think one of my favorite parts of heading to a party or a day out with friends is having my point and shoot with me. I can enjoy the day snapping photos without detracting from being in the moment! Because I’m not constantly pulling out my cell phone to take pics of what’s going on, I’m much more present in what’s happening and allows me to enjoy my time a lot more!

Film photography is not the cheapest of hobbies but if you want to have a little fun, and spend a little money, picking up a 35mm point and shoot camera is a great way to enter into the space!

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John Picciuto

Storyteller, Photographer, and host of The Wrong Advice Podcast. You can find more of my work at www.johnpicciuto.com