CS: Do you feel there is a niche for toy camera users professionally?
Bill: Absolutely! Just look at the work of photographs like Mark Sink, Susan Burnstine, just to name a few.
Chris: Certainly. Toy cameras can produce really unique images that can have the same impact as shots taken with any other kind of camera. Powerful images will make people forget the "toy" aspect really quickly.
CS: What is it you hope to achieve through your photography?
Warren: Joy. Corny, I know, but that's the big payoff for me. And I hope that comes through in my images. I get behind the camera to capture those all too brief moments in time that get me that make me stop. Smile or weep, it doesn't matter. Just to feel. I truly get excited looking at a fresh roll of film for the first time. If it excites someone else, that's all gravy. I'm flattered.
Tread: If world peace and/or domination is out of the question, then I'd say my main mission is to build a body of work that when looked at as a whole says just a little about how I see my world. In my world there is an obvious dichotomy. Complexity masked in simplicity; intimacy vs. desolation; cute kids vs. discarded items or places; love vs. distance and disconnect. It has to be about the picture at the end of the day and the camera is just the tool to get to the final outcome.
Photographically, my main influence is Ralph Eugene Meatyard, a part-time photographer from the town where I reside who really set "art photography" on the road to where it is today. He shot his surroundings and family and friends in ways that were not snapshot-ish yet still simplistic. The mystery behind the image was always there. I try for that in my work, that mystery of what is behind the moment.
CS: There seems to be resurgence in popularity for toy cameras. How do you feel about that?
Warren: The more the merrier! I encourage everyone to get one. I think this little boom has dumped a ton of creativity into the mix. There are a lot of people out there with these things doing some amazing work, creating fantastic images. That's nothing but a load of good.
Article comments
1 - tread
Fantastic blurbs, thanks for the attention!
2 - chantal stone
You're welcome Tread...Toy Polloy is an event to be noticed!
3 - Howard Dratch
That was fun. Thank you, Chantal.
It made me remember my Diana when they first appeared, taping up that light-leaky body and making pictures that were just fun and no other thought had to cross your mind.
Later I tried a point and shoot Olympus but the pictures were pretty much the same as I always took, merely of poor quality. The Diana made part of the fun, that lovely plastic, a few Waterhouse lens stops of different sized holes. The "toy" part means something special.
My Hawkeye I have to admit being new, my second camera traded for my mother's Brownie and I was about 7 with my pennies saved up for, I think, the big $2.50 purchase.
Nice trip to have taken us on. My only fear is of a world where the reference to hoi polloi from Toy Polloy needs to be explained.
4 - chantal stone
Thanks for reading, Howard!
Maybe it's time to brush off the old Diana and give it another try? Toy camera usage is definitely on the rise...just check out sites like Toy Camera.com and Light Leaks magazine. Photographers of all skill levels are discovering and RE-discovering the beauty that can be created with these crappy little gems.
If you decide to shoot with your Diana or Hawkeye, let me know, I'd love to see what you get :)
5 - DAVE
Great Article and many more feeds to add to my Bloglines now :D
Personally I don't give a rats ass how the final product was produced. No one asks painters what oils they use. The important part is the final product. What does it create for the viewer.