I’m a pro photographer with a bag full of mirrorless gear, but the daily snapshots that I take end up being from the camera that’s always with me: my iPhone. But there's an unusual new trend growing amid the craving for slower, analog tech without the cost of film: screen-free digital cameras.
Annoyed at my iPhone’s endless stream of notifications, I decided to take photos completely screen-free for a week – but I loved it so much I lasted nearly two weeks instead.
I didn’t take a photo (or video) on my iPhone for nearly two weeks, instead trying out an assortment of screen-free cameras to snap photos of everything from my kids to the sunset. I didn't miss what I had expected – the screen – but I did find I missed two key features that many screen-free compact cameras don't have: zoom and video.
For the challenge, I used a handful of different cameras, including the Camp Snap CS-Pro and the disposable camera dupe from Flashback. I allowed myself one camera that technically has a screen – the Fujifilm X Half – but locked the screen and shot entirely in the camera’s film mode, which displayed only camera settings on the screen and didn't allow me to actually view any images.
Shooting screen-free felt more like film
I didn’t miss what I’d expected to miss: that screen. Shooting without a screen meant I wasn’t looking to see whether or not I had captured the shot just as I had envisioned. Did I mess up some shots that were too bright or shots with a crooked horizon? Yes. But I also didn’t feel pressure to make the memory seem perfect. (Because memories are not, in fact, perfect.)
Removing the ability to view the photos also gives the digital cameras a little of the surprise feel when developing a roll of film. Admittedly, I don’t look back on many of my iPhone photos often, but shooting screen-free, I had to take the time to sit down and look through the photos.
One of the reasons that I loved using the screen-free cameras had nothing to do with a screen at all. As a pro photographer, my “photos to be edited” pile is often daunting, and my own personal photos tend to sit for weeks (Case in point: I still haven’t edited the spring portraits that I took two months ago.)
Several screen-free cameras are also designed with film-inspired presets applied in-camera, and while imperfect, they left me feeling like I didn’t have to edit my daily snapshots. My favorite for this was the Fujifilm X Half, because it has a larger sensor and the same film simulations from its mirrorless cameras. But it also has two of my favorite "happy accidents" from film: light leaks and halation.
But, most screen-free compact cameras don't have zoom
One of the camera features that I did miss, however, was zoom. The compact cameras that I used for the challenge are all fixed focal length cameras, many designed to mimic the feel of a disposable film camera, so extras like optical zoom aren’t part of the shooting experience. There were a handful of times I wished the screen-free camera could get in a little closer.
Most screen-free compact cameras also don't really have a macro mode, as they use fixed focus lenses like disposable film cameras. The X Half is an exception, and I was able to snap a handful of close-ups as well as portraits and landscapes.
The experiment also reminded me of the reason why I take so many photos with my iPhone: it’s always with me. I didn’t grab a screen-free camera when I took my dog for a walk one evening, expecting the incoming rain to make it a short trip. Instead, I was greeted by a spectacular double rainbow.
Not wanting to break my screen-free challenge, I headed back for a camera, but by the time that I returned, the rainbow was almost completely faded. Lesson learned: Sometimes the best camera is the one that’s with you when the moment presents itself.
The feature that broke me wasn't what I expected: Video
But the thing that broke me, the feature that had me pull out my iPhone camera for the first time in thirteen days, wasn’t what I expected at all: Video. I’m a photographer, not a videographer, but some personal memories are just better in moving pictures.
I had come across the most butterflies that I had seen in one place, and, after nearly two weeks, almost twice my original goal, I pulled out my iPhone to take a video. (I had pulled out my mirrorless camera a few days before that, ironically, to take photos of screen-free cameras for this article. But, in the spirit of continuing the challenge past the original week, I even disabled that screen by flipping it closed.)
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Most screen-free cameras just take still photos. There is the video-only Camp Snap CS-8, but it’s an oversized camera that’s not at all pocketable (and it doesn’t take still photos). The X Half can take videos too – but not in the film camera mode with the locked screen.
I wasn’t sure what to expect going into my screen-free challenge, but I found I loved the compact cameras that don’t come with built-in distractions. Yes, I’ll probably continue to take the occasional snapshot with my iPhone, but when I’m headed out to make memories and don’t want the weight of my mirrorless or the distraction of my iPhone, I'm going to slide a screen-free compact camera in my bag instead.
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I took my experience and ranked the best screen-free digital cameras based on experience, quality, and price.
