Cameracraft magazine – Taking your practical photography further

Tag: analogue

  • In the B O X X: Alfie cameras’ latest development

    In the B O X X: Alfie cameras’ latest development

    • A new model from Alfie Cameras gives a new twist on instant photography
    • View camera with pinhole or custom optics shoots straight to paper
    • Develop on location – without the Impossible challenge of integral chemistry
    The Alfie Cameras [ B O X X ] instant analogue film camera, a wooden box camera with lens plate and ground glass in a traditional form with a novel solution for avoiding the darkroom!

    Showcased at The Photography Show in Birmingham, the new [ B O X X ] camera from Alfie Cameras is a very different proposition to their current, innovative turret-lensed half-frame 35mm offering. Launching with a Kickstarter campaign that opens on 17 May 2026, early access and VIP benefits are offered for those who sign up as an Alfie VIP.

    Built around a traditional wooden case with lens plates, Waterhouse stops and a ground glass focusing screen the [ B O X X ] camera is small and lightweight. A choice of three optics is available: 100mm portrait lens, 55mm wide-angle lens, and a 65mm pinhole lens – though the design allows the scope of adapting your own view camera, bellows or other systems.

    The darkslide, developing film back and two black-and-white prints from the [ B O X X ] camera prototype

    Using cut sheet media and environmentally friendly darkroom chemistry, the DIY approach to solving the problem of instant photography offers immense scope for experimentation and technique, while also returning to the one-off, unique quality of every capture and the shared experience of taking images together if you choose to share your creativity.

    We got to play with the prototype a little in Birmingham and can’t wait to see the finished product – and we hope to bring you some more information on Alfie’s existing TYCH half-frame camera – you’ll want to check it out before grabbing that Pentax 17…

    The Alfie TYCH camera, foreground, is a half-frame 35mm analogue film camera with a turret lens system - its success means the BOXX camera can follow.

    You can see the [ B O X X ] camera at Photographica in London on the launch day, where the fascinating system of miniaturised, portable darkroom in the form of a film back may be just the start of a flexible camera for enthusiasts.

  • Cameracraft Magazine March/April 2026

    Cameracraft Magazine March/April 2026

    Cameracraft Issue 69 is now free to read in low resolution page turn here!

    • AI enhancement explored – Gary Friedman stares into the face of generative portraiture
    • Lifting the Iron (shutter) Curtain – Zeiss Werra 3 and Zorki 4 before they were retro
    • Is it cheaper to adapt a Sony lens than buy a Nikon equivalent? Viltrox EZ adaptor tested

    In this issue – Tom Hill explains how going back to college changed his photography, David Tymm shows how amazing an iPhone and a big bike can be for an epic US road trip, Nigel Thomas on his favourite ends of the day and night, and Colin McPherson catches a Kickstarter tide.

    CCNo2-2026-144

    We test the Viltrox E to Z fully coupled adaptor which lets you use all your Sony lenses on a Nikon Z body, puzzle over the good points of the ‘not really hybrid at all’ Yashica FX-D 100, check out the ReflectionFrame which uses e-ink to display a changeable picture for months, reminisce with the Zeiss Werra 3 and Zorki 4 from back in the heyday of Iron Curtain cameras.

    Plus, Gary Friedman continues his exploration of AI enhancement for portraits, and we introduce our first crossword – one which uses picture clues!

    Subscriptions guarantee early access, and let us keep the website uncluttered with minimal advertising. It costs just £15 a year, and you get unrestricted downloadable 300dpi files which can be viewed as spreads and which print really well, if you want to keep selected pages or articles that way, using printers such as the Epson ET-8550 in our office*.

    You get the issue download link sent in an email on or just before the 1st of month (Jan, Mar, May, July, Sept, Nov).

    * It was bought when these were brand new on the market. We have just refilled GY (grey) which is the most used ink. The print count, which includes A3+ colour like the Landor Phototex adhesive fabric decor we tested in September/October 2025, was 141 black and white and 1081 colour. The remaining Black, Photo Black, C, Y and M are all more than 1/3rd full and the maintenance cartridge is less than 1/3rd used so running costs look very reasonable.