The Kodak Charmera came into my life via the algorithm of a social media platform. I’ve now spent some time with it and wanted to share my experience of it.
It’s the smallest, cutest digital camera I’ve owned. It’s small enough to fit in my pocket or hang on as part of my key chain. It’s really as small as one of those key-chain charms. They come in a range of designs and colours and the exact one I received in the mail after ordering was a surprise. They are also available as a collection; in case someone wants different vibes for different outfits. lol.
As someone who practises photography, I cherish opportunities to experiment and have fun. The Charmera can be used for videos and photos and it has some inbuilt filters. It returns images in a small resolution (around 1.6 megapixels) and in 1080 × 1440px mode. For reference, latest smartphones return images in 48 megapixels. The Charmera’s images have the 90s home video effect. The videos surprisingly come with audio. Images will look fine on a mobile phone screen but tend to look noisier on larger screens.
Since the image resolution of the Charmera is small, and there are further restrictions like a low ability to diffuse light and colour in the same ways we expect of modern-day cameras, it does not always capture finer details, e.g. small-sized text. Images can also come out as differently saturated, over-exposed or specially contrasted. The Charmera captures more conventional-looking images in more controlled lighting settings. For example, a single source of direct light illuminating a protagonist or an object. It also works decently outdoors when the sky has clouds or when objects are backlit.
Regardless, I found it rewarding to test the limits of this cute gadget and to snap images without lofty expectations. I love the textures and patterns it can create–precisely for it’s limitations-as well as the ability to snap images inconspicuously. I had fun experimenting with the images in a photo editing software.
Here’s a selection of images showing what it can do. Don’t expect any masterpieces with this one. Or maybe you can.
Ifeatu Nnaobi 