Finally!! The instant camera we want!

[Godfrey]

I decided to put off the experiments with my Eneloop rechargeable batteries and fitted a fresh set of Duracell High-Energy Alkalines before I installed the last pack of film. With that pack now gone and the next in the camera, the battery indication is still three bars (full).

I've made sure to turn the camera to OFF on the shutter speed/mode selector dial when not being used, and I don't think I used flash on any of the exposures in that first pack of film. I suspect that both the heavy use of flash and not turning the camera OFF consistently is what caused the rapid depletion of the batteries before.

I'll keep monitoring the camera's battery use, and will keep a couple of spare batteries in the bag when I venture out with it just in case, particularly if I carry spare film packs. 🙂

G

 

[Godfrey]

Sunday, my next door neighbors rang the doorbell. The two youngest of their four boys, seven and nine years old, made a gift and greeting cards for us and couldn't wait to present them.

They are just great kids, I always love it when I run into them in the hall or around the property, and their parents are wonderful people. They made us cookies for the holidays and the cards are just amazing, wonderful things.

After accepting and opening the gift, thanking them and listening to their excited chatter, I told them that we had to have a picture of them for our Christmas collection. With a nod to mom and dad, I told them to come on in and sit down on the couch. They're fascinated with our condo and their eyes are roaming everywhere. I pull out the InstaKon RF70 and tell them, "I'm going to make two pictures. You can take one of them home." And make the first picture.

As the print whirrs its way out of the camera, I see their eyes open wide and astonishment light their faces. A moment later the second one whirrs out, just as an image starts to appear on the first. And the look of absolute wonder and joy on their faces chokes me up.

The First Day of Christmas 2018 - Santa Clara 2018
MiNT InstaKon RF70 photo snapped with iPhone 8 Plus​

Thank you, Edwin Land, for inventing this magic. Thank you MiNT Camera for repairing and refurbishing these sacred cameras, and for inventing new ones. Thank you Fujifilm, Impossible Project, and Polaroid Originals, for keeping the magic of instant film alive. It is the most precious thing to see the look on a child's face, young and old, when you can hand them a finished photo to keep and have forever just a moment after it was made. Without these crazy people, we would never have had this magic, and we might have lost it completely.

And thank you, boys, for the love you bring to my world.

The First Day of Christmas may well be the best this year. Happy Holidays to all!

G

"Only the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do."

 

[goamules]

All I want is a camera or camera back that allows me to use quality lenses, and manual focus, aperture, and shutter speed. I guess that would be a back, ideally, for a vintage camera. I may try to tear apart a current Instax, and kludge something from my dozens of MF and LF cameras. But you would think someone would be making something by now. I don't want a plastic box, plastic meniscus lens, and point and shoot controls.

 

[Godfrey]

All I want is a camera or camera back that allows me to use quality lenses, and manual focus, aperture, and shutter speed. I guess that would be a back, ideally, for a vintage camera. I may try to tear apart a current Instax, and kludge something from my dozens of MF and LF cameras. But you would think someone would be making something by now. I don't want a plastic box, plastic meniscus lens, and point and shoot controls.

You must not be talking about the InstaKon RF70 because, while it is made of plastic and metal, it has a multi-element glass lens with manual focus, aperture, and shutter speed settings. (As well as Auto with +1 and -1 EV options...)

If you want to make a back out of an Instax Wide for an existing 6x9 format camera, I'm sure that you can find a way to do it. You might be better off starting with a 4x5 and doing a format reduction, though, because the Instax Wide film is larger than 6x9. Anything is possible with sufficient effort and money to throw into it.

I'd like to do the same with SX-70 format film, made out of an Impossible Instant Lab processing unit, to fit to a Hasselblad 500CM body. The problem there is probably getting infinity focus to work... But it might be doable. 🙂

G

 

[taemo]

Sunday, my next door neighbors rang the doorbell. The two youngest of their four boys, seven and nine years old, made a gift and greeting cards for us and couldn't wait to present them.

They are just great kids, I always love it when I run into them in the hall or around the property, and their parents are wonderful people. They made us cookies for the holidays and the cards are just amazing, wonderful things.

After accepting and opening the gift, thanking them and listening to their excited chatter, I told them that we had to have a picture of them for our Christmas collection. With a nod to mom and dad, I told them to come on in and sit down on the couch. They're fascinated with our condo and their eyes are roaming everywhere. I pull out the InstaKon RF70 and tell them, "I'm going to make two pictures. You can take one of them home." And make the first picture.

As the print whirrs its way out of the camera, I see their eyes open wide and astonishment light their faces. A moment later the second one whirrs out, just as an image starts to appear on the first. And the look of absolute wonder and joy on their faces chokes me up.

The First Day of Christmas 2018 - Santa Clara 2018
MiNT InstaKon RF70 photo snapped with iPhone 8 Plus​

Thank you, Edwin Land, for inventing this magic. Thank you MiNT Camera for repairing and refurbishing these sacred cameras, and for inventing new ones. Thank you Fujifilm, Impossible Project, and Polaroid Originals, for keeping the magic of instant film alive. It is the most precious thing to see the look on a child's face, young and old, when you can hand them a finished photo to keep and have forever just a moment after it was made. Without these crazy people, we would never have had this magic, and we might have lost it completely.

And thank you, boys, for the love you bring to my world.

The First Day of Christmas may well be the best this year. Happy Holidays to all!

G

"Only the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do."

Shooting young kids and then seeing their surprise when a few seconds after, the image starts showing is also one of the reasons I'm enjoying using this camera.
Took some family Xmas pictures over the weekend, my rechargeable NiMH batteries could not power the flash at all, fortunately my sister had spare Alkaline batteries and it worked no problem.

 

[Godfrey]

Shooting young kids and then seeing their surprise when a few seconds after, the image starts showing is also one of the reasons I'm enjoying using this camera.
Took some family Xmas pictures over the weekend, my rechargeable NiMH batteries could not power the flash at all, fortunately my sister had spare Alkaline batteries and it worked no problem.

I haven't tried my Eneloops yet. Perhaps I'll do that now.

What I'm finding is that if I don't use the flash, the batteries will last through three or four packs of film. As soon as I use the flash, battery life goes into the dumpster, particularly if I leave the batteries in the camera after use. I suspect there's some "leakage" in the circuitry, and once the flash is engaged it just continues on until the batteries are removed and replaced.

I have a similar problem with a MiNT electronic flash bar for use with my SX-70 cameras. It does a good job, but will drain its batteries overnight if I leave them in when I put them away.

Yes, I've told them about these problems. It's minor, to me: I'll just keep a stock of AA alkaline batteries on hand. A pack of eight is pretty cheap and if I pull them out after using the flash, the consumption rate isn't terrible.

G

 

[brbo]

From Mint InstantKon RF70 page:

RF70 uses two AA batteries and can easily last 500 photos without flash and 200 photos with flash.

So, the actual results are worse? Does the battery life get worse with time? Maybe there is a problem (with some cameras) that Mint can fix as 20 flash exp. per one battery set is obviously not "by design".

 

[taemo]

I'm just waiting for my 2.5mm to PC-Sync cable to arrive so that I can use a dedicated flash.. unfortunately it is taking 2 months to arrive from China right now.

I noticed that with NiMH batteries too, the meter displays 2 bars but the moment I pop the flash on it drains it all out so definitely some leakage happening on the circuit.

Not a deal breaker for me but the flash definitely helps for fill once in a while.

From Mint InstantKon RF70 page:

RF70 uses two AA batteries and can easily last 500 photos without flash and 200 photos with flash.

So, the actual results are worse? Does the battery life get worse with time? Maybe there is a problem (with some cameras) that Mint can fix as 20 flash exp. per one battery set is obviously not "by design".

I recall reading somewhere that by 2x AA batteries, they are referring to the Alkaline ones and they don't recommend using rechargeable ones

Found it on Update #4 on their site

Batteries

InstantKon RF70 will take standard AA batteries, which will be included in the box.

Why not rechargeable lithium batteries? For one thing, batteries are messy. It's not easy to control the quality of batteries. The I-1 camera failed because of its battery. Secondly, you will need extra charging cables. Thirdly, they are expensive.

Every design decision depends on the product you're building. A one-size-fits-all solution usually means a sub-par decision. If you're designing a smartphone - heavy usage, lots of battery juice, large volume production, 3 year average lifespan, then lithium is probably the way to go. But if you're designing an analog instant camera - medium usage, minimal battery juice, small volume production, 7+ years lifespan, then lithium might not be your best option.

Good design requires discipline. The discipline to ask the right questions. The discipline to go back to the first principles. The discipline to evaluate alternatives and make good decisions. The discipline to always challenge the status quo. The discipline to think of creative solutions.

Good design is about making a lot of small good decisions. I can write a whole article on a seemingly trivial question - 'what battery to use?', but that would definitely bore my readers. When all these small good decisions add up, what you get is a superior product.

By the way, if you prefer your batteries to be rechargeable, you can use rechargeable AA batteries.

 

[Godfrey]

From Mint InstantKon RF70 page:

RF70 uses two AA batteries and can easily last 500 photos without flash and 200 photos with flash.

So, the actual results are worse? Does the battery life get worse with time? Maybe there is a problem (with some cameras) that Mint can fix as 20 flash exp. per one battery set is obviously not "by design".

Given what I and taemo have reported, it should be obvious that we're not getting 500 shots (50 packs of film) out of a single set of batteries, no matter what the type of batteries. 🙂

Frankly, I'd never expect that anyway ... that seems way too high an expectation for a camera with motorized film processor/advance, flash, etc. I've never had ANY camera with a battery operated motorized advance capable of running 50 rolls of film on two AA batteries. My Leica R6.2 fitted with the winder and six AA NiMH batteries will shoot about 25 to 30 rolls of 35mm film on a charge, but that a heck of a lot more amp-hours of power storage than two measly little AA alkaline cells, and it doesn't power a flash, ever.

Yes, I've reported my experiences to MiNT technical support and am awaiting a response, but I don't really think there's anything wrong with my camera.

I'm just waiting for my 2.5mm to PC-Sync cable to arrive so that I can use a dedicated flash.. unfortunately it is taking 2 months to arrive from China right now.

I noticed that with NiMH batteries too, the meter displays 2 bars but the moment I pop the flash on it drains it all out so definitely some leakage happening on the circuit.

Not a deal breaker for me but the flash definitely helps for fill once in a while.
...
I recall reading somewhere that by 2x AA batteries, they are referring to the Alkaline ones and they don't recommend using rechargeable ones

Found it on Update #4 on their site

Hmm. I don't know where you're located, but B&H Photo has the 2.5mm to PC sync cable in stock for $10. Mine will be here tomorrow, I ordered it on Sunday. Along with a 10' extension cord.

I just popped the Eneloop rechargeables into the camera. The battery state indicator dropped to two bars (compared to the fresh AA alkalines that I put in yesterday at three bars) and flickered off and on when I opened the flash unit, just as you saw.

However, I made an exposure without flash. The shutter worked just fine. I pulled the eject lever and the print whirred out with a cleaner, stronger sound from the motor than with the alkalines. It was perfectly exposed etc (auto, f/8):

instakon_noflash​

I then turned on the flash and made another exposure. Again, it worked perfectly (well, as best it might given my stupidity in picking an awful target ... 🙄

instakon_w_flash​

I'm inclined to think that the battery level sensor is the culprit here. Alkaline batteries have an incredibly different power delivery curve compared to NiMH batteries — never mind different voltage per cell as nominal and totally different internal resistance — and the cheap little voltage/load sensor that is in the InstaKon RF70 probably isn't up to the task of differentiating and reporting correctly for these differences.

When the fresh alkalines run out, I'll charge up a pair of Eneloops, stick them in, and see how far they go. 😀

G

 

[taemo]

I live in Canada so I need to spend at least 100$ to warrant buying from B&H, but I might need to buy some stuff anyway. which cord did you buy?
Is it this?
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/682577-REG/Impact_10032380_PC_Male_to_Sub_mini.html

 

[Godfrey]

I live in Canada so I need to spend at least 100$ to warrant buying from B&H, but I might need to buy some stuff anyway. which cord did you buy?
Is it this?
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/682577-REG/Impact_10032380_PC_Male_to_Sub_mini.html

Yes, that's the one.

G

 

[Pigeon23]

Thanks for all the impressions here. 🙂

Can anyone post some more updates and pictures about the long term usability of the camera? I am really thinking of buying one but I don't know if the lens is really sharper than my 500AF or any custom Instax with a 4x5 lens...

 

[Godfrey]

The battery drain situation on my camera seemed abnormal, so in the latter half of December I conversed with the folks at MiNT about it. They agreed that it was unusual and asked me to ship the camera back for evaluation and warranty repair... I didn't get to that until the first week of January.

The camera arrived back at my apartment last week, while I was away on travel. I opened it yesterday, fitted a fresh set of AA alkalines and a pack of B&W film. With the first test exposure, the sound of the processor/film transport motor sounds much healthier than it did before. I made three test exposures, one with flash, turned it off, and put it on the shelf to sit overnight. Before I sent it in, the battery readout would have shown the battery down at least by half this morning ... It was still full when I checked it a few moments ago.

So ... the excessive power consumption is, I believe, a unit defect that can be rectified. If your camera is displaying this behavior, contact MiNT and have it evaluated and serviced. A few production glitches are not unexpected in a low volume production camera, mostly hand-assembled, and in the first production run. MiNT has been very good about taking care of problems in the past, and they seem to be doing a good job with the RF70 as well. 🙂

G

 

[Godfrey]

Thanks for all the impressions here. 🙂

Can anyone post some more updates and pictures about the long term usability of the camera? I am really thinking of buying one but I don't know if the lens is really sharper than my 500AF or any custom Instax with a 4x5 lens...

I can't answer as to whether the lens is comparable to your 500AF (whatever that might be) or a custom with a 4x5 lens. Here's a quick scan of a detail shot from last December:

​

Please excuse the dust. 🙂

It's taken at f/5.6 and distance 1m ... the hardest range to work in because of rangefinder accuracy and close to wide open on the lens ... so it might give you some idea as to how well the lens performs.

I would say the RF70 lens performs best set to f/8 to f/11. Overall the image quality I see with it isn't quite up to what I get out of a good exposure with the Polaroid SX-70 cameras (the SX-70's SLR focusing system helps a lot, and it likely has a slightly better lens to boot) and it certainly can't compete with the best exposures out of my Instant Magny 35 (Instax SQ) fitted to Leica M4-2. But that's a whole different order of quality with regards to both lens and rangefinder.

The Instax Wide film produces very nice color, the B&W is a bit tight on dynamic range but produces nice tonal gradations. Like all instant film cameras, exposure is critical to best results because film latitude is limited.

G

 

[taemo]

I was planning to bring the RF70 to Mexico earlier this month but of course, the night before the flight I see that the advance lever on the camera fell off. (I believe it was held by 3 holes with glue).

I have contacted Mint and now the camera is on its way to HK (70 CAD$ to mail with tracking #). Hopefully they will have it fixed and I've also asked them to have a look at the 2.5mm flash sync as it never worked for me.

 

[Godfrey]

I think I forgot to post about it here ... But the battery consumption on my camera was way over the top. I discussed it with Jackie (Customer Support at MiNT) and I sent the camera back for evaluation and warranty repair on January 3. It arrived back about four-five weeks later.

Completely, totally fixed. I fitted a fresh set of alkaline batteries in it when it returned and I've shot about ten packs of film since. The battery level is still at 100%. 😀

The processor motor runs more cleanly too. The camera makes fantastic photos.

Life is good.
G

 

[taemo]

I think I forgot to post about it here ... But the battery consumption on my camera was way over the top. I discussed it with Jackie (Customer Support at MiNT) and I sent the camera back for evaluation and warranty repair on January 3. It arrived back about four-five weeks later.

Completely, totally fixed. I fitted a fresh set of alkaline batteries in it when it returned and I've shot about ten packs of film since. The battery level is still at 100%. 😀

The processor motor runs more cleanly too. The camera makes fantastic photos.

Life is good.
G

Thanks for sharing the info. I might have them check it out on mine as it seems to drain fairly quickly as well. I don't trust leaving batteries on it unless I'm using it as I know it will drain otherwise.
So it took 4-6 weeks for them to send it back to you?

 

[Godfrey]

Thanks for sharing the info. I might have them check it out on mine as it seems to drain fairly quickly as well. I don't trust leaving batteries on it unless I'm using it as I know it will drain otherwise.
So it took 4-6 weeks for them to send it back to you?

Yes, it was about that amount of time IIRC. I'm so busy this year, it seemed to me that I sent it to them and it returned in the blink of an eye. Same for the overhaul of my Fuji GS645S in March!

The status update is that the same pair of fresh batteries I put into it when it arrived back here sometime in February, and that have exposed at least five to eight packs of film with and without flash, are still showing 100% on the battery level indicator. So whatever was wrong has been well and truly taken care of. 😀

​

enjoy!
G

 

[Steve M.]

Now that AI development has begun in earnest, I want an instant camera that I can tell to go out and take some pics, then bring 'em back so we can look at them.

 

[Godfrey]

Now that AI development has begun in earnest, I want an instant camera that I can tell to go out and take some pics, then bring 'em back so we can look at them.

Take a look at some of the more advanced drones available now... I think at least one of them supports voice control and will fly where you want it to go, make photos, then download them to your smart phone.

The Future is Now.

G