Holga 120N Medium Format Film Camera Plastic Lens Black Body

Product Information

I tend to use Ilford HP5 in my Holga - its so flipping reliable that it’s one less thing to worry about! We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Simply purchase a roll of 35mm film and load it in, take your photos, rewind and have the film roll developed. I’d recommend getting the one with the flash (the third one below) because sometimes it’s just too dark for the camera to capture ANYTHING with just natural light. Lee Ting-mo himself had a history in the camera industry, where he worked for Yashica Hong Kong in the late 1960s overseeing production.

An f-mount, 'melted' plastic Holga lens has been used on a digital f-mount camera while the EOS Holga has been mounted to the latest Canon DSLRs.The unpredictable light leaks along with the softness and vignettes in the corners became desired rather than shunned, and the signature retro, surreal, and dreamlike Holga look they produce has endured ever since. I look back at my Holga images from five years ago and they bring a smile to my face and remind me that sometimes it’s the simplest and most unlikely cameras that bring the most fun, and the most interesting photographs. With that viewfinder, I’d recommend thinking of it as a rough guide rather than an accurate representation of what you’ll get.

This sounds so simple, but I found it hard to get into the habit of winding the film on and ended up with some unintentional double and triple exposures. The viewfinder and lens are (I think) made out of the same exact plastic that does not like to have light shined directly at it. Additionally, a bubble level and two hot shoes help ensure you will always have enough flash coverage.This has been quite a long review so I think a quick rundown on the pros and cons of a Holga could be useful. I suppose that while not having gear acquisition syndrome is good for my bank balance, it’s not ideal for my content production.

It is also very refreshing to not worrying about anything other than framing (as close as a Holga will frame for you) and shoot. There are many different Holgas that have been produced over the years, but the most popular one, and the one that I will be going into details here about, is the Holga 120N.It really is so incredibly low-tech, you literally have to crank the film for every exposure you take. Now you know how to load your Holga and what to watch out for when shooting it, what kind of results can you expect if things do indeed go as planned?

Fascination with the camera seemed to wane at the beginning of the 2010s, and almost as if on cue, the factory that manufactured Holgas closed its doors in late 2015, signaling the end of the Holga era. Hailing from the cult classic Holga family of plastic medium format cameras, say hello to the Holga 120 TLR! Before you load your film, you can choose whether you want to be taking 6×6 photographs with it or 6×4.

Many people use electrical tape to cover areas of the camera so they can design the leaks to their artistic preferences. The image below and on the left is super dark because it was taken right around sunset on a dark street. It was intended as an inexpensive all-purpose camera for the Chinese working class, a market which at the time preferred medium format film.