Hipsters, romantics and nostalgic ’80s kids — hallelujah! The instant camera is far from dead. In recent years, Fujifilm, Polaroid and Impossible Project have released new instant cameras, still charmingly vintage yet injected with a few modern updates (better resolution, higher zoom, more pre-set shooting modes), and now, Leica has released their first ever instant camera, the Sofort.
Slightly bigger than a point-and-shoot, the Sofort captures and spits out credit-card-sized photos. It can capture 10 photos on each film cartridge — which are sold separately for about $10 — and shoots in eight modes: macro, bulb, automatic, self-timer, party/portrait, action, double exposure and selfie.
As far as the specs go, don’t expect the superpowers you get with other Leica cameras. With the Sofort, you get 1/400 sec maximum shutter speed, 800 maximum ISO, 12.7 maximum f-stop. But impressive specs aren’t really the point of instant cameras, anyway. What you get with the Sofort is a sentimental memory creator — instant photos have an unmistakably nostalgic quality rarely found in digital photography. The Sofort comes in three bright-and-sunny colorways: mint, orange and white.