To celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary, my husband and I returned to our honeymoon destination, St. Augustine, Florida. As my anniversary gift, I thought it would be fun to find disposable cameras for our trip and go a little analog.
When I compared prices online, it seemed like the average cost of most 2-pack disposable cameras was around $30. I decided on Kodak FunSavers, which were on several “best disposable camera” lists.
I gave them to my husband the night before our trip, and at first, he was a little confused. I had experienced that too when they arrived, because holding a disposable camera is so nostalgic when you haven’t seen one in 20 years.
We’re both approaching 40 and easily bond over our 90s childhoods, including a love of film and photography. As I explained my idea to take some old-fashioned pictures on our trip, he really loved it.
Taking our first pictures was more nostalgic than I expected
We waited to unwrap one of the cameras for the first time until we got to our vacation rental in St. Augustine. The whole process of charging the flash by pushing the button on top until you see a red light, and then winding the film before each new photo, was a total time warp.
We each recollected the last time we had cameras like that, which was early college for both of us. With each picture we snapped, I think we both remembered versions of our younger selves, and that was a gift in itself.
Every single shot we took felt so much more special than taking the same picture with one of our phones, which we also did. But I noticed that when I used the disposable cameras, I took my time.
I caught myself thinking carefully about what would be in frame or how something would look in certain lighting. When I saw my husband doing the same thing, I remembered falling in love with that artistic part of him.
Trying some new things in our favorite city added to the novelty of our photography
My husband and I have been to St. Augustine over a dozen times together and have several favorite spots, but this time we made a point to try some new things, too. We took a recommendation and tried Hot Box, an authentic Hawaiian food truck, which had amazing flavor combinations that hit the spot after a long day of sightseeing.
We couldn’t skip a walk on our favorite Villano Beach, but we had never been to the oldest shrine in the U.S. It had a beautiful walking path, perfect for quieting the mind. Throughout the trip, we also went on a self-proclaimed book store tour, visiting bookstores and Little Free Libraries wherever we went.
Since we mixed novel experiences into our visit to such a familiar place, we were constantly inspired to take pictures wherever we went. I’m hoping that when we develop them, they’ll tell the story of our destinations.
We were increasingly playful and surprisingly present
It didn’t matter where we were, whether it was the beach or in a shop, we got some double-takes and funny looks when we took out our disposable camera. Taking pictures with a camera like that is so much more audible and noticeable, with the click, flash, and winding, than with a phone.
We did our best not to draw attention or be disruptive in quiet places, but I was not at all embarrassed by our little camera. We were having way too much fun to care what anyone thought, and that was a refreshing feeling in itself.
What made us both probably even less conspicuous was that every time we took a picture, we acted like little kids. We kept saying, ecstatically, how exciting it was to have to wait to see the pictures later. Looking at the pictures for the first time together was going to be like a bonus vacation we were both looking forward to.
I love the ease of quickly accessing pictures on my phone and the ability to take as many as I want. But there are only so many pictures you can take with a roll of film. I thought about that as I watched the photo count fall, and noticed myself being a little bit more careful to pay attention. Only having so many opportunities to capture the moments with my husband actually helped me focus on him and our vacation.
Going analog rejuvenated each of us and our relationship in the process
I may never be able to top this gift, because it gave us both so much in return. Besides the physical, retro photos we’ll have, I’m most grateful for rediscovering the creative part of myself I hadn’t realized I missed. Even more, I think my husband experienced the same thing.
After our trip, we both agreed to make more of an effort to incorporate our shared interests, such as photography, back into our relationship. For many years, we spent what we called “art time” together, where we each worked on different projects at the dining table, but we got busy and let the habit slip away. This common thread of loving to create things ties us together, and the disposable camera experience on our trip reminded us of that.
My husband and I are now looking for old, used film cameras we can use only for special occasions, like vacations and holidays. Buying the film and having it developed is still expensive, but we think what the process brings out in us and what the film can capture is more than worth it.
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