I built a 35mm Film Camera for $35

[@RichardStroffolino]

"This image is the best in terms of the camera... working" is such a wonderfully polite burn.

[@KyleMcDougall]

😂

[@Photo_Cyclist]

This is so interesting. If anything, I would take it as a DIY assembling lesson, and I would gladly pay 35€ to have a deeper insight in the build of a 35mm camera!

[@Ukuleleloki94]

12:08 loving the whole softness of the image, the lens distortion, the dark sky, the tones of the bricks and the shadows behind the drainpipes. Just so much character, wonder what the lens flaws could do to colour film?? Nice vid again Kyle!!

[@KyleMcDougall]

Cheers! Yeah, I’d be really curious to see what colour would look like.

[@Dudeitsbrian]

That double exposure one looks great. I was thinking “where was that one” like it was 1 normal picture. Epic

[@kerc]

I've had one for a couple of years now. Assembly went without a hitch, and I've never had issues with it (although the film counter is useless as you found out). It's a very interesting device, with its own look and feel. I kinda love the weird ass photos it gets!

[@animemayonnaisesalad6055]

Feels like a perfect kit if you have an interests in both model kits and photography, it honestly seems kind of fun

[@AdamAllen]

Will definitely see someone use this for an album cover shoot.

[@JanneRanta]

I wish someone made this kind of kit but with quality parts. Like aluminium etc. They make working engine kits so maybe some day. Maybe it could be tlr or rangefinder if not slr.

[@KyleMcDougall]

That would actually be really cool. I’d buy one.

[@broski499]

This camera got me back into film photography back in 2014. I've been pretty impressed with it. I don't use it a ton, have purchased some other cameras since then, but I like to shoot with it on occasion.

[@eggyboi1217]

I’d really like to get this and then a 3-D printer. I’d like to assemble it and then slowly overtime troubleshoot and reprint parts to make it better and better until it’s something really cool.

[@MathieuStern]

Now try the Lomomod 1 and dont go crazy :)

[@singletrack29349]

I saw that video.... self destructing cameras are fun.

[@KyleMcDougall]

Haha, I think I’m good for a bit. I was eyeballing it though!

[@MKVD]

Foma films are good for screwing around, in finland we usually use them for playing around with Smena cameras.

[@KyleMcDougall]

I’ve been enjoying it so far. Just about to develop some shot with the XA.

[@MKVD]

@@KyleMcDougall It's truly a treat for the european film shooters since it's so cheap here. But it's suprisingly good, much better than agfa films for example.

[@simonsviridenko6324]

Heeeeeey, Finland gang! AND Smena gang! Can I ask you something - do you know where to get an old Smena 7 film casette or any smena parts in Helsinki? I would also recommend Harjun fimipuoti films - they do make superb films and sell films in Finland and do bulk processing!

[@mpk33]

@@simonsviridenko6324 Kamerastore?

[@Murgoh]

Another Finn here. I have lately shot some Fomapan 400 in 35mm, 120 and 4x5 and I have mixed feelings about it. I've got some ok results in 120 and 4x5. In 4x5 it's all I've shot so far as it's much cheaper than Ilford for example. But I need to overexpose it 1 or 2 stops (especially in 4x5 I need to meter for ISO 100) to get decent density and in 35mm I find it too grainy and harsh in contrast for my taste at least for most pictures, though sometimes the "rough" look works. I guess I'll mainly use it in my 35mm Zorki 4 and 120 (6x9) Agfa box camera for fun from now on and save Ilford for "better" cameras when I want good quality pictures. I'll also keep shooting Foma in 4x5 as I'm still learning to use that and I don't want to waste 2€/sheet Ilford for what are essentially practice shots.

[@morrisbagnall2690]

It is worthwhile remembering to value the input as well as the output. You clearly did and that made it fun to watch. Thanks Kyle.

[@KyleMcDougall]

Cheers, Morris!

[@roguesodyssey]

I dig your ability to crank these videos out so fast for us. Thanks!

[@KyleMcDougall]

Thanks Ryan.

[@lvikng57]

I built one and the advance worked great. Eventually my friend broke the shutter by just cocking and firing it like a thousand times in my living room. It still worked but there was so much slop in it that it felt awful

[@AlexSinclair]

A lot of these look great! There's a really distinctive look and feel to them so I could see this being a great idea as someone's first camera.

[@MacShootsFilm]

Great vid, Kyle! The images were unique and it was awesome *some images turned out despite the issues!

[@KyleMcDougall]

Thanks man. Even just having a few images turn out made it worthwhile!

[@TheSchnauzie]

It is always exciting with such a Lomo camera Kyle. I wouldn't have the patience to assemble this camera. But one thing is for sure, you have gained an experience.

[@KyleMcDougall]

Haha, yeah, it was an experience and definitely glad I did it.

[@1maschr]

I got one of these for my birthday. Was annoying to build but i like using it just for fun. Its pretty fun to use for double exposures.

[@Photo_Cyclist]

Did you have the same film-advancing issue as him?

[@1maschr]

@@Photo_Cyclist not really. Though I imagine the manufacturing process on these toy cameras aren't great, so each one has its own quirks. Mine has an issue where the lens will come loose sometimes when focussing.

[@imogenlaci-mai]

I have this kit, found it in my grandmas sisters garage yesterday... They was going to throw it out but I grabbed it having no idea what it was but the fact that it was something relating to a camera. Nothing is missing from the kit either nor has anything ever been opened in it! I'm a big fanatic for photography, I want to get into it myself but I don't have the money to purchase a canon and the lens I want - it's at least over £4000... I'd like to photograph animals so hence forth why I grabbed it. To my surprise it was a 35mm SLR buildable camera by Konstruktor - I've never heard of it. Haven't even started it so I'm here doing a bit of research! Obviously the photos aren't going to be anywhere, not even a skim on the quality of a canon... but I'm admiring the old vintage style to the photos... It could make some lovely scrapbook photos that feel to me like it's a bit like an effect that you'd imagine pictures involving cottages with the dirt/straw roofs with lots of hanging plant pots and a dreamy yet hazel yellow tinted light from the sunlight would be.

[@norfener]

I got one of these from the money I got for my retirement. I totally understand all the things you said about it: Sometimes fiddly to build; film advance problems; difficult viewfinder. To be far, experimenting with a vintage camera I got a bit mixed up with the wind-settings-focus-cock-shoot sequence, as I did with this one. Does ‘letting go’, and just having fun with cameras such as this stimulate creativity? I don’t know.

[@KyleMcDougall]

At the very least it’s just an interesting experiment and fun way to spend a day or two.

[@danielseale9636]

Great video! You should totally run a roll of color film through it next time. Would love to see that

[@KyleMcDougall]

Maybe one day if I’m feeling adventurous!

[@dtay345]

I've come back from a days shooting with a lot worse 😂

[@KyleMcDougall]

😂

[@NPJensen]

Interesting project - and a few nice looking frames. It's always good fun to go shoot with a camera, you're not sure will produce anything at all. I have done it a few times - with great success, and I'll do it again. In fact someone gave me a terrible looking SLR from 1982 with a 55mm f2.2 lens a while ago. I have cleaned up everything, replaced light seals (with my own home made ones) and exercised the shutter several times over a few weeks to get it going again. Tomorrow I'm loading a roll of Fomapan 100 and will be bringing it with me when I go take care of some errands. I think, I'll make an attempt at some basic street photography in the inner city in the town square, the shopping streets and parks - should be good fun.

[@AndyDay]

This looks fun. Potential gift for my nephews, I think. Fomopan also worth more investigation!

[@axesamuels91384]

Neat little novelty type piece in my opinion.

[@danielrock4144]

The film advance on this is a known issue. The solution is to remove the mechanism that advances the counter. It will still advance but it won’t count frames which is fine. At least it won’t jam anymore. I built one with my kid several years back and still shoot it occasionally. I’m a fan of plastic cameras and it does all right by that metric.

[@KyleMcDougall]

Cool. Maybe I’ll disassemble it and make that tweak. Thanks for the heads up.

[@danielrock4144]

​@@KyleMcDougall No problem, there is a gear that you can move that connects the advance to the counter. Look up Konstrucktor Jamming in a search and you will see it's a common complaint. Keep up the good work!

[@AeromaticXD]

I recently bought a lomo sprocket rocket - it’s kind of a fun camera.

[@earthtravel7799]

I ordered it and am waiting for the delivery. Your sharing is very helpful and I will also try it out ;) Thanks for sharing!

[@jaunman71]

Love it!Lo- fi film fun. Beautiful day in shoreham. Great lo-fi image of the power station. Try colour slide and xpro it you won’t regret it.

[@Shay-gp4ls]

That was really exciting. I would really like to try that camera now. Loved the imperfections and lack of control. Lol.. :)

[@elijahrhodes8162]

You should do a side by side with this camera and your nicest camera. Same composition, different camera just for some contrast

[@stevenpam]

Nice job, Kyle - a worthwhile experiment and an entertaining video 😀

[@KyleMcDougall]

Cheers, Steven. At the very least, was a fun experiment!

[@nathanielrichards9681]

I was not expecting to see the power station suddenly in this video! Home town baby! Didn’t even realise you where in the uk!

[@KyleMcDougall]

🙂 Been here since late last year.

[@MercUndGut]

I didn't know about this, maybe I'll get it just for fun! I'd love to see color film through that lens, too so if you're planning something like that I'd definitely watch it :)

[@joelhypponen]

Always so inspiring, come on Kyle!

[@KyleMcDougall]

Thank you, Joel! 🙏

[@rockydeng]

Interesting little camera. Looks fun!

[@Yulfi]

it was precisely at 2:43 when Kyle realized that he had McDougalled himself into something that he couldn't get out of.

[@Heretobrowse]

4:07 The gaff tape on the table tells the whole story of how that build went, haha!

[@KyleMcDougall]

Haha, good eye man! And yeah, it’s a good sign that shit went downhill. 😂

[@mihaidascalu4639]

One of your funniest videos... :) Would be cool to try some of those artsy camera gear in one video (colored filters, celophanes, multi-vision lenses, etc. - anything that distorts and makes surreal images)...

[@KyleMcDougall]

Glad you enjoyed this one, Mihai. I’ll keep that in mind for a future ep!

[@vitamin232]

such cameras make me remember that some time ago some dude discovered how to make photos, he came to that idea! How could he even invent that? an now you can make a ohoto of everything

[@trentrutledge4724]

What a cool dude

[@RiverMikaelWrinch]

That looks so cool!

[@cccsw5]

the only camera i like of lomography.

[@1973sonvis]

Great video, thanks! 😊👍🏻

[@KyleMcDougall]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@tbostrowski6136]

That was fun. You got some good images so I’d say you got your 30 quid (bucks) worth . Having said that I’ll take my chances with thrift store cameras, they may not work better but they are cheaper fun 🤩 Thx Kyle, appreciate the playfulness of this vid.

[@KyleMcDougall]

Glad you enjoyed this one!

[@joshyeNZ]

Stumbled across your channel. Love the look and concept of the video! New sub for sure.

[@KyleMcDougall]

Thank you!

[@valeriaplatova5447]

Ohhhh, I had this cutie!❤️

[@dafunk100k]

What do you mean by “surveillance feel”, for the shots of the camera?

[@alzathoth]

IMO that camera would be good for Historical type images. like old cars and vintage looking scenes.

[@FlipBerk]

Amazing video Kyle , really impressed by this camera , happy you tested eventually the tmax for poor film 😃🤘🎞

[@KyleMcDougall]

Cheers, Assaf!

[@spickett10]

I got one of these as a gift over a year ago and think it’s still sitting in my closet in the box. Maybe i should get it back out and test my ability and patience! 😅

[@KyleMcDougall]

Do it!

[@christopherbgriffith]

2 minutes into video: "Oh man, I want one of these." By the end: "Maybe not." A few minutes after video ends: "Maybe I could spray paint certain components for a really cool rainbow camera..."

[@goatman7362]

So for exposure, is the pre determined exposure setting good for most conditions?

[@richardt1792]

Did the camera come with Ikea instructions in Swedish and an Allen wrench?

[@joegalka3378]

Interesting rough image quality!! Maybe camera is better with 24 exp vs 36 considering what happened at the end of the roll.

[@KyleMcDougall]

For sure. That's not a bad idea.

[@marcp.1752]

Nice Review, Kyle! ;) Unfair comparsion: For the same amount, one can buy a mint-like F75, with 28-80 AF-D Nikkor, and having much better Image Quality.

[@jnrickards]

Cool dark bag, where'd you get it? Brand?

[@KyleMcDougall]

Got this one from BH. Can’t remember the exact name. I’ll check for you.

[@stephan.scharf]

nice super xpan formats

[@KyleMcDougall]

😁

[@steveh1273]

That is some serious grain. I didn't see how you metered, or did you use the sunny 16 method?

[@KyleMcDougall]

I didn’t. There’s no way to control the exposure with this cam, so you just roll with it. 1/80 shutter and f10. Just don’t shoot reversal!

[@8andre3]

Where did you buy that dark bag?

[@KyleMcDougall]

BH Photo I think.

[@Nebereth]

Hello Kyle. Thanks for the informative video. What kind of film changing bag do you have? Would you please share a link? Thank you!

[@KyleMcDougall]

It’s the Photoflex film changing room. Cheers!

[@queefcheif9306]

so how does the film counter advance?

[@tonykeltsflorida]

That would be a way to teach photography. First we will build a camera, then use it.

[@shijimip9930]

What lens mount does it use?

[@SinaFarhat]

Nice! Have you built a plastic 35mm Gakkenflex TLR camera? If not I think it would be a nice creative excercise!

[@KyleMcDougall]

Never heard of it. I’ll have to look it up!

[@daveferrie]

@@KyleMcDougall The original Russian Lomo also made a kind of build it yourself camera, although not as much construction involved as this one. It's called the Lomo UFK2. Seems like it's a half frame 35mm camera (with no rewind mechanism) that also doubles as an enlarger and something else. Never tried one but seems kinda fun.

[@gonzcasa]

Hey great vid! What cam do you use for the POV shots?

[@KyleMcDougall]

Cheers. It’s a Insta360 One Inch.

[@leon8954]

Great Video

[@BryanDorr]

I can see where a £30 build-yourself camera kit looks fun, but its reliability is questionable. Looks like a fun experiment, though. Did you twist or cut the parts off from the parts panel?

[@KyleMcDougall]

Yeah, definitely not something that I expected to be reliable. As for the parts, I twisted off, which is where I’m sure I went wrong!

[@BryanDorr]

@@KyleMcDougall Yeah, like a model kit there's a little nub probably catching on something.

[@AveryDelMiller]

Just a dollar per millimeter, that's ALL ya need

[@erwindegroot8760]

I've got one but I never used it, the shutter doesn't work most of the time.

[@KyleMcDougall]

Does your film advance work?

[@robertoandres4642]

I tried this product back in 2013 and I never got my film to advance. not a single slide. do anyone has a tip there?

[@singletrack29349]

Literally, no one that's reviewed these has had a "good" experience.

[@piciufa]

Great video! I spent last weekend building it and it was fun (ok, I broke that B24 part damn and Lomo didn't have replacement ...but it's ok). I don't understand how many times I have to turn the gear before taking the next photo. Do I have to reach only the next number of the gear or I have to turn it for a full turn, I don't understand...Could you help me please? thanks a lot

[@bburchellphotos]

When you opened the box, it reminded me of a airfix kit or something haha I'll be honest, I think very little of these lomo build your own cameras. They look awful. haha

[@familygonzcartwright]

You should try the Goodman Zone Medium Format Camera

[@KyleMcDougall]

Been checking it out. 🙂

[@anthonytantillo9495]

Just assembled a Scura 35mm...Trying to figure out where a light leak is coming from.

[@tomislavmiletic_]

I've put tons of cars and aeroplanes out of those plastic kits when I was a kid. But I don't thing I'd have a courage to run a single roll of film thru this thing...

[@jhonatansykes8265]

can I buy this? Where?

[@KyleMcDougall]

eBay most likely is your best bet.

[@1stOscarville]

Is it possible to retrofit your own lens on that?

[@KyleMcDougall]

Hmmmm, no idea. I personally wouldn’t want to try.

[@ledheavy26]

I feel like the real question would be if you could get the lens from that camera onto an actual camera, one that works.

[@1stOscarville]

@@KyleMcDougall thank you Kyle just wondering if a better lens would had made the images better but then again with the winding issues I guess would be a waste of time.

[@KyleMcDougall]

For sure. Better off buying a Holga or one of the other Lomo cams that are built.

[@mpk33]

Lomography is synonymous with wrecking rolls of film with shitty advance mechanisms in my experience. I've personally had it happen to me on Diana & La Sardina models. Chews up and spits out rolls of film. All of their models are an exercise in frustration, even the coveted Holga. You may get lucky for a while, or you may be cursed right off the bat. Personally, when I see anything Lomo, I run for the hills...lol

[@ce2513]

buy an olympus stylus for $10. great little P&S!

[@Bonsees]

I bought this almost 2 years ago but still haven't assembled it 😂

[@KyleMcDougall]

Get on it!

[@Bonsees]

@@KyleMcDougall yes sir! 😂

[@igoryutsyk6276]

Looks like rock group album covers generator

[@JimIBobIJones]

Would have been better if they used a standard mount instead of having a cheapo fixed lens.

[@ili5615]

This video reminded me how I messed up mine two years ago, although I really like Your results from this piece of garbage

[@brineb58]

This scares me!!!

[@wilwilson8146]

"I was on ebay looking for something specific.." Here is your first problem

[@KyleMcDougall]

Haha, pretty much!

[@StickPeopleAndPuff]

Fomapan is grainy and gross and I love it for that

[@KyleMcDougall]

Haha, love it. May steal that for the title of my next vid - ‘Fomapan - Grainy and Gross’

[@StickPeopleAndPuff]

@@KyleMcDougall Go for it my dude!

[@Kodakj]

No I just switched to foma because no one shoots it.

[@johndavidlevy7]

"The worst fun."

[@mrmet5]

You just messed up the build. I mean the instructions are terrible there ain't no 2 ways about that but I love my Konstruktor

[@kaid3566]

So if someone told you that some of these photos had a "surveillance" vibe about them, you'd take it as a compliment?

[@KyleMcDougall]

I guess?

[@dflf]

You: “kind of a fun camera” Me: “Kind of a waste of money”

[@ledheavy26]

Not a fan of the product, just kind of a thing to throw money away at. It'd be cool to build a camera, sure, but I'd want it to work well. Picture quality is obviously subjective but it's not my thing. I'd rather spend the money on film/developing. I'm sure there are lenses or filters to get the same look of that holga but on a reliable body.

[@igaluitchannel6644]

Too bad you can't change lenses on this camera.

[@HR-wd6cw]

Um more like you assembled a pre-made camera kit.... When you said "I built" I was thinking from scratch using your own materials....

[@matthewhunter8971]

Wtf i just realised I'm not subscribed

[@tinoderyanto7668]

For $35 i rather buy an old range finder Xd

[@photobobo]

For less money you could have bought a real camera.