Mike Hallman's First Impressions of the LomoApparat

Mike Hallman is a photographer and creator from Knoxville, Tennessee who often shares analogue photography related content to his YouTube Channel. In one of his latest videos he reviewed the LomoApparat and has sat down to tell us all about his first impressions of the incredibly wide and experimental camera!

Hi Mike, welcome to Lomography Magazine! Can you start off by telling us a bit about yourself and your work?

I’m a hobbyist photographer and YouTuber from Knoxville, Tennessee. I’ve been shooting for about six years, and shooting film for about two. I love street and documentary photography the most, and I usually find myself wandering the streets of Knoxville documenting everyday life. When I am not shooting, I am watching movies or eating my body weight in Mexican food.

What was your first impression of the LomoApparat?

My first impression of the LomoApparat was how cool it looked. The Italian leather is VERY easy on the eyes, and it feels good in the hand too. I think a person is more likely to pick up a camera that they find attractive, as it is more inspiring to shoot with. I loved the wide angle lens and all the experimentation that was possible with it. There are no limits to what can be done with the LomoApparat!

What was your favorite feature of the camera?

My favorite feature of the camera was the multiple exposure mode. I loved trying to figure out creative ways to make multiple exposures. I also loved the wide angle lens. I love wide angle lenses for documenting life because they really capture the environment and vibe of a moment. A bonus with the LomoApparat was that you can not only document a memory, but you can add some flavoring with the other features as well. Win.

Any tips or tricks for the camera?

Bring some friends along to shoot a roll of film or two with this thing. I found it fun to get creative minds together to play with a camera that has endless possibilities. We ended up with some wild and fun results!

Who would you recommend the LomoApparat to?

Anyone who is interested in trying out a film camera. This camera is so easy to use that even my wife shot a few frames. I would also recommend it to anyone who wants to get adventurous and do something new with their photography.

What does it mean to you, to see new film cameras being released in 2022?

It is exciting to see that film is still being used as a medium, and still getting discovered everyday. I am a firm believer that you will never be able to replicate film digitally. It just has a certain look and feel, and it forces you to slow down when shooting. I will never get tired of the process.

Do you have a favorite photo that you took with the camera?

My favorite photo is one that I used the splitzer attachment for. I basically handed off the camera to my friends on a morning photo walk and we all took headshots of each other, all while moving the splitzer and using the multiple exposure feature for each headshot. Basically, the multiple exposures created a new face in one image. It ended up being five or six exposures. I love this image because it shows the experimentation you can do with the LomoApparat.

If you could take the LomoApparat anywhere in the world, where would it be?

If I could take the LomoApparat anywhere, I would take it back to New York City. Last time I visited, I wasn’t a film shooter. I think the interesting characters would make for fun experimentation with the camera. Also, the wide angle lens would be great to capture the architecture. I think the LomoApparat and NYC are a match made in heaven.

Do you have any hopes for the future of analogue photography?

I love seeing new film stocks and film cameras being released. I hope this continues with awesome companies like Lomography paving the way! I hope the popularity of film keeps increasing so companies will continue to make new products and keep up with production of what they currently make. I currently shoot my film conservatively because of how hard it can be to find film in stock sometimes.

Anything else that you'd like to share?

Leave your digital camera at home for the day and just take the LomoApparat. Everyone you show the LomoApparat to is going to want to try it out. The question you have to ask yourself is, do you want to let them shoot your precious film?

If you're interested in keeping up with Mike and his work, don't forget to check out his Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube Channel!

written by eloffreno on 2023-04-03 #gear #people #videos #experimental #point-and-shoot #first-impression #lomoapparat