© 2026

For assistance accessing the Online Public File for KAXE or KBXE, please contact: Steve Neu, IT Engineer, at 800-662-5799.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
The Brainerd translator at 89.9 FM is currently operating at reduced power. We are working toward a solution. Thank you for your patience. Listen at kaxe.org!

Loving the Imperfections of Toy Cameras

Thanks to digital technology, it's become progressively easier to take perfect pictures. But not everyone strives for perfection -- a growing community of photographers is becoming attached to the simplicity and imperfections of what they call "toy cameras."

These cameras, with names like Holga, the Diana-F and the Lomo Action Sampler, are cheaply made plastic devices.

There's even a new magazine devoted to the cameras, Light Leaks, which glorifies the biggest flaw of the toy camera: light often leaks through the plastic casing onto the film, creating odd halo effects and other moments of visual serendipity.

Photographer Theresa Manzanares describes why she loves her toy cameras.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Creative Commons License
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.