They’ve embraced the questionable Y2K trends of low-rise jeans and Uggs – and now Gen Z is turning its attention to old digital cameras from the early 2000s.
You remember those – the blurry photos, the ugly metal camera frames with the wrist strap, and the inability to instantly edit every photo to be instagram-perfect.
This is exactly what is trending among the younger generation who are rebelling against sleek, edited photos on their iPhones to seek more authenticity in their photos.
Gen-Z’s favorite app, ICT Tachas over 184 million views with the hashtag #digitalcamera, and fashion’s favorite magazine, Vogue, has even sported the device in its glossy pages.
Anthony Tabarez, 18, brought his Olympus FE-230 – a camera made in 2007 – to the prom to snap photos of him and his friends waving their arms on the dance floor and performing their best moves.
Tabarez finds digital cameras “more exciting” than taking pictures on her smartphone.
Zounia Rabotson (pictured), who is now a model in New York, remembers standing in front of landmarks and tourist attractions as her mother took her picture with a digital camera She now uses the same camera to take pictures for her Instagram
Digital cameras have become Gen Z’s new Y2K obsession, like the one Rabotson (pictured) uses
Sadie Gray Strosser uploaded a fun selection of her friends reading tarot cards at a party. The blurry, overexposed photos are taking over social media with 184 million views on TikTok and many more on Instagram feeds.
“When you have something else to shoot, it’s more exciting,” said the freshman at California State University, Northridge. The New York Times. “We are so used to our phones.”
Mark Hunter, 37, a photographer who used to capture celebrity nightlife with digital cameras in the early 2000s, told The Times: “People are realizing it’s fun to have something that is not attached to their phone”.
You get a different result than what you are used to. There is a little delay in the gratification.
And it’s not just high school and college crowds jumping on the bandwagon, but celebrities, such as Kylie Jenner and Bella Hadid, have also been seen sporting the early 2000s staple.
Many of today’s teenagers and young celebrities post these blurry, unrefined images to their Instagram pages, rather than their parents’ scrapbooks – unlike their own childhood photos that sit dusty on the shelf – and savor the new trend.
Among these, Zounia Rabotson, who is now a model in New York, remembers standing in front of landmarks and tourist attractions as her mother took her picture with a digital camera.
The devices were popular in the early 2000s and were often seen in the hands of celebrities like Carrie Underwood.
Tom Cruise took a photo with fans in 2007 outside the Rome Film Festival
Rabotson now uses that camera to capture moments from her adult life, posting the overexposed images on Instagram, while sporting other 2000s trends like denim skirts and small handbags.
“I feel like we’re getting a little too technical,” she told The Times. “Going back in time is just a great idea.”
Sadie Gray Strosser, 22, also uses digital cameras to signify a different life stage and to capture the moment when she feels “so off the grid”.
According to a Pew Research Center study, more than 35% of teens admitted to spending too much time on their phones, and some decided on their own to distance themselves from soul-sucking, mentally depressing devices.
In order to live more freely, teenagers are now rummaging through their parents’ old boxes and pulling out Canon Powershot and Kodak EasyShare cameras – and if they can’t find them at home, they turn to eBay and other sites. second hand.
Searches for digital cameras rose 10% on eBay from 2021 to 2022, Davina Ramnarine, a spokeswoman for the company, told The Times.
Strosser and her friend post a photo posted on her Instagram account. Teens say shooting with digital cameras is ‘more exciting’ and captures a moment differently than an iPhone
Searches for digital cameras increased by 10% on eBay between 2021 and 2022.
Additionally, Nikon COOLPIX searches skyrocketed 90%, Ramnarine said.
However, the ways to live a more authentic life might not be as clear cut as Gen-Z wants you to believe.
Brielle Saggese, a lifestyle strategist, told The Times that some Gen-Zers are using the cameras to appear more authentic online and to give their accounts “a layer of personality that most iPhone content doesn’t have.” .
We want our devices to blend discreetly into our environment and not be visible. The Y2K aesthetic turned that on its head,” she said.
However, some just want another way to characterize a special moment.
“When I look at my digital photos, I have very specific memories attached to them,” said Rudra Sondhi, a freshman at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont. “When I go through my phone’s camera roll, I kind of remember the moment and it’s not special.”
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