The Phoblographer

A few years ago, we took a very hard stance on SLR gear. We told manufacturers we wouldn’t review them. We also said we probably wouldn’t report on new news about DSLRs. That’s one of the factors that’s put a strain on a few manufacturer relationships we have. But the industry itself also decided to pivot. The DSLR, in 2021, is for the Luddite. And depending on what side of the table you’re on, the NONS SL42 Mk2 is totally new. It’s the successor to the first SLR-style camera to specifically shoot Instax Mini film. The Mk2 gets a few upgrades from the original. And if you really want full control over your Instax shooting, this is the best chance you’ll have.

Editor’s Note: I bought the NONS SL42 Mk2 for myself. I did so at full price and not using the tactics influencers do to get free gear. When I did, they remembered our coverage and offered a free upgraded kit that included the NFE and the 50mm f1.8 lens they make. I took it and am declaring this. I’ve been doing this for over a decade, and my reviews aren’t tainted by manufacturers trying to butter me up. I instill the same thing in The Phoblographer staff.

Too Long, Didn’t Read

The NONS SL42 Mk2 is a fantastic camera that’s surely still got some quirks to be ironed out. But if you’re going to buy any Instax, Instant Film, or SLR camera, this is the one to get. It’s the most innovative one on the market right now.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Incredibly lightweight because it’s very plastic

It shoots instant film!

Beautiful to look at

Very fun!

Pretty simple controls

I actually like how large it is

I can’t even begin to tell you how wonderful it is to hold an SLR that shoots Instax film

It goes to sleep!

Cons

Incredibly plastic

No camera strap comes with it

When you put the adapter on to have the lens cover the whole film plane, you can’t see the new image fully through the viewfinder

This thing really needed a split prism finder

Shutter speed dial oddly goes to other positions not marked for shutter speeds

I wish it had depth of field preview

Gear Used

We tested the NONS SL42 Mk2 with various Samyang, Rokinon, and vintage lenses. Our camera uses a Canon EF mount. Most Canon EF lenses don’t have an aperture ring, so you have to use the ones that do. Samyang and Rokinon are the best brands for just this. Best of all, there are tons of lenses available.

Tech Specs

These specs are taken from the NONS product page.

EF mount – SL42 is a passive EF mount camera, compatible with EF lens, and also lots of vintage lenses with an easy-to-get adapter.

Instax mini film – SL42 works with the widely-available Instax mini film.

Single-lens Reflex (SLR) – The precise SLR structure and viewfinder inside SL42 make it easy to frame and focus accurately.

Integrated light meter – The display panel will show the recommended aperture (F/#) for better exposure.

Intuitive design – We take care of the hard part, so you can enjoy using SL42 with its powerful, yet easy-to-use functions. SL42 is perfect for both pros and beginners.

Innovations

The NONS SL42 Mk2 is one of the first cameras in the world to use the SLR format to shoot Instax film. More importantly, it also uses currently available lenses. We’ve asked Fujifilm to do this for years, but they didn’t care. We asked Lomography to do this a while back, and they integrated it into their other camera systems. MINT camera hasn’t done it. Polaroid also hasn’t done it (we wouldn’t support a company that backs Unplash anyway). It’s a quirky camera, but it delivers exactly where you need it to.

Ergonomics

The NONS SL42 Mk2 is a proper SLR film camera that uses Instax film. And that’s awesome. NONS has its own 50mm f1.8 lens, but you can use a variety of lenses.

Here’s the front of the camera. You can tell it’s very plasticky. The only control you’ll see here is the mount and the shutter cocking mechanism under the mount.

On top, you’ll find barely any controls. There’s a standard hot shoe that doesn’t have any sort of TTL interface. There’s also a shutter ...

Fact: people like the same thing and similar variations of it over and over again. They can’t get enough of it. It’s why so many fast food options have similar menus. It’s a great reason why every Bollywood movie follows iterations of the same plot. But it’s also crept into other parts of life. With the way app algorithms work, it’s also made us like so many similar images. They’ve got similar looks and content. And so, you should genuinely just give up hope on being creative. Instead, deliver just what the clients want: which is more of the same. That’s why presets are great!

And, of course, we’re not talking about using the Instagram presets. Those are gone and done with. Instead, use other ones from companies like these. Some are said to look like actual film. But the truth is that they don’t; everyone thinks they look like actual film even though they haven’t seen what real film looks like. If you want to get more likes, you’ve got to feed into the misinformation. Apply that preset, and say somewhere in the post that it’s real film.

Then there are all those cool, crazy colors. Orange and teal is a big one. Why not just apply that profile preset to all your photos? It’s bound to get you more likes (and then more clients). In fact, when you shoot, just build that profile into your camera and don’t even edit. There’s no point, especially if they’re not paying well.

The key here is to adapt them to how you shoot and to shoot for the edit. Try underexposing the photo because you know that you can get a better edit later on. Then take a preset you like, edit it the way you want it, and save it as a custom profile. Maybe push the exposure a complete stop while nerfing the highlights and crushing the blacks. It’s a popular thing that YouTubers do. And it’s even better because from the way they edit, you can never tell which cameras or lenses they’re using. Indeed, it’s something unique to them and it satisfies the algorithm. That’s all art is these days.

If you really want to step it up, export your images as NFTs. Here’s a truth; no one understands the market. It makes no sense. Why not try to sell something that doesn’t make sense on a market that makes even less sense? Truly, because you’re manipulating the preset to the way you shoot, you’re creating something unique. No one else can make it until you’re ready to sell your own presets. But since they all look the same, you need to make yours stand out even more. So here are some more ideas:

Lower the clarity all the way. It will eventually become a vibe once another creator copies you and your ideas.

Add streaks

Add all the colors and fake image noise that we saw in early digital cameras. Folks are all about that look now.

Better yet, just go buy a vintage digital camera with a CCD and get the profiles for those cameras.

Bad Photo Tips is a satirical series that provides the best photography tips on the web. You won’t find these tips anywhere else on the internet, not even YouTube.

The rest of The Phoblographer team and I are going to take a trip down memory lane. We have decades of combined experience in the photography industry. However, all of us started somewhere. And of course, there was a time where we each had our first camera. But what did we use to begin the most influential journeys of our lives and careers? Let’s take a look.

First Camera: EIC Chris Gampat

As well as founding The Phoblographer, EIC Chris Gampat also has a background in photojournalism and wedding photography, and he focused his lens in a host of other genres. But where did it all start? And how does he feel about that early camera now?

“My first was a little Keystone point and shoot film camera. It was crap. It was really, truly utter garbage. But for most of my life, I grew up pretty poor. Add onto that that my mentally abusive mother was super technologically inept. We had an old Olympus film camera that she broke, and that she kept around in hopes that it would work one day again. And that leads me to my first digital camera, which was a struggle. How would I feel about it today? Well, there are crappy cameras, and then there are CRAPPY cameras. The Keystone was the latter. It’d make a nice doorstop.

“The first digital camera in our household was a small little HP Point and shoot camera. It had 8MP and a zoom lens. I was the reason for the purchase. I needed it for photojournalism class. My mom made such a fret over it and it became basically the household camera. So too did the Canon HV20 that I needed for class. It took a while for me to save up money for a Canon SX10. And then, when I got a job at PCMag, I went for the Olympus E510 two-lens kit. The HP camera served its purpose, but man, was it limiting. And my teacher was brutal. The SX10 let me do a lot more. And when I got the E510, I was shooting really solid photos.

“I kind of wish that HP had stayed in the photo world, actually. HP’s cameras weren’t bad. They were well built and made of metal. And they probably could’ve really helped to save printing. The Canon SX10 was a great camera that served its purpose. Even today, I still yearn for a good point and shoot. There are lots, but none are perfect for me personally. As for my first DSLR: well, I think I’m the Editor in Chief that’s biggest on the “DSLR Is Dead” slogan. I’ve been told my entire life that I’m too young for this or that. Even at 34, this is subtly pounded into my head, and I’ve started to get sassy about it.

“But the camera that I started this site with is the Canon 5D Mk II: the camera that revolutionized the entire industry. That camera stuck with me for a while. And ever since then, I’ve never had a sole, primary camera. There’s just anything that you put in my hands.”

First Camera: Ellyn Kail: Photographer Interviewer

Ellyn Kail delivers top class stories that cover the world’s most challenging and important stories. She cares deeply about wildlife and you will see that as a theme in the photography articles she writes. Of course, when she’s not helping to shape the world, she’s investing in her passion for photography. On where it all first started, she told me:

“My first camera was a Pentax K1000. I think I used Ilford 400 film and an old nifty fifty to start. I don’t use it anymore (partly because film isn’t vegan), but I loved it dearly and still do. I know it’s predictable; this is the camera everyone learns on, but that’s for a good reason. It’s super easy to use. I only had to worry about the very basics, but at the same time, this camera taught me how to shoot in manual. Using it became second nature in a way that I’ve never had with any camera since.

“Of course, I also loved the darkroom, and the K1000 allowed me to basically live in one during college (shoutout to Sarah Lawrence!). I’ve kept the camera as a reminder of that time ever since.”

First Camera: Brittany Smith: Reviews Writer

Brittany Smith is The Phoblographer’s Reviews Writer. When she’s not testing kit, she out shooting ...