Snapshot!

 

My dad is a photographer, and when I was little, we had a "darkroom" (aka the basement) with all the gear on a table next to the washing machine and a clothesline strung up for photos, film, and (of course) wet clothes. I'm not much of a photographer myself, beyond the basic point and shoot family documentation, but I feel a nostalgic tug for old cameras. So this find thrilled me.

Discovered via Unpluggd, Jason Hull (aka Jayfish) reworks vintage cameras into night lights. After a series of high-profile blog posts, it looks like demand may far exceed his supply. More power to him. I especially love that the cameras he's converting aren't valuable, rare, or precious in any way, but mass-market, cheap plastic ones that have long outlived their usefullness, especially now that every hipster in town has an app to make their grainy, discolored photos. No need to get your hands dirty with a real camera or film anymore.

The Etsy shop is up and running. Or if you prefer to admire from afar, there's a really lovely Flickr set.

Jayfish, if you by chance see this and you want me to update with any local Bay Area contact information or holiday craft fairs, just email me or leave a note in the comments. We love to promote local designers!

Images from Jayfish's Flickr set. Via Unpluggd.