Holga Camera

I recently received a fun camera for my birthday . . . It's called a Holga and was originally designed in Russia in the early 80's by the state-run optics manufacturer LOMO PLC.
In 1991, some Austrian travellers on vacation purchased one of the original Russian cameras and were immediately "charmed by the unique, colorful, and sometimes blurry images that the camera produced." The camera itself is constructed very cheaply . . . it is entirely plastic even the lens) and most have light leaks due to the cheap construction. These Austrians purchased the distributing rights and began to push the the idea of "casual snapshot photography" or Lomography.
Lomography emphasizes the "don't think just shoot" style of photography. Characteristics such as over-saturated colors, off-kilter exposure, blurring, "happy accidents," and alternative film processing are often considered part of the "Lomographic Technique." Users are encouraged to take a lighthearted approach to their photography. Here are their mottos for Lomography:

1. Take your LOMO everywhere you go and whenever you go.
2. Use it any time - day or night.
3. Lomography is not an interference in your life, but a part of it.
4. Shoot from the hip.
5. Approach the objects of your lomographic desire as close as possible.
6. Don't think.
7. Be fast.
8. You don't have to know beforehand what you've captured on film.
9. You don't have to know afterwards, either.
10. Don't worry about the rules.

Well, anyone who knows me knows that I am a perfectionist when I shoot. I have found it very hard to take snapshots when I am travelling because I want everything to be just so and due to that fact I rarely photograph out of the studio. So, the Holga is kinda perfect for me. It's supposed to look sort of weird or bad so then I have no worries. I am posting a couple of shots I took with the Holga while I was recently travelling in NYC. Enjoy!!