Kodak Instamatic 100 camera from 1963

Remember the Kodak Instamatic cameras that came out in the early 1960’s?

They were easy to use and probably introduced countless thousands of people to snapshot photography who otherwise may never have owned a camera.

The hallmark of this camera was its easy loading system. Film was incased in a cartridge that could be popped in and out of the camera without fear of exposing the film to light.

For indoor snapshots you placed a flashcube into the socket on top of the camera.

It had a fairly slow shutter speed so action shots were difficult at best.

Instead of a standard 50mm lens, the Instamatic had a wide angle 38mm lens, which helped to produce somewhat presentable pictures by pushing the subject back.

The camera was hugely popular in the 1960’s. It is estimated that millions of Instamatic-type cameras were made.

Based on the number of cameras sold, it is safe to say the 1960’s Instamatic camera took more mediocre pictures than any other camera in history.

I was well into 35mm cameras when the Kodak Instamatic was introduced. To me, the Instamatic was little more than a toy. My photography friends and I enjoyed referring to the tacky little Instamatic as the ‘Insta-ma-tac’ - with emphasis on the last syllable.

In my view, its only saving grace was that someone on a trip without a camera could go into most any store, plunk down fifteen bucks for a camera and a couple of film cartridges. My reasoning was that in a pinch, so-so pictures were better than no pictures at all.