Analogue aF-1 is a new, relatively affordable, premium point-and-shoot camera expected to launch this summer.
The project, which has been in development for over two years, came across my radar late last year. Yet, given that the launch page (af1.analogueshop.com/) has only shared renders (i.e., not the actual photos of the product) and team Analogue has admitted that the sample image on that page was not taken with their camera in the comment on Kosmo Foto’s article (kosmofoto.com/2025/01/anal…), I wanted to do a bit more research before publishing this #editorial🔥.
First, the specs: the €399/$412 camera (with pre-launch discount, €339/$349) would feature a six-element 35mm 𝒇2.8 lens with a Lidar autofocus, autoexposure (only), motorized film transport, shutter speed up to 1/1000, flash, and DX-code reader for ISO25-5000.
When I reached out to Analogue, they added that the camera might also feature exposure compensation (+1.5EV) for backlit scenes and a flash override. However, they haven’t yet responded to my request for a chat or an interview (I’ll update this thread if they do).
I did find a video by Analogue Amsterdam, where a short clip featured a physical (dummy model?) of the camera in their customers’ hands: youtube.com/watch?v=SflI-y…
Analogue’s product would be competing with some of today’s most prominent camera manufacturers, including MiNT and their Rollei 35AF (analog.cafe/r/rollei-35af-…) and the Pentax 17. MiNT has been making new cameras for years and selling refurbished/modified Polaroid cameras for even longer. Pentax is a household name when it comes to photography; both MiNT and Pentax cameras are also significantly more expensive than the expected price of aF-1.
The project met some skepticism on Reddit (reddit.com/r/AnalogCommuni…), which is understandable, given the recent controversy surrounding expensive yet underwhelming cameras like Nana (analog.cafe/comments/brpr).
Ralph Tilon (the co-founder of Analogue) responded to the above skepticism on Reddit by establishing his team’s credentials as designers/product developers and explaining that they would be working with a manufacturer “that produced millions of quality cameras throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s.” He added that they are aware of the self-imposed unusually tight deadline: less than six months to deliver the aF-1.
Analogue Amsterdam just posted an update about their new point-and-shoot film camera, teasing a reveal on September 30th.
Making film cameras, particularly the high-end automatic point-and-shoots, is so difficult that any new business entering the space is often met with strong skepticism. That is still the case for Analogue Amsterdam, a European business that has found a factory capable of building a brand-new, fully featured point-and-shoot camera in 2025.
The skepticism is understandable, given the current track record of zero such cameras produced in the past decade that could match the pinnacle of the Minolta TC-1 (analog.cafe/r/minolta-tc-1…) or the ultra-thin design of the Ricoh GR1 (analog.cafe/r/ricoh-gr1gr1…). Even simpler designs, such as that of the Olympus Mju I (analog.cafe/r/olympus-mju-…), haven’t had the chance to return to the shelves yet.
Analogue aF-1 is like the Mju I in many ways: a €399/$412 camera with a six-element 35mm 𝒇2.8 lens, a Lidar autofocus, autoexposure, motorized film transport, shutter speed up to 1/1000, flash, and a DX-code reader.
The difference between Olympus in the 1990s and Analogue Amsterdam is that the former is a famous multinational Japanese corporation that’s been making film cameras for decades, whereas the latter is a relatively unknown photography shop and a design agency. That’s where the skepticism came for Analogue, with the doubts rising as the company missed their self-imposed deadlines by five months.
So far, Analogue has released a handful of very short video clips, some of which were taken on a factory floor and others highlighting the internal workings of their camera.
Their newest post, instagram.com/p/DObKah5jH_f, is a teaser of an upcoming demo unit that we may see on September 30th.
This doesn’t mean that the camera will be available for sale on the same day (or even that the final product will look and work the same). Still, that would be a huge boost of confidence in the project that I would love to see.
Dmitri Jan 8, ‘25
Dmitri Jan 8, ‘25
Dmitri Sep 10, ‘25