Review: Smena 8M

Pin It Now!

I mentioned in my post a few weeks ago that I recently got a new addition to my cameras, the Smena 8M. This is a vintage lomo camera that was made in Russia. The word smena translates to "young generation" in English, which was the main market for the camera.

Smena 8M (taken with 500D)

I have a Slovak friend who told me that he bought a Smena 8M 20 years ago, which was only sold for €1. The films he used on the other hand were more expensive than Smena since they were from Germany.

The Smena 8M is made with lightweight plastic materials, which makes it a bit flimsy like other toy cameras. However, it looks like its durable on the outside. Looks can be deceiving so handle your Smena with care. Smena can come with a leather strap with a Lomo logo. It looks really cool and vintage-y. When I wear it in school or in the mall, I get a lot of stares. Well, not really me but my camera.

Smena 8M with its leather case and strap (taken with Samsung S II)

The reason why I love Smena 8m is that you can take multiple exposures with it. My other film cameras cannot do this, unless you manually wind back the film roll and stop somewhere to take another shot. This really got me hyped up when I got my hands on my Smena. 

If you're using Smena 8M for the first time, expect to do a couple of boo-boos. You'll forget to adjust the focus point, the shutter speed and even forget to cock the shutter. I even did those a lot. It's just like shooting manual on your DSLR. However, you need to be absolutely sure that you have properly exposed your subject and adjusted the settings correctly. This is probably one of the hassles of Smena 8M. You'll need to adjust everything. If you're used to shooting automatic SLRs and P&S film cameras, like me, it'll take a lot of practice.

Framing can be a bit of a problem with Smena since it's made like a rangefinder. So, you've got to develop a technique in shooting that can give you an estimate of how your shots will look like. My boyfriend taught me this technique wherein you look at the viewfinder and see how your subject is framed. Then adjust your camera.

multiple exposure (in Smena 8M)

love (in Smena 8M)

Another thing worth mentioning is the frame counter in Smena 8M, which can be erroneous at times. A number of Smena 8M users do not really rely on the frame counter, I don't too sometimes. Since it's manual, you'll need to adjust the counter yourself, when loading your film cartridge in your camera. I'll make a tutorial on how to do that soon.

The nice thing about Smena is that it has a 40mm T-43 triplet lens with the widest aperture of f/4. This gives you photos a unique saturation. The Smena takes good photos. Light leaks and vignetting are to be expected since this is, of course, a Lomo camera.

cat in Pescador Island (in Smena 8M)

peeking cloud (in Smena 8M)

I couldn't say that Smena isn't a bad camera, because to tell you the truth, I'm in love with it. I've been wanting one for so long. Smena isn't really for those who like to shoot without thinking. Like shooting manual, you need to estimate and adjust your settings. It creates the images that I love and I'm happy with it.

PS. The Smena 8M that I actually got isn't working quite well. The shutter won't open at times resulting to black and empty frames on the film. I will need to send my Smena over to the camera technician for some fixing. This happens when buying vintage cameras online. Make sure that the cameras have been tested with films first. However, it's a risk that one has to take for the love of collecting old cameras. ;)