Last Updated on 11/14/2019 by Mark Beckenbach
If you’re looking for something to get them young ones into shooting film, we think these rare Snoopy toy cameras will do the trick.
‘Start them young’, as the age-old wisdom goes, and with our rare vintage find, you will certainly get the young ones interested in shooting film. Two kinds of rare Snoopy toy cameras just popped up on our Etsy and eBay radar, and we thought to share them in case any of our readers are keen on getting their kids (or nieces or nephews) to be their film photo walk buddies. If that sounds like you, details are after the jump!
We spotted two types of Snoopy Joe Cool Peanuts 35mm film cameras. One of the toy cameras is listed by a US-based Etsy seller for $98.85 and by a Japan-based eBay seller for $88. This simple yet cool point and shoot camera takes 35mm film, and has a built-in flash for shooting indoors and dim lighting. The Etsy unit was fully tested and was found functional, while the eBay unit is untested and sold as-is.
The other version is an equally interesting and rare Snoopy camera with a can design made by TOMY. It’s listed as an unused camera by the same Japan-based eBay seller for $99. It’s a simple 110 film camera, so it may be a bit challenging for you to grab some films for this, and find a lab that can process and scan 110 films.
There’s not a lot of info out there about these cameras. According to Etsy seller Ultrafine, the black Snoopy camera was a Japan-based promotional item for United Features Syndicate camera. It has a wide-angle, f6.7 28mm Konica lens, manual advance and rewind, and is flash powered by one Lithium 123A 3V battery. There is even less information on the can-designed Snoopy camera; all we know from Collectiblend and a past eBay listing is that it also came in red and yellow.
With these cute Snoopy toy cameras, you’ll be hitting two birds with one stone. First, you’ll have some unique cameras to add to your collection. Second, you’ll most likely convince the young ones to go out there and shoot with an actual camera (and a cute one at that) instead of a smartphone. But if you’re a serious camera collector, we can see how these may likely find permanent homes in your collection, tucked safely away from curious kids.
Now is a really good time to teach kids about the basic principles of photography through film cameras, since there are still plenty of film options and cameras available at present. Of course, you can always grab some cheap disposable cameras and yard sale point-and-shoots. But if you want to splurge on some rare cameras for them (or yourself), there’s no judgment from our end!