We’ve had a few emails (well ok…2 to be precise, but that’s still 2 more than usual!) asking whether we were going to review the Diana Mini.
Well, the good news is that Lomography sent us one to review, so we’re pulling out all the stops to produce something a bit different for the review.
Instead of the usual one-person review, we’d thought we would take advantage of the lightness of the diana mini (minus that heavy book of course!) and send the Mini between 5 different reviewers in 4 different countries! The review will then consist of 5 different ‘mini’ reviews with everyone’s opinion. The camera will also be loaded with a roll of film, so the writers can all take 10 or 15 shots each before finally getting the photos showcased here when the review hits.
Why are we doing this wacky reviewing process? It came about for a number of reasons:
1.All the writers are incredibly busy at the moment so we don’t have time to write the in-depth review you have come to expect at Holgablog (boo0, don’t hate us!). Worry not though! Fall/Autumn is upon us, and this winter is going to be very special at Holgablog.
2.After Nic’s honest review on his great site Four Corners Dark , he was unjustly accused of being biased against LSI due to selling competing products. This is nonsense of course, the Toy Camera community holds Nic in the highest of respect and there is no question of his integrity in our eyes. But anyway, due to this, and the fact LSI have sent us one to review, we didn’t want to be seen as biased in the opposite direction, so with 5 separate reviews, hopefully some consensus (or not!) can be reached without hate mail!
We are plastic lovers, not fighters!
3.It’s fun to try something new! Although we probably won’t be saying that when the camera gets lost between England and Latvia!!
So who is reviewing, and where?
The round-the-world trip takes in:
- Scribe in Brighton, England
- Arnee in Latvia
- Andrew in Scotland
- Derek in the USA
- Veronica in the USA
After the trip, and if the camera survives the journey, we will be launching a competition for you to win the well-travelled camera!
Expect the reviews within a a couple of months. We promise you, it will be worth the wait!
Comments
Fantastic idea! Certainly we will have some debate on the reviews, and that´s always rich. Looking forward!
That’s a good idea. I my opiniom to the LSI is very similiar to yours. Also thing that the LSI is fat-cat company… But without they I think it would be more heavier to get our hands on 120s rollfilm and Holga(original) accessoires.
But this little camera is so cute and I had 85piggies, so I could get the camera for only 12€ shipping. That’s why I can’t resist to get my hands on it. Otherwise 75€ for toycam is too much!
Sorry for the typing errors. Hope you all understand it. I’m in a rush…
Can’t wait to see the review(s)! I thought it was pretty crappy what happened to Nic after his review. Hopefully, there won’t be another fiasco after this one.
Thanks for kind words guys- I did catch a bit of flak over the last month… if you guys need a film sponsor for the US folks, let me know and I will send them out a gift bag.. Cheers + good luck- NIC
Leg 1 is over, and the Mini is now in my grubby hands. Will reserve public opinion for now. The real question is… what film should I load up with?
Looking forward for the reviews! And what a great idea as to sending it out to 5 people. I just shot my first roll with it and I really liked it. Doesn’t feel as well built as my blackbird, fly, but it is small and fun. Gives the nice dream Diana look to the shots.
THanks Nic, that’s incredibly kind of you! I’ll drop you a catch-up email soon, hope your thumb gets better, it looks nasty!
No Asian countries! Darn!
Oh well, maybe next time
Not a big fan of LSI but I’d like to see what people would think of this new diana.
Any update on this review?
Hi Jay,
It’s currently been to Scotland,Latvia,England,the US and is somewhere in the US waiting to be sent to our final writer. SO hopefully within the next month we will have a review!!