Disposable camera pics add retro charm to throwback event

Turning back the clock was the only option: a photo essay of endearingly old-school (and month old) party pics of a ‘no cell phones allowed’ event.

“Holding a grainy photograph feels so nostalgic — not just because they remind me of my analog childhood, but they bring up a swelling of sweetness for an event that was just a month ago!” says Leah Ferrone.

Party recaps in publications like this one usually include party pics, but after attending the summer’s final Sunset Social in August, I didn’t really have any.

That’s because there was one rule for the outdoor family get-together — think kite-flying, card games and old-fashioned races — that went off every Wednesday at Pitney Meadows over the summer: no cell phones allowed.

As in, they were literally left at check-in under lock and key.

“These photos feel so simple and serene to me, and that was the essence of the Summer Sunset Socials,” says Ferrone, shown here with her husband, Joe.

Instead, we happily surrendered to the much-needed two hours of playing outside and forgetting the hustle and bustle that comes with a Saratoga summer.

But I had forgotten that the event’s founder, Leah Ferrone of Brave Lion Mind, had had a disposable camera. Yup, a clunky disposable beauty of yesteryear. And today — 30 days later — we at last have the photos!

And they are every bit of precious, saturated nostalgia that you’d imagine.

"Looking at these feels different than looking at a perfectly lit, staged and edited image on a phone," Ferrone says. "It's raw and real; I long for more of that."

“I remember the thrill of one-hour or two-day film developing from my teen and college days — always getting double prints for friends, of course,” Ferrone says, before admitting that those resources just don’t exist anymore. “It took two weeks for these. My friend Kristin had a Sunset Social roll that took four weeks to develop!”

And that, she says, was part of the fun.

“Waiting was surprisingly awesome,” she says. “As cheesy as this might sound, since the event was phone free, there was never an expectation to document them. I was so present at the events that they are still very vivid in my mind, even without a single photo. So these images are just a bonus.”

“The disposables were a last minute thing, so I ended up buying a Walmart brand and got them developed there too,” Ferrone says. Next time? “Fujifilm QuickSnap Flash 400 is a top pick. McGreevy ProLab & ProPress in Albany also develops film. I'd love to support a small, local business going forward.”

The digital detox events were so successful that Ferrone is already working on their next iteration. “I'm not anti-phone or -tech, but I'm more in favor of us unplugging to grow community, curiosity and creativity,” she says. “The Sunset Socials achieved this, so really, I think we are just getting started. Stay tuned.”

For more photos, click on the embed below.

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Keep reading about this summer’s cell phone-free socials!

No phones, no exceptions

Screen-free summer series ends on a high note