Fuji TW-3

The most intriguing thing about this camera is the number 3 in its name. Did they make a number 2 and 1? Or was this arbitrarily chosen? Why? Also why is this one a Fuji camera rather than a Fujica, a typical name given to photographic equipment made by Fuji? So may questions and we shall never know the answers.

This guy is a twin-lens half-frame (double the double fun?) that came to me working, new in box, with instructions and everything. Gasp, I know. I did. People seem to be on the fence about it, and I'm on the side that says 'quirky? love it'. It is quirky to use and to look at. It has two lenses, one tele, 69 mm, and one wide, 23 mm, both f/8. Flash is automatic with the wide, doesn't work on the tele. It has a couple of weird functions like a TV mode which is not, of course, any sort of shutter priority (as per Canon nomenclature), but literally a mode where you can shoot on an old TV without the bands appearing. And you can shoot continuously as well with the button next to the shutter release pressed. Neat. There's a blacklight correction button as well. It's all over the place, really, for a simple point and shoot. The extra functions are just a bizarre collection that seem like lots of afterthoughts in its design. But, it has the red strip in the front which makes it look like it's a serious camera. It's not, but don't tell it. All mid-80s kids are like that. I would know.

I enjoyed it. I first used it in 2011, I think. There's some film in it now, but I don't know when I put it in. We shall see in some time in the future, I guess, because I'm curious now, as to what silly moments it recorded over the last couple of years.

Manual from Butkus
Excellent in-depth review by Mike Eckman