Lomography has launched a new 35mm autofocus compact camera called the LOMO MC-A.
The camera was announced on Wednesday (22 October) and is a metal-bodied 35mm camera with a 32mm f/2.8 lens and both autofocus and manual zone focusing.
The camera is a large, rectangular design that bears a passing resemblance to high-end compacts such as the Contax T2.
The camera is being sold in two editions – one all-black and the other silver and black.
Lomography listed the LOMO MC-A’s specifications as:
- 32 mm f/2.8 multi-coated Lomo glass five-element lens with autofocus
- Full-frame 35 mm
- Automatic, aperture priority or fully manual shooting modes
- Built-in flash with creative modes and coloured filters
- Manual zone-focusing option from 0.4 m (1.3ft)
- Shutter speeds from 1/500 s to bulb
- Aperture range of f/2.8 to F/16
- DX coding or manual ISO selection from 12 to 3200
- Self-timer of 2s, 10s or 30s
- Exposure compensation control of -2 to +2 EV
- DX code reading or manual ISO settings
- Unlimited multiple exposures, bulb mode and self-timer
- PC-sync flash socket
Both editions of the LOMO MC-A are available to order now and cost £449 in the UK.
In promotional material sent to Kosmo Foto before the launch, Lomography said: “Compact and durable, the Lomo MC-A features a metal body with a premium 32mm f/2.8 multi-coated Lomo glass lens, delivering 35 mm images bursting with unmistakable analogue character. Its detailed LCD screen keeps every setting clear and accessible, whether capturing everyday life, special events, or getting artistic. Whatever your pace, the Lomo MC-A is a versatile companion that keeps up effortlessly.
Read more: A closer look at Lomography’s LOMO MC-A
“Shooting on any 35 mm film, the Lomo MC-A is a creative companion for all. Wherever it goes, it’s ready to capture any moment with the textures and tones that no digital device can replicate.”
Lomography has shared a number of images taken on the new camera which you can see below (click on the image to see the full-sized version):
(Pics courtesy of Lomography by photographers including Adrian Bilek, Lucia Tarozzo, Anil Mistry, Elisa Parrino, Melissa Peritore, Sally Matthias, Antonio Sotelo and Nikita Krakhofer)
The camera represents Lomography’s most ambitious design since the release of the medium-format LC-A 120 camera back in 2014.
The LOMO MC-A is the first Lomography 35mm camera to feature autofocus, for instance, and its highest ISO of 3200 with auto exposure is a step up from its earlier cameras such as the LOMO LC-A+ and LC-Wide. The camera’s zone focus distances, however, use the same colour scheme as the LOMO LC-A, which was originally released by the Soviet-era LOMO in 1984.
The LOMO MC-A’s release comes after several other compact film cameras releases, kicked off by the Pentax 17 half-frame camera in June 2024.
Analogue’s new aF-1 autofocus 35mm camera was announced in January this year, with pre-orders opened in September. Production cameras are due to be released in early 2026.
Hong Kong’s MiNT camera, meanwhile, released the Rollei 35AF – heavily influenced by the classic Rollei 35 compact first released in the 1960s – late last year, a chunky compact camera with Lidar focusing.
I'm a New Zealander who has been living in London since the mid-1990s, shooting film seriously since the year 2000. Kosmo Foto was launched in 2012 and has since become a film brand, with the release of my first films Kosmo Foto Mono 35mm (2017) and Kosmo Foto Mono 120 (2019).
I’m doing everything I can to promote film photography in the 21st Century, and help it survive and thrive. If you want to write something for Kosmo Foto, please drop me a line at foto.dowling@gmail.com.
Nice to see. Also interesting that there’s so much manual control – 90s point-and-shoots never had much more than a few program modes. Hope the price doesn’t scare people off.
Thanks for the heads up Stephen, ordered one!
Glad to be of service! Lomography, where’s my cut?
I like that it has a manual mode (next version should be completely manual with a hotshoe flash). Although the price is high I would consider getting one. Any idea if it will need a battery for shooting in manual mode?
It is fully electronic- the battery is needed for the shutter, meter and focus. Even in manual mode and as it uses the AF motor to move the lens in the manual zone focus settings, there is no using it w/o battery.
But you do have manual film advance and rewind.
That’s what I suspected. I would still consider buying it even though I am not a fan of automatic cameras.
I like the homily on the top plate, but I think they have shot themselves in the foot with the choice of font for ‘LOMO’ on the front of the camera. It doesn’t say ‘quality’.
Thinking about the Olympus XA2, which reverts to middle zone whenever you close the clamshell – what does this camera do when you turn it off? I like that it actually says the metre distance rather than icons.