YESTERDAY’S TECH BACK IN FASHION
Print Edition
IN a city crammed with neon-lit tech stores, smartphone vendors and high-end camera shops, a digital backlash is mounting as young Hong Kongers seek out an old-fashioned analogue experience.
Hong Kong is a buzzing market for cutting edge technological offerings, with queues around the block for the latest iPhone or tablet.
As consumers focus firmly on the new, there has historically been little demand for old-school gadgets. Retro collectibles have also been much harder to find in Hong Kong than other major world cities, where vintage stores have long been a shopping staple.
But interest in the pre-digital era is growing as the city’s younger generations seek out everything from film cameras to vinyl records in response to the hi-tech deluge.
“We are constantly bombarded by an endless stream of advertisements for the newest and latest gadgets in our everyday lives,” says Sonia Ho, 24, who works at an architectural design firm.
“The functions of a radio, typewriter or even a light meter can be easily downloaded onto our smartphones ... but we’re losing the idea of how a particular item actually works,” says Ho, who prefers her second-hand Nikon FE2 film camera to the digital models she’s previously used.
“It’s like being assigned to continue the adventures of the camera from the previous owner and start to capture your own,” Ho explains.
A growing number of younger photographers in Hong Kong are experimenting with old film cameras — some painstakingly scan their film photos onto a computer to share on Instagram. Ho shares hers under the handle @soniahyh.
Tinny Kwan, who owns a film processing store popular with young photographers in the residential area of Prince Edward, says they are starting to discover the joys of delayed gratification.
“It’s like the feeling of gambling. There is a sense of excitement right up until you can see the photos ... with digital, you can see it immediately, and a sense of curiosity is lacking,” says Kwan.
There is also new interest in vinyl from music fans who have only ever known CDs or digital, says Mr Chan, owner of record shop Collectables in Hong Kong’s Central district.
Chan’s collection spans hundreds of classical, jazz, rock and Cantonese pop records.
“If you have always listened to digital, you may not have experienced the audio characteristics (of a vinyl record) before,” says Chan. “When you listen to the vocals, you realize there is something more in the recording.”
Alvin Fan, a 15-year-old high-school student, sees unique qualities in analogue records as well. “They create a different atmosphere, a different mood and a very different feeling,” said Fan, who was introduced to vinyl by his grandparents.
Zachary Chan, 21, who works at a music store, says it is becoming increasingly fashionable for young Hong Kongers to choose records over digital.
“The value of a vinyl record is stronger in a subjective sense. Holding a record in your hands, rather than seeing the digital album on iTunes — there’s a difference,” Chan says.
The resurgence of film cameras and vinyl is part of a growing trend to experience simple pleasures in the face of a quick-fix digital lifestyle.
Some teens have even reverted to sending postcards to their friends as a more satisfying alternative to email.
And the city’s bookstores are often crammed with readers, young and old, despite the multitude of downloadable e-books. Vinyl fan Alvin says he prefers physical books to e-readers.
“A lot of people, even my friends, still love the feeling of holding a physical book and reading it. It just feels more real,” he said.
Decades-old store signs, antique radios and old cinema chairs are just some of the items crammed into 34-year-old Lai Chun-fai’s small classic camera store in Prince Edward.
“I just feel that the design of older items is more interesting than modern objects,” says Lai.
While it may look like a vintage treasure trove, the only things for sale are the analogue cameras, Lai’s speciality — hence its name: Classic Camera Shop.
“I wanted to display older cameras that not many others have seen in Hong Kong,” says Lai, who first started selling old Leica models.
Shooting on film is a more pleasurable, memorable experience, he says, and one that is luring youngsters.
“They have told me they remember a moment when they take a photo on film. As a result, they don’t really look at the photos they took with their smartphones any more,” says Lai.
“The pictures I took ten years ago ... I still remember what was happening in that photograph.”
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