Fujifilm Instax Mini 99 Review

When you are looking for a great film camera that is one of the best instant cameras, look no further that the all new Fujifilm Instax Mini 99. This is a fantastic retro camera in the same vein as a Polaroid. Fuji has long grown it’s Instax Mini lineup and the Fujifilm Instax Mini 99 is the latest and greatest film camera, offering upgrades over the Fuji Instax Mini 12, the Instax Square and the Instax Mini 90. This all new Instax Mini Camera has tremendous specs which will help ensure that you get high quality photographs each and every time. There is an included tripod mount which will allow for the Fujifilm Instax Mini 99 to get sharper and more clear photos without the usual blur and shake which is visible with handheld shooting. The tripod mount will block the in camera film door from opening which produces the images with Instax Mini Film, however, Fuji included an aluminum extension column which will allow for Instax mini film to print and packets of the film to be replaced. The tripod mount also offers you the availability to rotate the camera angles for landscape shooting.

The Fujifilm Instax Mini 99 body includes four LEDs inside the film compartment that can simulate a light leak or add a color tone to your exposures. There are five color tones which can be used on the Instax Mini 99, they include Faded Green, Light Blue, Soft Magenta, Sepia, and Warm Tone. These can be chosen when you use the control dial to select the color tone of your choice. These colour effects add so much to your photos, imagine having some really cool exposures scanned and put up on social media. As an analog camera, the Fuji Instax Mini 99 lets light pass directly through the lens to the instant film.

The exposure dial handles the exposure control for the camera, offering an exposure mode that properly handles exposure compensation. While the camera will automatically handle basic exposure compensation, you can always use the manual controls to apply filters and adjustments to the photo prior to it’s final exposure and printing on Instax Mini Film.

There are two shutter buttons which are found on the camera. The first one is included as part of the EV dial, and the main shutter button is located by the viewfinder on the camera. This front shutter is great for taking selfies of yourself with a cool background or add some friends or family to the photo and have a great selfie printed out on instant film. There is also an optical vignette switch which lessens the angle of view meaning you can darken the corners of your photo for more cool effects giving you a vintage look on the final exposure. In addition to the Vignette Switch there is also a brightness control with five different levels of brightness from L+ or lighter to D- to darken your photo. Using the optical viewfinder will give you an accurate and clear view of your exposure frame. This will assist in keeping your subjects that you are photographing in the center of the frame.

There is an LCD screen which will show you remaining battery life, how many photos you have left in your Instax Mini Film pack, and the shooting mode that the camera is set to. There is an icon which will show on the LCD when the camera is set to indoor mode for a low light setting, a running man icon for the sports mode which is great to capture action shots and freezing fast moving subjects, amongst other icons for different shooting modes. Some of the additional shooting modes on the LCD are Indoor, Double exposure and Bulb mode. The LCD will also display the flash control mode, if the camera is set to Self-timer mode, battery level as previously mentioned and the color tone.

The flash control is done automatically by the camera, you can also set the camera for red eye reduction when using the flash. You can disable the flash on the camera if so desire, which will obviously be based off your shooting environment.

Shooting Modes

With the included bulb mode you can hold down on the shutter button for long exposures. In addition on the rear of the camera is a self timer, so you can set the camera to a desired timer and give all of your subjects to get into their proper place for the shot. This is also great for taking selfies, if you want to place the camera down for the selfie on a counter or maybe your outdoors and want to place the camera on a high up rock which will shoot down a great selfie for you. Not only that but the bulb mode is great for shooting at night, you can really get some cool light streaks in your exposure.

You can set your camera to indoor mode which is great for portrait shooting and getting a clear and vibrant shot of your subject with a gorgeous background.

Using the Double Exposure mode, lets you take to images and combine them into one final exposure giving some really cool artistic effects.

If your subject is at least 3 meters away you may want to use Landscape Mode and to capture amazing close up shots use Macro Mode if the subject of your shot is 30-60 cm away from the camera for sharp and clear final exposures.

Additional Benefits

There are so many additional benefits to the Fujifilm Instax Mini 99 including using the Instax Up app which can be found in your app store on an iPhone, or the Google Play store for Android phones.

Use the app to scan your photos, store them and share them on the social media platform with your fiends, colleagues, and loves ones.

There are also a plethora of Instax Mini Film types that will work wonderfully with this camera. Some examples of the film types available are Standard White, Soft Lavender, hearts, spray art and rainbows to name a few. These film types add so much to your printed film. Take a shot of your spouse, boyfriend or girlfriend with the heart film type really puts a loving touch on your exposure. It will be something they cherish.

Availability and Battery

This all new camera is will be available for purchase in mid April 2024. While it will be available at other stores, you won’t be able to beat the pricing, offers from Beach Camera. Just head over to beachcamera.com and besides for purchasing the camera when made available, choose from great Fuji film printers and print types.

This digital camera from Fuji offers a rechargeable battery, the NP-70S rechargeable battery which is rated for 100 photos using instant film. The battery is charged externally via a USB charging cradle. We do recommend purchasing a spare battery as that will give you more peace of mind when going on long shooting sessions.

The bottom line is if you want the newest analog instant camera from Fuji, the Instax Mini 99 is the camera, for you stocked with specs, features and a design which make this a retro beauty of a camera.

Make sure to pick one up when available from Fuji this month, and enjoy one of the best instant cameras on the market today.