Screen-Free Camera
Designing a screen-free digital camera with a sophisticated CMF update
Background
Worldwide, 1.8 trillion photos are taken each year, 5 billion each day, and 57,000 each second. In recent years, the popularity of digital cameras has surged due to growing desires to break away from smartphones and screen time. Screen-free digital cameras reject the notion of hyper-curated visuals by removing the distraction of instantly reviewing images. For this project, I designed a screen-free digital camera with updated CMF (color, material, finish) to offer a sophisticated take on capturing the moment while staying in it. This was a personal project to strengthen my skills in industrial design and CMF.
Persona
The "Explorer" persona: it's about the journey, not the destination. Connecting with nature, spending time outdoors, appreciation for vintage and analog forms.
Color Moodboard
Inspired by gem-toned blues and greens, earthy naturals, and organic wood hues.
Market Insights
Identifying color trends, outliers, and opportunities based on existing digital screen-free camera brands. After creating color bars from current models, I grouped together shades of each hue to identify color trends. Current offerings primarily highlight bright tones, neon hues, along with classic black and white models.
Material Moodboard
Inspired by natural and bimorphic materials, recycled and upcycled composites, and tactile forms.
Refined Palettes
For color selection, I chose a deep green (Feldgrau) and reflective blue (Crystal Blue) by identifying shades missing from current offerings. I noticed none of the existing brands offered a purple camera so I added a purple shade (Romantic Lavender) as a final palette color. For material selection, I chose wood for the camera skin to align with the nature-inspired aesthetic. I chose polycarbonate for the camera body along with aluminum for the technical elements and glass for the lens, consistent with most digital cameras. For finish selection, I chose a gloss finish for the camera body to contrast with the unfinished texture of the wooden camera skin.
Color Selection
Material Selection
Finish Selection
Camera 1
Camera 2
Camera 3
Form Exploration
Exploring a wide range of form directions, from playful, tactile silhouettes with varied lens placements to clean, sleek compositions with rounded shapes and refined lines, to define the physical language of the camera. I selected a simple form with sleek, rounded curves to convey the minimalist and refined design direction.
Final Design
The final camera design features a press button, on/off toggle, picture counter, USB-C charging port, and carrying clips for portability. The 3 colorways provide consumers with different choices for a more understated and elegent screen-free digital camera in contrast with current offerings.
