How to Get More Out of Your Mint Camera TLR Instant Camera

May 4, 2025

David Prochnow

tlr instant camera — The Mint Camera Rolleiflex Instant Kamera.

As instant cameras come and go out of favor, the twin lens reflex (TLR) offering from Mint Camera, the TL70 (and its doppelgänger, the Rolleiflex Instant Kamera), continues to enjoy success. Why? There are three strong virtues that make the TL70 rise above all of the rest. A rock-solid focusing system featuring a coupled waist-level viewfinder, a range of user-selectable aperture settings (i.e., f/5.6 – f/22), and an automatic maximum shutter speed of 1/500 second. Unfortunately, some owners of the TL70 aren’t able to reliably exploit these features to their advantage. Therefore, here is a list of suggestions for maximizing your Mint Camera TL70’s potential to produce its best photographs.

Go Landscape

The flat sides of the TL70 are ideal for rotating the camera and creating unique landscape photographs.

Landscape tlr instant camera — Turn the camera on its side for landscapes.

Solarize Your Subject

Using Monochrome Instax Mini film coupled with a red filter creates a remarkable simulation of a traditional solarized print.

Bay I filters tlr instant camera — You can use modern Bayonet I filters on the TL70, but vintage Rollei Bay I filters will not work.

Solarized prints — Simulated in-camera solarization.

Filter the Goodness

While there aren’t an abundance of filters available for the TL70, that doesn’t prevent you from holding a gel filter in front of the lens during an exposure.

Skew the Results

Having a TLR camera enables you to do things other instant cameras are unable to duplicate. Just flip down the sport finder on the TL70, set your focus on infinity, and tilt the camera for some abstract composition.

Sport finder tlr instant camera — Push the sport finder down inside the TL70 viewfinder.

Skewed photograph of stairs — Use the sport finder view for tilting the camera during exposure.

Color Me Close

Focusing with the coupled viewfinder is a massive game-changing advantage for the TL70. Now splash in some exotic colors and you have photographs that become extraordinary.

Focus on color tlr instant camera — Focus on vibrant colors.

Isolate to Amplify

A variable aperture combined with precise focusing enables you to isolate your subject for a dramatic effect.

Focus-isolated subject — Focus on a close subject and use the larger f/5.6 aperture for blurring the background.

Distortion Freedom

Use that waist-level viewfinder for making distortion-free photographs. Add in some accurate focusing and limited depth-of-field for added visual impact.

Distortion-free subject tlr instant camera — Avoid distortion by lowering your perspective with the vantage point offered by the waist-level viewfinder.

Let There Be Flash Light

The onboard flash is able to be fired in both Automatic mode and Bulb mode. Furthermore, you can vary the exposure compensation and create a wide range of powerful lighting conditions.

Unusual lighting effects — Couple the on-board flash with exposure compensation and Bulb mode for unusual lighting effects.

Do Over, Repeat

Equipped with a physically uncoupled shutter release and film ejection button, the TL70 TLR camera is able to make endless multiple exposures.

Double exposure tlr instant camera — More than one exposure can be made on a single photograph prior to the ejection and development of the final print.

Once you’ve mastered all of these moments, you’re gonna need more film. Unfortunately, the Mint Camera Unlimited Free Film offer has expired. Therefore, you’ll need to locate a bulk film sale for keeping your TL70 camera happy and it’s tough to beat the $45 price for this 60 exposure film pack kit. And please remember, when you’re done exposing each film pack, follow Fujifilm’s US customer guidance for plastic instant film cartridge recycling.

Enjoy.

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David Prochnow

Our resident “how-to” project editor, David Prochnow, lives on the Gulf Coast of the United States in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. He brings his expertise at making our photography projects accessible to everyone, from a lengthy stint acting as the Contributing How-To Editor with Popular Science magazine. While you don’t have to actually build each of his projects, reading about these adventures will contribute to your continued overall appreciation of do-it-yourself photography. A collection of David’s best Popular Science projects can be found in the book, “The Big Book of Hacks,” Edited by Doug Cantor.

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