Samuel Mello Medeiros' I'm Back Film Is a 35mm Cartridge to Convert Classic Cameras to Digital

UPDATE (10/16/2023): The I'm Back Film crowdfunding campaign has now opened, and has already beaten its modest funding goal by an order of magnitude.

The device, which reversibly converts 35mm film cameras for digital capture, is priced at CHF 539 (around $597) for "early bird" backers of the campaign, with a planned retail price post-campaign of $899 — to include the I'm Back Film cartridge, camera dock, and crop-factor-adjusting lens, just add a 35mm film camera and your choice of SD Card for storage.

The I'm Back Film crowdfunding campaign continues on Kickstarter; hardware is expected to ship to backers in July next year.

Original article continues below.

Vintage camera enthusiast Samuel Mello Medeiros is looking to bring the convenience of digital photography to classic camera bodies with a smart cartridge and digital back combination dubbed the I'm Back Film — heading to Kickstarter this week.

"I’m Back represents a second chance for old analog cameras that were relegated to obscurity (I’m referring to the millions that went unused, not the ones still cherished by analog enthusiasts)," Medeiros writes of the project's aims. "With our incredible ability to transform these relics into modern digital devices, we’re writing a new chapter in the history of photography. As we move forward in the digital age, it’s important to celebrate innovations that not only preserve our photographic past but also allow us to look to the future with renewed perspective."

The idea behind the I'm Back Film cartridge is simple enough: borrowing the shape of a 35mm film cartridge, it slots into any analog camera — but where the film would be is a Sony IMX269 Micro Four Thirds imaging sensor, which digitizes the light coming through the lens and saves it as an electronic image on the "film" roll's internal memory. The process is entirely reversible: simply remove the I'm Back Film and put in a standard roll of 35mm film and the camera will return to its analog origins, no harm done.

There's a minor catch, of course: a Micro Four Thirds sensor is not a full-frame sensor, and as a result takes up a smaller area than would be expected of a 35mm film — meaning an extreme crop factor, turning every lens into a telephoto lens. The fix, Medeiros says, is to use a wide-angle adapter which attaches to the lens and removes the crop factor — capturing just as the original film would have done.

"Our philosophy at I’m Back Digital Back is to offer a unique photographic experience, making digital photography exciting, accessible, and sustainable for all photography enthusiasts who want to reuse their vintage cameras and relive the magic of analog photography in the digital age," Medeiros says. "We believe that each photo captured with our devices tells a special story, and we are here to help people tell those stories in the best way possible."

This isn't Medeiros' first project focused on upgrading vintage cameras: his company has already produced camera-specific digital backs for a small selection of models. This time around, though, he's aiming for universal compatibility: if a camera can take 35mm film it should be able to take the I'm Back Film cartridge and its companion electronics-packed cradle, which attaches to the bottom of the camera using a universal mounting system.

More information is available on the I'm Back website; the company is planning to launch a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter later this week, with pricing for the hardware yet to be announced.