Harry Styles Banned Phones From His Concert and Handed Out 20,000 Disposable Cameras

For his Netflix special live concert, One Night in Manchester, singer Harry Styles banned phones and instead handed out 20,000 analog disposable cameras.

The concert was filmed in England on March 6 in Manchester’s Co-op Live Venue, and fans have been getting their photos back from the lab — with mixed results.

“Fans were told their phones had to be secured in a special bag as it was a camera-free event — but the bags turned out to be plastic, so people made the most of it,” the Mirror reports.

“Fans in attendance were given disposable cameras to take home and develop to remember the special night. There was a lot of excitement for the night, and that was shown in the energy of the sold-out crowd.”

@unfun_mum No phones allowed so they gave us disposable cameras so we could still get some amazing photos of the best night #harrystyles #harrystylesono #harrystylesonomanchester #harrystylesconcert #disposeablecamera ♬ Aperture – Harry Styles

It’s quite likely that for a lot of fans in attendance, it was their first time shooting film and the first time using a disposable camera. U.K. film lab Analogue Wonderland points out that shooting a dark stage from a distance on disposable cameras is not going to deliver great results.

“We are seeing hundreds of disposable cameras coming through the lab this week,” Analogue Wonderland writes on Instagram. “And while I am LOVING @harrystyles helping push the idea of staying in the moment #ForOneNightOnly and shooting on film… I’m not enjoying a lot of the results.”

One fan who went to Styles’ gig showed off her sub-optimal results on a BBC radio show.

@bbcradio2 Harry Styles banned phones from his gig at the weekend, so it was a disposable camera or nothing for listener Michelle! 😂 @scottmills @Ellie B #scottmillsbreakfastshow #harrystyles ♬ original sound – BBC Radio 2

Analogue Wonderland says they are now “panicking that 20,000 people will think that it’s their fault the photos don’t come out — or even worse, that film photography is ‘not for them.’”

Fortunately, not everyone got featureless photos; some got half-decent photos back from the lab.

@abbyroberts not a phone in sight at harry styles one night only in manchester last night 🥹 #harrystyles #kattdo #onenightonly @NetflixUK ♬ original sound – fangirl media co.

Styles has a single out called Aperture, so he’s clearly leaning into photography culture. If you’re thinking of trying to shoot live music, check out PetaPixel’s guide to concert photography.

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Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.