>>4442893LOMO is not exactly the same thing as Lomography.
Originally, LOMO (Russian: Лeнингpaдcкoe Oптикo-Meхaничecкoe Oбъeдинeниe, romanized: Leningradskoye Optiko-Mekhanicheskoye Obyedinenie, lit.'Leningrad Optical Mechanical Association') was a USSR company that used to actually make professional cameras alongside plastic toys. They weren't good but they did at least try to make non-toy devices.
In the 90s there was a company/group that was basically a fanclub for their toy cameras in Germany, which is where the name "Lomography" came from. They also acted as pretty much the only store you could get LOMO cameras from outside of the Soviet Union, not sure how they were importing them but they were. At the same time they were sort of pushing this cultural photographic 'movement' that focused on 'bad' quality photos, mainly the results of using shit cameras with light leaks and such. This German importer had exclusive trade deals and such with the Russian LOMO company and eventually started making their own cameras, some remakes of LOMO originals, some of their own designs, but pretty much all of them just toys. I think the Russian LOMO company is still around but they do more medical equipment and shit now, not sure if they're still connected with the German Lomography company.
