A hand-held modular camera assembly includes a camera module configured to capture an image. An effects module is provided with which a user can apply one or more effects to the captured image. A printer module is configured to print the image with the applied effects. In one embodiment, the effects module includes three operational buttons: a CHOOSE button which allows the user to choose between a number of different types of effects; a SELECT button which allows the user to select one effect from the number of effects of the chosen type; and an APPLY button which allows the user to apply the selected effect to the stored image.