That Polaroid Glow

[Gabriel M.A.]

Crazy, Magic, Impossible: Polaroid Film Is Back

The best results from Polaroid cameras are often described as having a luminous quality, as if the light source is otherworldly. These images do not disappoint. They glow with a silvery sheen, part of the chemistry of the films.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

Well, that's one way to spin it. 😉

 

[charjohncarter]

They do have something, but I'm not sure it is glow. This is peel apart Fuji B&W:

 

[Pickett Wilson]

I really loved 55 p/n. Now, if someone would put that back on the Market, I would buy it.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Only three of us like Polaroid photography, eh?

Maybe if we talked about how collectible the original Polaroids are then? ::ducks::

 

[fbf]

I still use peel-apart and mainly the fp-3000b. I love it and hope it will stay in market for a long long time...

 

[Morca007]

I like instant film as much as the next man, but the samples posted by the impossible project of their new film are very underwhelming.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

I guess they're more gearheads than photorgerphers 😀

 

[imokruok]

Well, we'll see if I can see the glow later this week. I just picked up a Polaroid 330, and have some FP-100C in the mail. That will be my first experience with instant film since using my parents' Polaroid back in the 80s.

 

[mrisney]

I actually like Fuji FP-100C, its pretty amazing. I spent a portion of last summer,
using a Polaroid 600SE




Incredible lens and film combination





Sadly I found less than satisfactory results with scanning positives using - at the time -
the Epson V700. In my experience, you are stuck with a beautiful 3"x4" image, and a
difficult way to go beyond it, i.e. print it to a bigger size, or put it up on line - digitally make it viewable (flickr,etc.).
I found that limiting but I came away with a strong impression.
The Mamiya lenses for the 600SE are amazing.
I would like to read how others work the medium
beyond the instant print. But agreed it's pretty magical.

 

[robert blu]

I like to play with polaroids. This is with a overexposure just to get a softenss in the colours.
robert

 

[imokruok]

Sadly I found less than satisfactory results with scanning positives using - at the time -
the Epson V700.

Great colors in the middle one in that set. The V700 is how I was hoping to scan in, so I will have to see if I can arrive at acceptable results. Dust is always a problem, no matter how careful you are.

 

[robert blu]

pinholes

pinholes

a couple of pinhole ...

 

[ChrisN]

So will I be able to get some film to suit this thing? I think it is a Polaroid 800.

 

[robert blu]

I think they are working actualluy on sx-70 and 600 films. Not sure which film is your camera using.
robert

 

[JoeV]

So will I be able to get some film to suit this thing? I think it is a Polaroid 800.

Hey, that's my camera!

What I do with mine is load paper negatives in the darkroom, cut to about 4"x5" size, they sit on the film gate nicely, then you close up the double doors of the camera back.

I rate my grade 2 paper with an Exposure Index of 12; I'm able to use the lens settings on camera for the exposure, with reference from a handheld light meter, of course. Best of all, you get rangefinder focusing and a pretty good viewfinder.

I've also found that the camera can be reloaded out in the field using a large changing bag.

~Joe

 

[gerbilthemistake]

I ordered two packs of the px100 silver shade for the sx70, I've never used the sx70 so hopefully it will prove itself to be in working order once i get the film.

 

[Morca007]

Sadly I found less than satisfactory results with scanning positives using - at the time -
the Epson V700. In my experience, you are stuck with a beautiful 3"x4" image, and a
difficult way to go beyond it, i.e. print it to a bigger size, or put it up on line - digitally make it viewable (flickr,etc.).
I found that limiting but I came away with a strong impression.
The Mamiya lenses for the 600SE are amazing.
I would like to read how others work the medium
beyond the instant print. But agreed it's pretty magical.

I'm never satisfied with my instant film scans either, but I've never considered reproducing them beyond web viewing.
In my estimation, the main draw to instant film (other than exposure checking, I guess) is that it creates a single tangible art object which is not easily replicated, at least not in its' original form.

 

[imokruok]

Sidenote: Speaking of instant film, I tried to get some FP-100C in 3.25x4.25 at my main camera store here in LA. All out. The counter people there, who I trust, said it wasn't a discontinuation thing - on the contrary. Fuji has seen an increase in demand and haven't caught up on manufacturing yet.

 

[eli griggs]

I'm glad to see new films being brought out, but until someone fills the Type-55 niche with a quality product that's also affordable, it's hard to view the I.P. polaroid as little more than a toy for parties and experimental work.

While I may be far from the mark, it seems to me that a digital with a wireless connection to a portable printer can give better prints at a far more economical cost to a studio or serious photographer, even if only used for lighting, set-up and composition tests. Seriously, software can give any 'glow' or whatever you might want in a print and other than image transfer, instant films without a unique printable negative are a one-off that many will reject for day-to-day work.

Eli