Last weekend I made the drive from Kansas City to Denton, Texas for the 2017 gathering of instant film photographers known as PolaCon. The road trip was like most when photographers are involved: many stops to shoot interesting sights, little concern about how long the trip would take.
The timing of this event was great, because Polaroid Originals had just released its new generation of instant film. (Polaroid, having been bought by the Impossible Project earlier this year, has now been rebranded as Polaroid Originals.) This gave me the chance to shoot both new and old stock of film, and to compare results along the way.
The first three shots below were taken with Impossible Project film during some of our roadside stops the first day on the road. I shot throughout the trip with my vintage SX-70 Polaroid camera.
The next three images (below) were shot on new Polaroid Originals SX-70 film. Colors are good, images are sharp, and the developing time is even faster than the last version of IP film. The lower price is attractive, too!
Just for fun, I also shot some vintage Polaroid 600 film (using an ND filter) in my SX-70. I believe this particular pack had a 2008 expiration date. Colors have definitely faded but the chemical spread was still pretty good! It’s always fun to see what happens when shooting (extremely) expired film.
The progression of instant film over recent years has been quite a journey to watch. I adored shooting with original Polaroid film when it was readily available. Though I miss that film, I’m certainly thankful for the visionaries willing to take risks and work hard to bring instant film back into the mainstream.
Are you an instant film shooter? If so, have you tried the new Polaroid Originals film yet? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.