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Death of the Polaroid.

post #1 of 27
2/10/08 at 6:35am
Thread Starter 
I own their iconic SX-70, and while never really an ardent fan, it still feels sad that such an icon is now gone:

http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/...oid.3762571.jp
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post #2 of 27
2/10/08 at 7:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by LabelKing View Post
I own their iconic SX-70, and while never really an ardent fan, it still feels sad that such an icon is now gone:

http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/...oid.3762571.jp

How will hipsters cope? I was a big fan of the Polaroid.
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post #3 of 27
2/10/08 at 7:33am
Polaroid film is actually used quite a bit in research labs. A lot of researchers are now going to have to spend some serious money to upgrade their cameras.
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post #4 of 27
2/10/08 at 7:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by coachvu View Post
Polaroid film is actually used quite a bit in research labs. A lot of researchers are now going to have to spend some serious money to upgrade their cameras.

Can't be any more than the amount they waste on film. You can get a digital camera that takes polaroid quality pics for 100 bucks. I think a pack of polaroid film was 10-20 bucks.
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post #5 of 27
2/10/08 at 1:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tiecollector View Post
Can't be any more than the amount they waste on film. You can get a digital camera that takes polaroid quality pics for 100 bucks. I think a pack of polaroid film was 10-20 bucks.

I never understood this part of their business model. Is the film REALLY that expensive to make? A few years ago I did a music video that used Polaroids as clues in the storyline. I remember being blown away when buying the camera that the film was more than half the cost, something like $16 for 20 shots?

I also remember the toy version of the camera that would take 10-15 minishots but the film packs were again making the photos around a buck a pop.

Wonder if some third party will come along and continue to make the film. Coach was right about research labs among other fields depending on those cameras. There definitely remains a customer base that needs instant-film but I can't see how hard it will be to just switch to a digital camera and a mini photo printer.
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post #6 of 27
2/10/08 at 3:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by whodini View Post
...There definitely remains a customer base that needs instant-film but I can't see how hard it will be to just switch to a digital camera and a mini photo printer.


Agreed. Won't be missed by me.
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post #7 of 27
2/10/08 at 5:10pm
I remember my grandmother's Polaroid "Land" Camera. (She always included the "Land" in any mention.) Pressing the shutter release was merely the first step IIRC: there were four or five numbered buttons to actuate, and then you'd have to pull the piece of film out of the camera. After it "developed" you'd coat the emulsion with some liquid from a peach-colored applicator that came with every box of film. I still have several black and white photos she made nearly 50 years ago! I was surprised to see the Polaroid name on my best buddy's dvd player. Reading of the demise of the camera is, sadly, just another vanishing act by icons of my youth.
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post #8 of 27
2/10/08 at 8:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dakota rube View Post
I was surprised to see the Polaroid name on my best buddy's dvd player. Reading of the demise of the camera is, sadly, just another vanishing act by icons of my youth.
Why don't you just cry about it gramps.
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post #9 of 27
2/10/08 at 8:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Connemara View Post
Why don't you just cry about it gramps.
Better yet, we'll record it on our digicam and upload it on Youtube. Betcha can't do that, Loseroid!
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post #10 of 27
2/10/08 at 10:52pm
Thread Starter 
Polaroids are kind of interesting in the contemporary context. The retro technology is very popular with hipsters and such.
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post #11 of 27
2/10/08 at 11:03pm
Heard about this yesterday. Incredibly sad.

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post #12 of 27
2/10/08 at 11:13pm
Thread Starter 
Is that yours?

I imagine ebay prices for Polaroid film will go up. I read that most places were already sold out of the stuff.
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post #13 of 27
2/10/08 at 11:17pm
No (I wish), but I do have an old J33 Land Camera which uses roll film. And yeah, I've been buying up stuff locally and it seems others are doing the same.
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post #14 of 27
2/10/08 at 11:18pm
They will continue to manufacture the film...
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post #15 of 27
2/10/08 at 11:29pm
My uncle worked for Polaroid way back when. Our fridge always had an ample supply of Polaroid films. After he left them, we had to buy our own and thus began to see how expensive the film was. I haven't touch a Polaroid camera in 10 years. I haven't thought about using one for probably as long of a period. I'm not going to miss it. In this day and age, you have to be hungry and paranoid to survive--and they were neither.
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