Polaroid: Life Continues Part II

Wow! I haven’t blogged since Easter. Where did the summer go? It’s August!

I have a few new additions to my vintage Polaroid collection -  an original WORKING Rainbow SX-70 OneStep Polaroid c. 1970

Where did I obtain such an awesomely vintage and cool camera, you ask? Oh, and it was free. Did I mention that? Go check out Listia.com – it’s a free ebay style auction site, but you bid with points instead of money. Some of the items people will even ship free! I auctioned a 1g mini sd memory card – shipped for free – and someone ‘paid’ 2000 points for it… A week later, I won this baby for just 800 points! I have auctioned off old jewelry I had sitting around, a hat, a dvd… anything – used or new!

Isn’t it beautiful?
(Aside from the cell phone photo lol)

I also have this beefy looking Polaroid Sonar OneStep Land Camera circa 1972-77 (also from Listia.com!) I love it the look, but haven’t had a chance to test it yet.

 

The box it’s sitting on is actually a Wink Light 250 for my 330 Land Camera. It’s the ‘electric’ version of my flashgun – and no bulbs required! I imagine one flash per bulb got a little expensive after a while.

it’s a Polaroid Wink-Light Model 250 that I *think* will fit my 330 c. 1957-1960.. Found it at the Cotton Yard Market in my hometown for $5.00!

I have fallen in love with these old cameras. One of these days I am going to scan in some of the Polaroid photos I have taken. I think that’s why I enjoy the Instagram app on my phone. I use another iPhone app called PostalPix – I can upload my Instagram pics directly to their site and they print them in neat little 3x3 or 4x4 squares. The prints look just like old photos!

Love them! More to come later! Or sooner, rather.. hopefully! =]

 

 

Life Continues: Polaroid

It’s been awhile since the last blog. A lot has been going on with my business, I’m back in school and my personal life is… not to be mentioned. I have found that photography is a place where I can go and feel relaxed. Nothing makes me feel better than wandering around and taking photos of seemingly meaningless things. If I am around people, photography helps me connect with them. While I love the advanced cameras and accessories available today, I found that having an older camera makes people look twice. It makes them think, “Hey, that is neat. Take my photo with that old camera.” There is something nostalgic about seeing these dinosaurs of the camera world and they actually work. The Polaroid camera line is probably my favorite line of cameras ever. The photos are produced instantly and you have a memory that you can keep with you forever. Actually having a photo is somewhat of a privilege in today’s world. The closest you can get to instant is printing the photos from your home computer. Still then, the ink is expensive and the quality is sub-par.
Something about the Polaroid photos makes me smile and remember the moment it was taken. I blogged about restoring an old Polaroid 330 Land Camera in September, and recently I was working at a thrift store, helping organize and sort donations. Out of habit, I scanned their shelves on my break for any lost treasures when I came across a box, and the word “Polaroid” jumped out at me immediately.

I had no idea if it would fit my land camera, but I was not about to just leave it there. I asked the store clerk how much she wanted for it, and she told me it had been sitting there for over a year. She thanked me for coming to help them, and gave it to me!! While we were sorting through the clothes, I had told her about restoring my land camera… I was so excited to get home and play with my new toy…lol. I came in and thumbed through the handbook for a minute until I figured out how to mount it. I am so happy it fit!

Now I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of a clear M3 bulb – which will produce approximately 12 flashes. Yes, 12. Seems strange to me, but this camera is from the mid to late ‘60’s. It also had two packs of photo mounts in the box. As soon as a get a decent photo, I may use one of them.

 

Polaroid Sun 600

The Polaroid Sun 600 is another recent addition to my collection. A friend gave me the camera for my birthday in November, and I found some film for it online. I had to buy film to see if the camera even worked. These types of cameras came with batteries in the film packs for the flash, so the camera wouldn’t operate without the instant film. (Sorry for the blurry cell phone photos! =] )

I got 2 packs of the Silver Shade from The Impossible Project, a group based out of NYC committed to save the Polaroid film production. They offer several types of Polaroid film that is not manufactured by Polaroid anymore.

I love my new old toys! ‘Till next time!

Polaroid 330 Land Camera: Back to Life!

It’s been quite sometime since I wrote a blog entry, but my current project seemed photo-blog worthy. I recently acquired, thru a friend who found it in an old house, a Polaroid 330 Land Camera, circa 1960-1970’s. I had never seen a camera like this, and was instantly curious as to how to use it.

After some research, I learned the camera opened up (see photo above) and there were still places to get film for it! I also learned it was inoperable without battery power from a #532 Eveready 3v battery. When I finally figured out where the battery compartment was, I was disappointed to see the camera still contained the same battery from the late 60’s.. and it had completely corroded both connections.

I found a 3v battery online, but I had not a clue how I was going to get this thing working without intact battery contacts.

I came across a forum for Polaroid enthusiasts, and saw a post from a user who had the same issue with their Polaroid 450. A few users had suggested rewiring the battery compartment, and after a trip to my local RadioShack, I was ready to attempt to rewire my camera..

I purchased a 2 AAA battery holder, along with some lithium AAA batteries.. First you should remove the corroded contacts from the old wire. Trim all the way to the edge of the old contact, as the wires are only about 3 inches long. Wire the white (camera) to the red (holder) and the black (camera) to the black (holder). At this point, you should insert the AAA batteries to check if the camera is getting juice. Extend the lens to shooting position, open the back of the camera and look at the back of the lens.

If you were successful, when you cock the shutter, and press the red button on top you should hear the shutter click. I am going to solder the wires together for a more permanent connection. I need to figure out how to cram this rig in the battery holder, it will almost fit, but you will have to trim the plastic of the old holder in order to get the door to shut.

Now, I must patiently wait on film… If all goes well I might have some awesomely vintage photos to post this time next week!