Instant Cameras = Instant Joy
“If I had a camera, I’d take a picture of you every day. That way I’d remember how you looked every single day of your life.” – Nicole Krauss, The History of Love
In this age of social media, DSLRs and mobile phones with extremely high quality cameras, Polaroids are rarely seen. Yet, there is still nothing that can replace an instant picture in your hands. A moment captured and printed right away is always much more real and precious than something on screen or something that shall take time to come out in print.
The invention and evolution of Polaroids have had an interesting history. Edwin H. Land, the founder of Polaroid, left Harvard University after his freshman year to pursue his own research on light polarization. While on vacation with his family, Land’s 3-year-old daughter asked why she couldn’t see the picture her father had just taken of her. This particular incident interestingly led to the conception of the instant camera. By 1956, Polaroid products were distributed in over 45 countries worldwide. This was followed by the introduction of the first instant colour film – Polacolor. In 1972, Polaroid launched its first land camera -SX-70, the first fully-automatic, motorized, and folding camera with instant colour prints. A year from then, the company was producing 5,000 a day. In 1992, actor comedian Sinbad appeared in Polaroid commercials launching the Captive camera products. Today, Polaroid cameras are a fusion of the conventional and contemporary with physical photo sharing of former times combined with photo sharing on social media of the present times.
All Polaroid products are easy to use, instant, shareable and fun. It is a source of eternal joy captured in a moment. The cost of Polaroid cameras these days range from US $70 to over US $250. Although the sales of instant cameras suffered a setback in the past decade, they are now regaining momentum and the nostalgia of former times is relived in an instant.
Now any 3 year old can not only see a picture clicked by her father right away but also click her own selfie!
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