End of another era in photography

Saturday, February 9th, 2008

Polaroid, the company behind the instant camera, is to stop making the film used in its iconic technology. The firm is closing factories in the US, Mexico and the Netherlands, and stopped making the instant cameras themselves about a year ago. It now focuses on other ventures which include a portable printer for mobile phone images, and Polaroid-branded digital cameras.

I rediscovered the Polaroid camera my partner bought me several years back when I was unpacking boxes after our recent move, and was contemplating offering it up on Freecycle until I read the news that the cameras and films have gone the way of cassette tapes (although cassette decks can still be bought).

I wonder how long it will be before VHS tapes go the same way?

The sad thing is, there was something undeniably fun about instant cameras and the pictures, with their white borders, offered something I can’t quite define but was very different to standard photographs, whether taken on, say, 35mm film or using digital.

categories: all wired up, film & video