(Not) Instant Death – Polaroid's In Trouble

This has been coming for quite some time, I suppose, but Polaroid – the company that invented the instant camera – is laying off 450 workers, shuttering factories and will cease production of all instant films.

Many readers here will scratch their heads and wonder why this matters. Film’s dead, right?

Probably, or at least gasping for air on a lot of fronts. But some of us have very fond memories of those white-framed prints that developed before your eyes. And, those who had to go through a studio photography class, have lots of memories of Type 53 and Type 55 in 4×5 sheets. Mostly about how bloody expensive it was …

Of course, there are lots of site dedicated to instant photography … polanoid.net currently has 123,348 images in its gallery. Scrapbookers love them, as well.

Mark E. Johnson

2 Responses

  1. This makes me sad. I’m not a fan of film, but there are lots of cool things you can do with polaroids. The instant gratification is the selling point for me. Also, I have a few that have crystallized or something and look wicked cool.

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