Land Camera

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Polaroid Land Camera Model 95, the first commercially available instant camera Polaroid Land Camera Model 95 - MIT Museum - DSC03766.JPG
Polaroid Land Camera Model 95, the first commercially available instant camera

The Land Camera is a model of self-developing film camera manufactured by Polaroid between 1948 and 1983. It is named after the inventor, American scientist Edwin Land, who developed a process for self-developing photography between 1943 and 1947. [1] After Edwin Land's retirement from Polaroid in 1982, the name 'Land' was dropped from the camera name. [2] The first commercially available model was the Model 95, [3] which produced sepia-colored prints in about 1 minute. [4] It was first sold to the public on November 26, 1948. [5]

Contents

Film

A Polaroid SX-70 camera, manufactured between 1972 and 1981 Polaroid SX-70.jpg
A Polaroid SX-70 camera, manufactured between 1972 and 1981

The photography developing process, invented by Polaroid founder Edwin Land, employs diffusion transfer to move the dyes from the negative to the positive via a reagent. A negative sheet was exposed inside the camera, then lined up with a positive sheet and squeezed through a set of rollers which spread a reagent between the two layers, creating a developing film "sandwich". The negative developed quickly, after which some of the unexposed silver halide grains (and the latent image it contained) were solubilized by the reagent and transferred by diffusion from the negative to the positive. After a minute, the back of the camera was opened and the negative peeled away to reveal the print.

In 1963, Land introduced Polacolor pack film, which made instant color photographs possible. This process involved pulling two tabs from the camera, the second which pulled the film sandwich through the rollers to develop out of the camera. The instant color process is much more complex, involving a negative which contains three layers of emulsion sensitive to blue, green, and red. Underneath each layer are dye developing molecules in their complementary colors of yellow, magenta, and cyan. When light strikes an emulsion layer, it blocks the complementary dye below it. For instance, when blue strikes the blue sensitive emulsion layer, it blocks the yellow dye, but allows the magenta and cyan dyes to transfer to the positive, which combine to create blue. When green and red (yellow) strikes their respective layers, it blocks the complementary dyes of magenta and cyan below them, allowing only yellow dye to transfer to the positive.

In 1972, integral film was introduced which did not require the user to time the development or peel apart the negative from the positive. This process was similar to Polacolor film with added timing and receiving layers. The film itself integrates all the layers to expose, develop, and fix the photo into a plastic envelope commonly associated with a Polaroid photo. The Polaroid SX-70 was the first camera to use this film.

Improvements in SX-70 film led to the higher speed 600 series film, then to different formats such as 500 series (captiva), and spectra.

Cameras

A Highlander rollfilm camera made from 1957 to 1959. Polaroid Highlander Model 80A (John Kratz).jpg
A Highlander rollfilm camera made from 1957 to 1959.

Roll film

The original cameras folded into the body and used bellows to protect the light path. The film was put on two spools, one with the negative roll, and one with the positive paper and reagent pods. The film developed inside the camera. The exception to this is the Polaroid Swinger, a hard-bodied roll-film camera whose film was pulled out of the camera body to develop outside the camera. The film for roll-film cameras was discontinued in 1992.

100 Series Pack cameras

These cameras were developed after the rollfilm models and were designed to use the newly developed 100 series pack film. As with the Swinger the film sandwich was pulled out of the camera to develop outside of the camera, but instead of two separate rolls the film was built into a compact easy loading film pack which contained 8 exposures. Hard body plastic models were marketed later a low cost alternative to the more expensive models with bellows.

There are four generations of folding colorpack cameras: the 100, the 200, the 300, and 400 series. Polaroid announced in 2008 the discontinuation of all of its film by 2009, and Fujifilm stopped producing pack film in 2016. Polaroid B.V. manufactures and sells Polaroid integrative type film for 600 and SX-70 cameras. In September 2019, Spectra/Image film was discontinued. [6]

Meanwhile, Bob Crowley, New55, the investor David Bohnett and Florian Kaps, known as the founder of Impossible Project (now Polaroid B.V.), managed to produce packfilm for the folding colourpack cameras under the label New55.[ clarification needed ] New55 FILM ended operations on December 31, 2017. [7]

Supersence (also founded by Florian Kaps) currently produces single-shot packs handmade from original 8x10 film manufactured by Polaroid named ONE INSTANT. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Photographic paper</span> Light-sensitive paper used to make photographic prints

Photographic paper is a paper coated with a light-sensitive chemical formula, like photographic film, used for making photographic prints. When photographic paper is exposed to light, it captures a latent image that is then developed to form a visible image; with most papers the image density from exposure can be sufficient to not require further development, aside from fixing and clearing, though latent exposure is also usually present. The light-sensitive layer of the paper is called the emulsion. The most common chemistry was based on silver halide but other alternatives have also been used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Instant camera</span> Type of camera whose film self-develops a short time after the picture is taken

An instant camera is a camera which uses self-developing film to create a chemically developed print shortly after taking the picture. Polaroid Corporation pioneered consumer-friendly instant cameras and film, and were followed by various other manufacturers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Photographic developer</span> Chemical(s) which convert a latent image on photographic film to a visible image

In the processing of photographic films, plates or papers, the photographic developer is one or more chemicals that convert the latent image to a visible image. Developing agents achieve this conversion by reducing the silver halides, which are pale-colored, into silver metal, which is black when in the form of fine particles. The conversion occurs within the gelatine matrix. The special feature of photography is that the developer acts more quickly on those particles of silver halide that have been exposed to light. When left in developer, all the silver halides will eventually be reduced and turn black. Generally, the longer a developer is allowed to work, the darker the image.

C-41 is a chromogenic color print film developing process introduced by Kodak in 1972, superseding the C-22 process. C-41, also known as CN-16 by Fuji, CNK-4 by Konica, and AP-70 by AGFA, is the most popular film process in use, with most, if not all photofinishing labs devoting at least one machine to this development process.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Instant film</span> Photographic film which develops in minutes

Instant film is a type of photographic film that was introduced by Polaroid Corporation to produce a visible image within minutes or seconds of the photograph's exposure. The film contains the chemicals needed for developing and fixing the photograph, and the camera exposes and initiates the developing process after a photo has been taken.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinecolor</span> Early two-color motion picture process

Cinecolor was an early subtractive color-model two-color motion picture process that was based upon the Prizma system of the 1910s and 1920s and the Multicolor system of the late 1920s and the 1930s. It was developed by William T. Crispinel and Alan M. Gundelfinger, and its various formats were in use from 1932 to 1955.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polaroid SX-70</span> Instant camera model

The SX-70 is a folding single lens reflex Land camera which was produced by the Polaroid Corporation from 1972 to 1981.

A film holder is a accessory that holds one or more pieces of photographic film, for insertion into a camera or optical scanning device such as a dedicated film scanner or a flatbed scanner with film scanning capabilities. The widest use of the term refers to a device that holds sheet film for use in large format cameras, but it can also refer to various interchangeable devices in medium format or even 135 film camera systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polaroid Swinger</span>

The Polaroid Model 20 "Swinger" was a popular Land Camera produced by the Polaroid Corporation between July 1965 and 1970. At $19.95 and weighing only 21 ounces (600 g), it was the first truly inexpensive instant camera, a fact that helped fuel its enormous popularity and made it one of the top-selling cameras of all time. The Swinger was especially successful in the youth market due to its low price, stylish appearance, catchy Meet the Swinger jingle, as well as getting the camera into drugstores. In fact, it was so successful that it became Polaroid's best selling product at the time, and increased their share in the new camera market.

Polaroid Type 55 film is a black-and-white peel-apart Polaroid film that yields both a positive print and a negative image that can be used to create enlargements.

Polacolor was the trade name of two very different color photography products developed by the Polaroid Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Color motion picture film</span> Photographic film type

Color motion picture film refers both to unexposed color photographic film in a format suitable for use in a motion picture camera, and to finished motion picture film, ready for use in a projector, which bears images in color.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redscale</span>

Redscale is a technique of shooting photographic film where the film is exposed from the wrong side, i.e. the emulsion is exposed through the base of the film. Normally, this is done by winding the film upside-down into an empty film canister. The name "redscale" comes because there is a strong color shift to red due to the red-sensitive layer of the film being exposed first, rather than last [the red layer is normally the bottom layer in C-41 film]. All layers are sensitive to blue light, so normally the blue layer is on top, followed by a filter. In this technique, blue light exposes the layers containing cyan and magenta dyes, but the layer containing yellow dye is left unexposed due to the filter. E-6 film has also been used for this technique.

Dye transfer is a continuous-tone color photographic printing process. It was used to print Technicolor films, as well as to produce paper colour prints used in advertising, or large transparencies for display.

In bipack color photography for motion pictures, two strips of black-and-white 35 mm film, running through the camera emulsion to emulsion, are used to record two regions of the color spectrum, for the purpose of ultimately printing the images, in complementary colors, superimposed on one strip of film. The result is a multicolored projection print that reproduces a useful but limited range of color by the subtractive color method. Bipack processes became commercially practical in the early 1910s when Kodak introduced duplitized film print stock, which facilitated making two-color prints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polaroid art</span> Techniques used to modify instant pictures for an artistic effect

Polaroid art is a type of alternative photography which consists of modifying an instant picture, usually while it is being developed. The most common types of Polaroid art are the emulsion lift, the Polaroid transfer and emulsion manipulation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Photographic film</span> Film used by film (analog) cameras

Photographic film is a strip or sheet of transparent film base coated on one side with a gelatin emulsion containing microscopically small light-sensitive silver halide crystals. The sizes and other characteristics of the crystals determine the sensitivity, contrast, and resolution of the film. Film is typically segmented in frames, that give rise to separate photographs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polaroid Impulse</span>

The Polaroid Impulse is a camera produced by Polaroid Corporation between 1988 and 1994. The camera uses Polaroid's 600-series integral film. The Impulse is distinguished from Polaroid's other 600-series cameras by its always-on flash, binocular-style grips, larger viewfinder, and self-timer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polaroid B.V.</span> Dutch photography company

Polaroid B.V. is a Dutch photography and consumer electronics company, founded as a manufacturer of discontinued film for Polaroid Corporation instant cameras. The company produces new instant cameras under the Polaroid brand name as well as wireless speakers and other accessories.

References

  1. Bonanos, Christopher (26 September 2012). Instant : the story of Polaroid. Princeton Architectural Press. pp. 32–37. ISBN   978-1-61689-085-8.
  2. A Polaroid history timeline
  3. Polaroid cameras and photography
  4. Talktalk article on "Polaroid Camera"
  5. Bonanos. Instant : the story of Polaroid. p. 42.
  6. "An important message about our Spectra film". Polaroid US. Retrieved 2020-09-03.
  7. "Welcome new55.net".
  8. "One Instant". supersense.com. Retrieved 2020-09-03.