found at my grandma's house...

[compur]

it has a little dial on it you can turn. not sure what that does though

It should have 2 dials. One is to adjust exposure and the other is for manual focus when the AF system is disengaged.

The "Sonar" in its name is for the AF system which uses sound rather than light. It can auto-focus in complete darkness.

The camera is powered by a battery contained within the film pack so it won't do anything until film is loaded.

 

[invisible]

The SX-70 is one of the COOLEST single lens reflex camera designs ever made!@@!

Agreed. I wouldn't be surprised to find it in museums dedicated to industrial design. The original SX-70 is actually 40 years old, yet that camera, with that light-brown leatherette skin, looks super-cool even today. It was the first-ever foldable SLR camera, and marked possibly Polaroid's finest hour in terms of industrial design.

 

[Derrel]

The SX-70 is one of the COOLEST single lens reflex camera designs ever made!@@!

Agreed. I wouldn't be surprised to find it in museums dedicated to industrial design. The original SX-70 is actually 40 years old, yet that camera, with that light-brown leatherette skin, looks super-cool even today. It was the first-ever foldable SLR camera, and marked possibly Polaroid's finest hour in terms of industrial design.

I bought one of those brown leatherette covered SX-70 cameras at the estate sale of a photo hobbyist, back in 1993 or 94...I enjoyed using it...it came with a slender,simple, genuine leather carrying case with a narrow leather strap...very minimalist!

The SX-70 was indeed a VERY amazing industrial design. They broke the mould after they came up with that one! I was intrigued by the suggestion above about the possibility of getting one to function with a cell phone as the capture medium--that would be way cool!

 

[invisible]

but I can't figure out how to open the thing .

Here's a gangsta video that shows you how to do it: Proper way to open a Polaroid SX-70 Camera - YouTube

It can't be said often enough: the coolness of this camera is just off the charts.

 

[Jaemie]

I was intrigued by the suggestion above about the possibility of getting one to function with a cell phone as the capture medium--that would be way cool!

omg... This is my next hack project! Thrift stores, yard sales, here I come.

 

[Derrel]

Well...ya know...the other day I was looking at a site dedicated to the use of accessory lenses on the iPhone. ONE accessory device captures the image that is PROJECTED from the back of a standard 35mm camera system lens by using the equivalent of a "groundglass back" setup; the iPhone's lens shoots a PHOTO of THAT--the "projected image" that is "caught" by the groundglass....so...I THINK this project might actually be quite "do-able"...I really do!

 

[Jaemie]

Here's a great video explaining in wonderful detail(!) the operation of the SX-70.

 

[invisible]

Here's a great video explaining in wonderful detail(!) the operation of the SX-70.

Holy archaeological find!

 

[The Barbarian]

It is indeed the sonar version of the SX-70. A true SLR, it focused by an ultrasonic chirp from a gold-colored speaker above the lens.

Works in the dark, but not through glass. Interestingly, it lives on in scientific probes...

http://www.ffem.org/gdam/images//pasco.jpg

I've got one and it took great pictures, albeit with that odd, creamy look all SX-70s had. I need to go to the Impossible website and crank it up one more time.

And yes, both versions were amazing technical innovations. Just unbelievable when they came out. BTW, the frame of the SX-70 was not metal. It was plastic, but very, very heavily plated.

The "Polapulse" battery that ran everything was in the film pack, and had far more life than was needed; you could use the empty pack for all sorts of interesting power applications. Polaroid, after the SX-70 was discontinued, used it in a flashlight.

 

[paigew]

wow what great info guys! thanks I'm excited to order the film and test it out!

 

[Trever1t]

I still have mine, in a box in storage.....I always enjoyed that camera