Wasn't sure where to put this-polaroid.

[Weaving Wax]

I was looking into getting a polaroid camera. One that would give me that "70's" feel. What would be a good one to get? I found a lot of them fairly cheep on ebay, but I'm not sure what one is the easiest to operate..etc.. Do they have manual focus or are they all fixed?

 

[montresor]

SX-70 is a nice SLR with manual focus, but film was discontinued early '06; you can still get something that you can shoot in it, but I understand it's not the same as the hallowed and venerable Time-Zero film. Still, it'll work for taking pictures, as long as the camera's still working. Note that you won't be able to test an SX-70 until you put film in it; the camera batteries were embedded in the film cartridge. Anything that takes Polaroid roll film is a great display piece, unless you want to spring for quite a few hundred bucks for a conversion (you won't be able to do it yourself, trust me); roll film has been gone for decades. A Polaroid 110A is what's usually used for conversions, it came with a first-rate Rodenstock Ysarex lens. There's the Polaroid 600SE, which is basically a Mamiya 23 press camera with a Polaroid back, but those ain't cheap. Any of the cheaper, fixed focus shooters that take Polaroid 600 film are potentially viable, but who knows if they'll work.... Gee, this isn't very optimistic! I'd look into a working SX-70 and see if you can run some of that European Polaroid film through it.

 

[Weaving Wax]

Thanks!

I was reading up on the SX-70. I did read that the 779 works with the SX-70. I just want to know if the pieces would matter. And if the 779 is still in production?

 

[montresor]

It looks like you can use 779 but you'll need to do a couple of mods, including getting a 2x neutral density filter for the camera (600 and 779 are super-fast films)

http://www.chemie.unibas.ch/~holder/SX70.html

More about 779 here:

http://www.polaroid.com/sx70/en/index.html

You can also try to get some Polaroid SX-70 Blend, which is made in the Netherlands and has a built-in neutral density filter.

http://www.sx70blend.com/SX-70_blend_final.pdf

Everything I read about Blend is that it's closer to 600 in color quality, and manipulations are pretty much a non-starter.

Good luck! I'm still waiting to try out my pack of Blend; it's been so freakin' sub-zero cold here that the film won't develop properly.

 

[terri]

Not sure exactly what you're after, but why not keep it simple and go with a 600 series P-cam?

This one takes both 600 series film as well as the 779. It's not at all expensive. And Polaroid film will give you that retro look, as well as beautiful colors.

 

[Weaving Wax]

Is there any way you can manipulate 600 film?

 

[terri]

Is there any way you can manipulate 600 film?

Not like you can with the 669 film, no. Those can be used for image transfers and emulsion lifts. The SX-70 film of yesteryear, Time Zero, is no longer made. If you want one of those cool old cams that will take 669 film, you'll be better off cruising eBay or the like, for one.

Better watch out though; if you get bitten by the manipulation bug....then you're on a slow descent into the world of alternative processes, and I'm afraid no one will be able to pull you back.

 

[Weaving Wax]

Cool. I found the Polaroid ProPack on ebay for $10.00. It says it's an image transfer camera. Is that all you can do with it? Whatelse can you do besides transfers with 669 film? Can you do stuff similar to the SX-70?

 

[terri]

No. The classic manipulation that one could get from Time Zero film has passed into photo days gone by, unfortunately. It would be fun to see another company put out an emulsion with similarities close enough to mimic Time Zero; AFAIK no one has yet. The film speed issues for the SX-70 cameras have been addressed with this *new* film as mentioned above, but it's not Time Zero, either. It just saves the SX-70 camera from being a paper weight.

669 can be used for image transfers and emulsion lifts. Two different processes, two different looks. With an image transfer the film is separated before allowing for complete development, so the dyes from the negative can be quickly transferred onto a new receptor (such as artist's watercolor paper) for a dreamy, painterly look.

The emulsion lift is achieved from Polaroid 669 prints that are allowed to fully develop, dry down, then placed in hot water and the top emulsion layer is actually gently removed from the substrate, again placed on a new receptor, and great fun can be had re-shaping your original image. The colors stay bright and the image is as sharp as when you took it, though you can stretch, rip, wiggle the lines, etc., to get something quite unique.

Here is the info from the Polaroid site. Look on the left side under Creative Techniques. I don't quite follow these steps exactly as outlined, but it's good enough to get you started.