The Polaroid Paradigm
In the age of digital technology, with over 4 billion snaps created and shared over Snapchat and around 9 million photos shared over Instagram on a daily basis, Polaroid cameras might seem like some vintage form of photography.
In 1944, Edwin Land, inventor of instant cameras, was asked by his 3-year-old daughter why she could not see the picture he had just taken of her. This led to the invention of Polaroids in 1948.
Call me old school, but my admiration for Polaroid has been potent since I was a teenager. The idea of holding a physical picture within a few seconds of clicking it gave me immense joy — this also flourished a sense of fascination. The films are expensive, and often the cameras need small repairs and frequent cleaning. But there is something charming about the rickety, toylike little photo-producing devices. Half the time, the old film yielded fuzzy, oddly colored photos. The rest of the time, the cameras deliver tiny, perfect pieces of art. Either way, they are worthy of framing — or, at the very least, securing to the refrigerator.
Chemistry of the Aesthetics
When you dive a little deep into the film, you’ll find that these images we hold so dear to our hearts, they’re all but chemical reactions. The several chemical layers react in the presence of a reagent when exposed to certain light intensities. The film is covered in three layers of silver compounds (which are photosensitive), balancing three primary hues of light — red, blue, green. Any pixel of the image is a combination of these three color elements. Photochemical reaction — which depends upon the intensity and exposure time of the reflected light — forms a needed pattern over the film. This film is eventually developed and appears as the final image!
Have you noticed the retro thick borders? Where we usually write the date or place to turn these little photographs into souvenirs. These borders are not intentional for aesthetic purposes, as we may like to believe. The chemical reagent — the chemical that sets off the reaction — is stored in these borders. Beautiful, right?
Physical Working of the Polaroid
Polaroid cameras are loaded with films covered in chemicals. When you snap a shot, a film is elegantly rolled and held in front of the camera lens. Why so? Because as the camera shutter opens briefly, it lets in the pattern of light reflected from the photographed object, which is then focused on the film.
When pictures are rolled out of the camera, they press down on the film to release reagents present in the white borders. It covers the silver surface of the film and commences all the chemical reactions within the layers. The picture takes a little while to get developed. But patience provides with alluring results. And what’s a little waiting when you’re getting to hold the picture within almost seconds, right?
Maybe my love for instant cameras is purely driven by pop culture. But who wouldn’t agree that the Polaroid aesthetic seems pleasing to all eyes? Even as the instant camera industry slowly dies, the obsession for that famous retro look with grains, thick borders, and light distortions still continues in the digital world in the form of effects and filters.
