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In 1970, the Polaroid co-founder Edwin Land presented a short film to
his investors known as "The Long Walk". In it, he talked about his
company and ambitions and among them, mentioned his vision for a new
camera, as small as a purse and which could fit into a coat pocket.
|The
idea seemed unthinkable at the time but 2 years later, Edwin Land first
publicly revealed the SX-70 on stage and the idea turned into reality.
This sleek SLR camera could be folded into a compact shape that fit into
a coat pocket, it had a superb glass lens and was the most advanced
camera of the time and it quickly became a cult classic.
Not only that but it was also the first
Polaroid camera which used "integral film", film which no longer needed
to be pulled apart or shaken unlike the previous packfilm, finalizing
Edwin Land's 26 years long efforts to make instant film user friendly.
As I was looking around the internet, I saw one at a camera store for 150EUR and I picked it up immediately fell in love with it <3. So let's take a look around this camera and how it feels to shoot in this day and age.
The history
The early instant cameras were largely folding rangefinders. The early film types had to be peeled or torn apart to get the print, there was a risk of the development chemicals getting on your skin and it was quite clunky but despites that, the cameras sold incredibly well.
Edwin Land however still kept experimenting with improving the system and he desired to make a camera that would be more user friendly and film that would be safer and more convenient. In 1967 he came up with the idea of a folding rangefinder camera during his vacation in California and together with a group of engineers, notably Al Bellows and Dick Wareham, he started working on the design.
The rangefinder was originally problematic and so the camera was reworked into an SLR. The team grew and eventually even the famous designers James M. Connor and Henry Dreyfuss and many others joined in.
The most difficult part about the camera was the mirror, which had to be designed using a supercomputer. The electronics were originally supplied by Fairchild who got eventually beaten out by the competitor Texas Instruments. The camera development was doing fine until suddenly the shareholders started cracking down.
Polaroid spent over 1 billion USD on the development and they were no longer willing to put money into such an expensive project. So Polaroid only had one choice and the camera launched in 1972, unfinished and with tons of production issues. Polaroid engineers spent the next few years polishing and improving the design, even upgrading existing cameras sent for repairs with some of the fixes and improvements.
Despites the initial issues at launch, the camera sold incredibly well and spawned multiple new lines of cameras that lasted well until the late 2000s.
The variations
The original Model 1 was the 1972-1977 version with all the quirks and issues.
The Model 2 was a cheaper version from 1974 that swapped out metal plated parts for pure plastic.
The Alpha 1 and Alpha 2 launched in 1977, bringing a massive overhaul to the camera. More reliable electronics, strap lugs, improved flash and much more, fixing almost all of the issues. The only difference between the two is that Alpha 1 has metal plating while Alpha 2 has plastic.
The Model 3 was a cheap camera made from recycled faulty Model 2 units. It has a clear point and shoot style viewfinder instead of the SLR one and it's nowadays mostly used by repairmen to source spare parts.
The Sonar Onestep launched in 1978 and was one of the very first cameras with autofocus, powered by a Sonar module.
In 1982, Polaroid launched the SLR 680, a version of the Sonar Onestep with support for the then new 600 type film and a built in flash.
The final version of the SX-70 was the controversial SLR 690 from 1996, featuring brand new digital electronics from Japan which unfortunately ended up being rather unreliable.
Features
My camera is an SX70 Alpha 2 but I will try to describe the features in a more broad way, mentioning the quirks and differences between the different models.
Folding mechanism
In order to fold the camera, push on the retainer on the side in the indicated direction. To unfold, just pull on the rear side of the viewfinder plate.
Lens
This unique lens design gives the SX70 series cameras some of the best image quality out of any Polaroid cameras out there. The lens is very sharp from center to corners, corrected against aberrations and other optical faults. It's a manual focus lens, able to focus from 25cm to Infinity.
However the Sonar Onestep, SLR 680 and SLR 690 also offer autofocus functionality where the camera will focus for you.
The F8 aperture might sound limiting but it's actually the largest aperture you can find on any Polaroid camera and since this lens has a high focal length, it can still provide some nice blur in out of focus areas.
Automatic exposure
The shutter speeds are selected by a built in sillicon lightmeter and the readings can be adjusted by a stop in either direction using the LD wheel. It's a very accurate lightmeter that averages readings from the entire scene.
A common problem with the lightmeter is that the built in IR filter may corrode. The later SX70 models beginning with Alpha reduced the chance by adding a protective layer over it but it's not an entirely foolproof solution. Any technician who repairs these cameras will fix this for you quite easily. So if your camera is overexposing heavily, this is why.
I was lucky that my camera came pre-serviced, with a clean IR filter.
Viewfinder
The SX70 is an SLR camera, meaning that when you look through the viewfinder, you see right through the lens thanks to a built in mirror which flips up for a few seconds whenever you take a photo. The viewfinder is super bright and large and just very comfortable to use.
With most models you don't get any aids to help you focus but the Alpha models feature a split prism aid.
Accessories
With the flash attached, the camera exposes differently, adjusting the aperture based on distance. Models from Alpha 1 onwards have "fill flash" functionality, meaning the flash can be used in bright daylight aswell to slightly brighten the shadows. when shooting portraits etc.
Third party ND filters also exist, allowing you to use the 600 type film in those cameras without modified electronics.
Apart from that, there's a plug for a self timer or cable release.
Model 1 has a tripod mount accessory while Alpha onwards come with a built in mount.
You also get various first and third party filter options and a telephoto and macro adapter.
The experience
The camera feels very hefty and nice in the hands. Whenever you take a shot, the mirror movement is quite audible and the camera sounds very satisfying.
The viewfinder makes framing and focusing easy and it's a joy to shoot.
The only disadvantages are the SX70 film being 150 ISO which limits usability without a flash and the camera having no film shield so the photos aren't shielded for the first few seconds after ejection.
However the film shield can be bought directly from Polaroid and it fixes the latter issue.
The photos came out very crisp and nice.
Legacy
The SX70 left quite a lasting legacy in pop culture. It was a legendary camera used by many professional photographers and it made it's way into many movies aswell. Most notably, the controversial SLR 690 was used by Leonard Shelby in Christopher Nolan's Memento
Nowadays, the camera is well cared for by the community. Companies like MiNT, Retrospekt and BFC continue to make third party accessories and spare parts, projects like SX-70R attempt to upgrade the camera with new features. Dedicated repairmen like Jake Bright (Instantcameraguy) keep the cameras functioning, upgrade them with new electronics and functions (like being able to use 600 or i-Type type film without an ND filter) and lately this wonderful camera line had a large resurgence.
We'll see what the future holds for the SX70 but it's looking bright.
Comments
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Jon 🐇
our family had an old Polaroid , I loved taking pics of the woods and wilds around our house.
a very good and nostalgic post, thanks! :3