NOSTALGIA WEEK

My Polaroid Isn’t Better Than My iPhone—But I Still Love it

Does it take “better” pictures? Certainly not. But there’s a certain charm about them nonetheless.

Nostalgia Week: Scouted is turning back the clocks and highlighting some of the best things to come out 20+ years ago and how they’re being reinvented (and reinvigorated) in 2021.

Am I the only one with an iPhone photo album that is an absolute mess? I feel like I can’t find any of my favorite pictures without sifting through a deluge of screenshots, memes, and bad takes. I know we all carry around cameras in our pockets, but honestly, there’s something kind of limiting about being able to take a picture of anything, anytime. In my opinion, it takes a little bit of the magic away from photography—if we can ensure the perfect shot, the candidness and happenstance can be lost. But remember a time when the picture you took, the one picture, was the one you were left with? I’m not going to stop using my iPhone, but I am going to start using this much much more.

Polaroid Cameras are back, and my favorite is the Instax Mini. I mean, just look at how small and cute it is. To use it (in case you forgot), you simply load it with film, turn it on, and use the viewfinder to point and click—strange, I know. From there, a little bit of film pops out and you can watch it develop right before your eyes. You can even shake it, although apparently you’re not supposed to do that.

Amazon

$110

Fujifilm Instax Mini 11 Instant Camera

Amazon

I love that it’s a little bit of decor that sits on my shelf when I’m not using it, and I love that when the moment hits, whether that’s with friends or just hanging out with my partner or my dog, I know to go run and pull it out.

What I love about it is this: there’s no editing, there’s no second chances—instead, you get what you get. And somehow, fairly miraculously, it always comes out sort of good, if not an incredible piece of art worthy of being framed and hung in the Louvre. It’s a physical manifestation of a split second memory, instead of one that just takes up storage space on your camera roll.

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Daniel Modlin

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