Recently Andy and I did a camera-swap (temporary of course) with him borrowing my Polaroid Flip and leaving his Polaroid i-2 in my care. There is a huge price difference between the two with the £500+ i-2 being considered Polaroids flagship offering whilst the Flip, at around £150, is a distant “second-best”. This post then is a first impressions of the i-2 from my early experiences.
My views on the films themselves have been covered before both here and on the Lensless & Lo-Fi podcast so I won’t repeat them again. For an account of Andy’s experiences with the medium head to his blog for a series of interesting reads. He has plenty to say about the consistency of Polaroid film. The following extract though gives a taste of his thoughts:
Let me also tell you that the ISO of polaroid film is a moveable feast, depending on temperature, prevailing winds and the shipping forecast for Dogger. It’s written on the film packaging. “ASA 640. Film speed may vary, allow for (plus or minus) 1/3 stops”
Let me start by saying that I love the concept; a fully featured camera with full user control of exposure, fast and accurate auto-focus and, according to Polaroid, the sharpest lens ever made for a Polaroid camera. It is definitely the most advanced instant camera that Polaroid has ever made, offering much that other instant cameras don’t and on paper, despite the high price, should be a compelling purchase. Yet, despite a hefty discount during the Black Friday event recently I wasn’t tempted to add one to my kit bag. And that was before I’d had a chance to play with Andy’s camera.
I started with the camera set to full Auto mode, with the firmware up to date, and loaded with a pack of the native i-type film. As per my preferences this was the mono version of the film but as the camera was made to use i-type film as its default, and as I was planning on leaving it on Auto, I felt confident. Single exposures, no multi-exposure or manual shenanigans, and let the camera (Polaroid’s best ever) take the strain. What could go wrong?
Out of the eight images in that first pack of mono i-type film I had seven over exposed of which only one was what I would deem acceptable. A single indoor image made with the flash turned off was the only one of eight I was happy with. All on Auto, no user intervention, just Polaroid’s best ever camera.
Chatting to Andy, and re-reading his blog, it soon became clear that he had had equally disappointing results with the mono film. Pack two would be i-type colour then!
As Andy had predicted there was an immediate improvement in terms of exposure. The first four are all acceptable, boring images admittedly, but acceptably exposed.
The final shot from that pack of i-type colour was a double exposure which it handled with aplomb. Why then does this flagship camera play nicely with the colour variant of its native film but not the mono? I’ve only tried Auto as yet but surely that should be where it shines, away from user error? As a primarily mono photographer this feels like a deal-breaker at this stage.
My third pack, having tried i-type mono and colour was a pack of Polaroid 600 film. Let me state upfront that I forgot to tell the camera that I’d switched from i-type film to 600 so if it’s made a difference that bit is on me. However, spoiler alert, I was happy with all eight from this pack of Polaroid 600. The first image out of the pack was correctly exposed (outdoors in dark with flash on) and the second (outdoors in twilight, no flash) brought a huge smile to my face. The third, made thirty minutes later at the same location was a salutary reminder of how limited the tonal range is with Polaroid film and how important it is to time your image making accordingly and/or adjust for the conditions.
Every image in this pack was correctly exposed. Compare that to the mono pack and you’re left with a distinct feeling of WTF? Incidentally, the final image was a multi-exposure featuring an arms length selfie. Andy has had some success with multiple exposures and the couple I’ve attempted have been satisfactory so perhaps that’s the next avenue to go down.
These first three packs have been a very mixed bag and have certainly not convinced me that I need an i-2 in my life. I find it astounding that a premium camera with a premium price tag does not function as it should in Auto mode straight out of the box. If I’d been manually setting the exposures then it would have been on me. True the variability of the film, so ably demonstrated by Andy, plays a part but why such a variance between the mono and colour film?
I still have the i-2 and with the ritual swapping back not due to take place until I visit Andy in late January I will persevere with it and hopefully report back once the loan period is over. However, I’m pretty sure I will be sticking with my Polaroid Flip when it returns.
In the meantime I’ve loaded a pack of SX-70 Monochrome and have adjusted the film type on the camera accordingly. As that film is rated at ISO 160 I now need to await some light!
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