FEEL...

 Still trying to get the feel of things.

No matter what camera the attraction is feel.

Notice the keyword here?  FEEL

Like driving not operating a car.

The feel of the car, the gear shift, the suspension, the vibrations of an engine.

With mechanical watches.

Same as a car.  Seeing gears and levers moving to precision to tell time.

Fountain pens.

The feel.  The art of loading ink.  The result that requires you to get some sort of skill (although my chicken scratch is far from desirable).

Manual typewriters

Hit the key too hard and you break the surface of the paper.

Strike the key too soft, not much there.

Get it right and even, bliss

I find people are becoming more and more like biological computers.
Don't think - DO
You have to keep up with the speed to the computer
Our masters now are technological stuff.

A recent medical study have found that the average human now has an attention span of 8 seconds

The art of strategy to tactics is going away

Everyone just reacts

Sorry - not this person.
My career was in tech but now I am trying to be human

Getting off my a*s and shoot...

 

During the days of stress and anguish (care for dying parents and a stressful career), I would use photography as a means to relax.  The saying is that Street Photography is great in that you never know what you will encounter.  If you get nothing that day, it's ok because you got some exercise and time.

I finally decided to go and shoot.  My old unofficial office - The Presidio in San Francisco.
Being a weekend, the food trucks were out and grabbed a pretzel (since it's Oktoberfest in Deutschland)

Thing about shooting Instant film versus Digital or film.... Damn it's hard.

Digital is so easy to do - even in manual mode.
Don't get me wrong... great results especially if you know how to use your gear and take time to work on the art and composition.  

It takes so much more to try to get a shot.  Clandestine Street Photography - forget it.  If I took out the TLR Instant I might get away with it but with an SX70, people notice and actually are friendly to it because of how unique the camera is.

The limitations of Instant film is the challenge.  You really have to understand the medium and know that to get a good shot will require a lot of problem solving skills that photographers use to get "the shot"

The shot above is nothing.  Just a grab shot.

One thing is for certain... time for this OG to get out and shoot more !!!

You've come a long way baby....

When I was fortunate enough to run a Configuration Center for a computer company, I was taught Japanese manufacturing techniques.  The word Kaisen was used often.  Loosely translated it meant constant improvement.

This is something the new Polaroid has been doing now for a few years.

Had a chance to shoot with a pack of Polaroid iType Black and White from 2023.

Total crap.

Blurry, poor shades, uneven emulsion, took about 5 minutes to get something to look at, etc... 

Same shot taken with the same Polaroid iType Black and White from 2024

Big improvement

It takes about 15 seconds for something of the image to appear although you are still required to shield it from light, thus some of the magic of seeing it appear before your eyes is still missed.

The cool thing is that this film is somewhat predictable and provides some good results.

Kudo's to the Polaroid folks for continuing to improve the product.

When they get to a point where the original Polaroid Corporation Time Zero film was at, they will then finally see a tremendous growth.

The Final Breath...

 

Actually bought something on the Mercari site.  This is a Polaroid ONE 600 Pro.  The last instant camera that the original Polaroid Corporation engineered before going into bankruptcy.

It's all plastic but the design is different.  Actually it's a Polaroid Spectra that was reimagined using Polaroid 600 film.

Looks like the design thought was to round off the boxy On-Step design.  I like unique and different so this camera fills the bill.

Image quality is that of a Polaroid 600.  OK.  Was a lot better when the film was closer to what Instax is like today.

The whole idea is FUN !

Instax Wide Evo vs. Printing

 Decided to do some photo geek stuff today.

Took a photo using the Instax Wide Evo.  The photo is obviously from the Instax and above it is the printed digital file that the Instax Wide Evo used to create the instant photo.

It actually isn't too bad of a digital file and was able to quickly print it on the new Epson since it has a built in SD card slot (also a bunch of wireless ways of getting images to the printer via phone or any other device).

Just to compare, I also printed an image taken from the Fujifilm X100V (f2, 1/125s, ISO3200).

As expected, the Fuji did a far better job.

So what did all this prove?

The dreaded costs.... 

The Instax Wide (3 15/16" x 2 7/16") shot was about $1.10 (pre tariff).

The printed images using the Epson ET8550 (EcoTank) 4x6 was about $0.12

FYI - If printed on the portable photo dye-sub Canon Selphy 1300, cost about $0.57

The Fujifilm Instax Evo Wide is a good alternative for those wanting to have the ability to make an instant print on the go and yet still have the ability to re-print OR to have a digital file that is actually usable to play with later.

The big advantage is the fun factor - seeing it develop, having something tangible (if printed right away) that is now an actual artifact of a physical image taken at that time and that place.  This is something really important that only Instant film photography can give.

The Epson.  Quality, Costs, abilities.... cannot be equaled.

The really good thing about this printer is using a tank versus cartridges and the ability to print the image without having to use an editing software if the desire is a print ASAP.

Will this stop me from shooting Instant?  

NO WAY.

Instant film is indeed still the only TRUE photographic capture of a moment in time.

Granted, in this example I shot using a hybrid camera, but if done right this too can fall into the "one of a kind" photo that is more special than ANY film print OR Digital file.

Just thankful that Fujifilm and Polaroid exists and have even started to gain more traction with younger photographers discovering the medium.

This alone is a good thing ! 

POLAROID B&W and a STUFFED DONKEY?

 NO idea what the story is with this store's display.  One thing for certain is that I do like Polaroid's Black and White versus the Instax Monochrome.

SIMPLE. JUST SIMPLE...

 With all the insanity going on in the world.  Illogic and chaos ruling the day.  Getting ready to turn another chapter in life's journey.... a nice hot cup of cappuccino seems just right.

(Instax Wide Evo - Normal+Vignette)

DAMN TARIFFS...

 

So in the world of Fujifilm Instax you have three sizes - Wide, Square and Mini

Factoid.... Fujifilm makes the most money on INSTAX film.  Specifically, the Mini format.

Reason for that is that Mini generally sells for about $0.90 a shot
Square sells for about the same at $0.90 to $1.00 a shot.
Wide - being the largest format sells for about $1.70-$1.90 a shot.

WELL THROW ALL THAT OUT THE WINDOW.

It is obvious that the USA supply for Instax has been replenished.

Thanks to "Orange Face", "TACO" or whatever name you have for him...

Instax Square went from an average of $0.90 a shot to $1.20 (25% increase)
Instax Mini went from an average of $0.90 to now a whopping $1.38 a shot (40% increase)

Why the Mini format went up so much?  Can only speculate that being the most popular and supply must have been fully exhausted, the price reflects the full tariff in effect.

The Square format most likely still have some inventory in the USA left and Fuji is adjusting the price now so that when the supply is exhausted, the sticker shock won't be as bad at 1st.  It will probably sell at the same price as the Mini format.

BIG SURPRISE HERE - INSTAX WIDE WENT DOWN !!!

Film has an expiration date and Fujifilm Instax Wide has not been as popular.  Existing inventory must still be large and starting to age - thus the discounted price.

Also the new Instax Evo Wide camera has been just a moderate success.

Chances are that when the film supply of Instax Wide is replenished, the price will be over $2 a shot.
Which is close to what the Polaroid film is currently selling for.

BTW - Polaroid B&W film has gone up as well from about $1.80 a shot to now $1.95 (8% increase)

POLAROID B&W

 Photographers appreciate the fact that what was the Impossible Project saved the remaining Polaroid plant in the Netherlands.  It's taken what is now called once again Polaroid to continue to try to improve the invention from Dr.Land and all the great folks in Massachusetts created.

The current batch of Polaroid color film is at least somewhat stable in terms of what you get and the colors.  Still NO leave it and watch it develop before your eyes, TOO sensitive to temperature, INCONSISTENT with the results.

However, there is one film stock from Polaroid that I feel is more than acceptable is by far way better than Fujifilm Instax Monochrome. 

It is the Polaroid Black and White film. 
Images start to appear after about 15 seconds and the quality of the photo is really good.  Dynamic range is acceptable.

I can't wait for Polaroid to come out with an improved Color and Black and White film.

For my photo peeps.... keep buying the film and keep them alive !!!! 

Wide Evo vs RF70

 

The top photo using the Wide Evo with a good dose of vignetting.

The bottom photo using the RF.

Used the vignette feature on the Wide Evo because the Fuji hybrid will make everything in focus so the intent of the vignette is to do some sort of subject isolation.

The Mint RF70 used f16 at 1/500s.
Although f/16, keep in mind that it is shooting on a very wide surface so essentially f/16 is more like f4 on 35mm.

I like the fact that I can isolate the subject better with the RF (there is some control over depth of field).

Still loving the instant stuff.  There's challenge and forces me to think that a digital camera just doesn't replicate as well.  Bluntly the film is limited and the challenge to get what I want is something I have to work at - love it, lotta fun!!!

The meter used on the RF is one of those Keks mini meters (thanks FIRESIDE CAMERA for having the meter in stock).

TAIL...

 Still vastly improved over their initial Polaroid film, they still have a long long way to go to get to the point where the original Polaroid Corporation was able to produce.

The SX70 or in this case the reworked and refurbished Mint SLR670 i-Type Ming Edition (whew) still is king.  The i2 that Polaroid makes is great for the ability to use LIDAR to focus and is fully manual when you want it, the feel of the SX70 and being an SLR and can focus down to 7" is still amazing.

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU...

 

INSTANT and JOY - still there

 

The one thing that photographers will generally agree upon is the JOY we get when a photograph we took brings a reaction to someone.  For those who understand the power of Polaroid (or any Instant Print), is the ability to give something to someone right away and to see them now with the JOY.  It's a gift... it's sharing a moment captured on film.

I was skeptical about the hybrid instant camera in that some will argue it's not a pure instant print since the image was captured digitally and then printed.  

However, I decided to keep the essence of what is an Instant print, by printing out the image right there and then.

The ability to make copies may hurt the purity of the image but tonight I was able to take some images of my stepson's birthday along with an early celebration of my wife's birthday and hand them to the family.

Each one loved it and shared it and stared at it.

My step Granddaughter was fascinated by the white piece of plastic telling mom and dad..."white...white" but the look on her face as the image appeared - priceless.

In a world of high quality digital images and cellphone cameras that are really outstanding, this pseudo analog, physical thing still touches people.

A FIVE, SIX....

 Name the musical.

LIFE STANDING STILL - Part 1

 

WIDE not MINI...

 Shot with the hybrid EVO.  The conundrum... instant shooters, how do you feel about hybrid?

Mancave....

 

YOU'VE COME A LONG WAY BABY...

 When the good people in Netherland saved the remaining Polaroid plant in Enschede, Netherland, the company was called IMPOSSIBLE (The Impossible Project).

Many rejoiced that Polaroid Integral Instant Film is saved.  Unfortunately, the plant was already partially dismantled, and the chemicals were gone.  So, they started from scratch.

A bunch of people who worked at the plant and at Polaroid HQ in Massachusetts came together to try to bring it all back.

The initial product was, and this is being nice, total crap!

The company went from IMPOSSIBLE to POLAROID ORIGINALS and now POLAROID.

They went from above to at least something better and more stable.

Although the product is far better than before, they have yet to have the main magic ingredient developed.... have the picture appear before your eyes.  The current Polaroid film must still be shielded from light once ejected and you can take a peek at the photo after a few minutes.

 Fujifilm is using the Kodak Instant Film process but were smart in that they went to the original Polaroid Corporation after the landmark lawsuit was won by Polaroid, to keep producing a version of the Kodak Integral Instant Film and produce Polaroid Pack Film (the one you peel apart).

This gave Fuji the ability to currently make the best version of Instant Film out there.  Colors are vibrant, clear and bright and the secret ingredient - have it appear before your eyes.

Polaroid has come out with 4 new cameras in the past year or so.  The i2, a high end camera with manual controls for shutter and aperture.  The GO which is a cute very small camera that is fun.  The NOW and NOW +.  Recently the FLIP.  These are great but here's a message to Polaroid.... YOU GOTTA KEEP WORKING ON MAKING THE FILM BETTER!!!!  We want the image to appear before our eyes and to have colors, detail and stability as close to the Polaroid Corporation product of the 1970's.

If you can get it to where Fuji is at, I think you will find a whole bunch of people buying films since there are several million Polaroid Integral cameras in existance!

JOY... just JOY...

 If you have been following this blog, you know my affinity for Instant Photography now a days.

One of my colleagues has a collection of unique bags that she brings.  I make it a point to take an instant print of the bags when I see it in our breakroom at work.  I then leave the photo on top for her to have.

The wonderful thing about Instant Photos is the joy on the person's face when you and them or give them a photo.

Granted I can take a cellphone shot that will probably look a lot better or take out my serious digital stuff and turn the photo into a wall worthy shot.... but beyond the "oh it's nice" reaction you get with most photos, the Instant Print has always resulted in a reaction of.... "you gave me this photo."  It's an inexpensive gift to give.

I'm hooked.

INSTAX WIDE EVO.... closer to the concept of Dr. Land?

 When the SX70 first came out, some of comments were that it was too difficult to nail focus.  The product designers and engineers approached Dr.Land and informed him of what the people were saying and that the camera needed a split focus aid.

Dr.Land fought back and wanted nothing of the sort... the picture taking process was to eliminate as much "photography gear" stuff as possible.  He wanted the human to be able to capture the moment and not focus on making it work.

At the end, the SX70 has a small split focus dot towards the bottom of the screen.  This was a stop gap before the sonar autofocus would be out.

So what does this SX70 tid bit have to do with this Instax Wide Evo?

This camera is amazing.  Granted it's another hybrid from Fuji, but they did so much to put the analog feeling and process into the camera.  This camera looks like a miniature View Camera.  In fact it sort of acts like one with you looking at a glass LCD screen to compose.  There's little else beyond the 100 different effects you can select - but Fuji makes you decide on it before you take the photo.  Very little digital editing here please.

In just three days, I've created images that either would be extremely difficult or impossible to produce on an analog instant camera.

This leads to the conundrum.  Analog with a lot of human intervention is one thought with photographers.  The idea is to create an image and NOT just take a picture.  Yet this hybrid camera has the ability to capture moments in time right away with little fuss and a lot of capabilities.

My goal is to immediately print an image if I feel it's important, special or a need to have this film artifact made is starting to make me rethink it all.

Thinking back to the Polaroids of my youth, there wasn't much but to rudely focus the lens and shoot.  Yet those images today hold such a value that a film camera and now digital camera cannot reproduce.

After spending tens of thousands of dollars over the years to capture a feeling, a moment (Capturing Light and Life is my tag line after all) did this camera finally won me over?

One thing is for sure, all this Instant Photography has me wanting to shoot photos again.

More to come...

  

Instax Mini Evo - Love or Hate

 

Question or Debate over this Fujifilm Instax Mini Evo stems from the fact that this is a hybrid instant camera.  Hybrid meaning that it shoot not directly on film but on a sensor.  The film portion is a printer where the image is transferred to instant film

Some, and including me in the past, called this cheating.  Missing the true essence of an Instant print.  The precious 1:1 original shot there and then.

Fuji did do what they could to make it as analog as possible in that you have to make all your adjustments in terms of film effects and lens effects before pressing the shutter.  You cannot make changes after the photo is done with the exception of altering the brightness of the image and a bit of zoom.

So the die hards will still say it's not really an instant print.

I thought it over for a bit.  Dr.Land wanted to remove all distractions between you and the image.  The Polaroid (Instant photography) is a physical artifact of the moment the photo was taken.  This is indeed the major reason why Polaroids or Fujiroids are so special.

So to stay true to the art, I make it a point that if the image has some special significance or need to have it forever locked to the time and place - I PRINT right away.  That image is now my artifact and that years from now when I pick up that print, I will have this attached forever to the time I took the image.

So why not just shoot pure analog versus using this camera?

A few reasons.

It's a crappy digital camera - crappy in that any cellphone will out gun this.

The digitalness allows me to pick and choose between color and black and white.  Impossible unless I carry two cameras - 1 with color and the other with black and white.

I can get closer and snap a photo faster with this Evo.  Even if I leave the Polaroid, Mint or Fuji on it's automatic mode.

I can shoot in poor lighting without the need of a flash - most of the time.

I can also do that horrible thing and print copies to hand out.

The fun of instant photograph is sharing the image.  This is something that is hard to achieve with any other medium.  Sharing the image that is PHYSICAL and not another digital image.

So for right now.... this Fujifilm Instax Mini EVO works.

Tomorrow my new Fujifilm Instax Wide EVO arrives.... can't wait !!!!

Black and White OR Color ???

 

Back on the Street and that Polaroid blue...

 So.... for the 1st time in years - and I do mean years, I ventured off today to "The City" with the sole intention of taking photos.

The dilemma of which camera to take was a struggle.  The decision today was to shoot the Mint SLR670 (SX70) and the Polaroid i2.

The use of the SX70 is far superior to the i2.  With the SX70, unfolding the camera, the way you need to hold the camera and the focus that makes what you see come to sharpness was totally fun.  That plus the classic..... click, click, ka-thump, whirl whirl and snap sounds.

Just using the camera had bystanders smiling. So super cool factor goes to the SX70

The i2 just looks so much like the One Step's and just looking through the viewfinder just doesn't have the same thrill.

However, behold the photo above - taken with the i2 with that deep Polaroid blues.  The scan doesn't do justice to the actual print.... but it is wonderful and fun.

Now if only Polaroid (keep in mind Impossible and not the Polaroid of yesterday) can get the film to develop without having to shield it from light right away.

I found having to quickly get the film and place it somewhere while not bending or smushing the chemical pods was something of a pain that I don't have with Fujifilm.

Walking around, looking everywhere, I remember how much fun this actually is.

More to come...

And now a public service announcement...

 Perhaps the film did me a favor with this selfie.  But on a more serious note, if you are shooting Fujifilm Instax (especially the Square variety) and it has long past it's expiration date, you may encounter this black streak of black chemical yuck.

What is happening here is that the pods on the back of the film (where all the chemical stuff resides) have started to dry out and the plastic pod themselves are no longer sealed well enough to keep the yuck stuff contained.... thus the black streak.

Nothing to panic about, a new pack of film and you will be good to go - sort of.

You see, the way instant film works is that the brown pinkish layer you see here is the un-exposed film.

You take the photo and the light hits this unexposed area.

The rollers then are smushed and the pods are squeezed and the yuck is spread across the layers of film.

Thus the black back

Now what about the sort of....

The rollers will be coated with the yuck.

You can expect the next few shots to have some yuck down the center.

You can clean the rollers and also trick the camera to activate the rollers.

DANGER DANGER WILL ROBINSON.... those rollers look small but the motor attached to it has a lot of torque.

If you try to run a q-tip with alcohol against it, IT WILL rip the cotton off and jam up the camera.

If you want to clean it yourself, reach out to me and I'll tell you what I do to clean them.

LESSON HERE - DON'T USE OVER EXPIRED FILM (this pack was about 6 years past it's prime)

Back to the Streets...

 For a long while, my heart in photography was mainly with street photography.  

The ability to capture a moment in time of everyday stuff.

Nothing staged.  Nothing planned.

Forced to think on your feet

For a few years, this was lost and painful (my friends know why).

Slowly the spark is coming alive.

The RE of fun...

RE-learning...  RE-discovery... RE-doing

Learning and figuring out what the medium will allow me to capture.
This has been a challenge working with Instant Film

Working on the art...

 Slow process and still trying to nail this

The Journey... an update...

 Slow, Satisfying and Expensive.

Slowly I am getting a handle on the camera(s) and the film stock(s).

I am finding my vibe with the Polaroid film combined with the Mint SLR670 iType Ming Edition (aka SX70).

Really hard to love the Polaroid i2 but trying to get it to give me something of consistency is becoming IMPOSSIBLE (pun intended).

Thinking how to use the Polaroids for street photography is going to be a challenge.  Instead of being discreate, the sounds from the cameras will blow it.  The Mint TL and RF cameras have an advantage where the film does not eject until you are ready.  That's going to be a big plus since I can take a shot and not be noticed with the sounds of the camera.

The image above was scanned with the Polaroid app which does an ok job but doesn't do the photo justice.  This shot of the cat house in the backyard is far better than what you see here.

The journey continues...

Instant costs....

 Someone asked me recently about my re-discovered interest in photography and why Instant Photography this time around.  "Steven, you use to shoot Leica and stuff, you now shoot Polaroid stuff???"  "Polaroid is expensive and the results are.... meh."

Instant film is a challenge.  Without going into great detail, dynamic range (the ability of the film to distinguish light and shadow) is really limited.  You need to think if you want some work to come out the way you want.  Details and colors are also a challenge.  Plus the camera I am using to do the serious instant stuff costs between $500-$1200 each (and there's 4 of them).

You want beautiful, technically perfect stuff, shoot something with a sensor or your cellphone.  But enough of this for now, we are talking costs here.

Sticker shock - a pack of Polaroid film with 8 shots runs about $18 or about $2.25 a shot.  So each time you press the shutter button, you just spent $2.25.

Fujifilm is cheaper with the Mini film running about $0.75 a shot, Square film about $1 and Wide film about $1.15 a shot.

The normal reaction - "Damn... that's expensive"

So I broke the costs down for a roll of 36 Color Print film.
Consumer grade stuff like Kodak Gold.

1 Roll of film = $10 (costs have gone way up) = $0.28
1 - Process the negative = $12 = $0.33
1 - 4x6 Print = $0.21

For a 4x6 print = $ 0.82 per photo.

Now we need to tack on going to the photolab and back
Runzheimer estimate about $0.45 per mile (we will assume a lab within 10 miles) = $4.50 = $0.13

So the cost of 1 - 4x6 print = $0.95 a shot.

So 35mm film is cheaper = YES but.... and it's a BIG BUT.....

You have to wait for your results.
The look on a person's face with an instant print is priceless
and the big thing.... it's a 1:1 original.

Factor all that in and it's really not that expensive.

"Cheaper than Crack" a photo buddy once told me.

A World of it's own...

While waiting for the bewitching hour (aka... time to go home), I decided to fire off a couple of quick shots with the Mint SLR670 (aka... Polaroid SX70) versus the hybrid Fujifilm Mini Evo

Let me know which one you prefer - Mint/Polaroid OR Fuji?

 

Polaroid on Polaroid / Fuji

 i2 shot - f/8 - 1/15s - Flash

Fujifilm Instax Mini EVO - 1 stop

Beyond the very limited dynamic range of the films, I am starting to agree that the Polaroid formula at present does seem to have a bit more range in terms of detail and has a bit of that Kodacolor feel.... although their Black and White formula is close to $2 a shot, it might be worth a try.

The big downer with Polaroid is having to shield the film from light so you miss out on the magic of it appear before your eyes and that it takes a long time for the image to appear and will take at least a day before you get something of a finished work.

-----------------------

The Fuji formula is vibrant, contrasty, bright and clear.  The big plus for Fuji is the fact that the integral film magic is there.  Take the shot, sit the print down and watch it develop.  You have a good enough image within a few short minutes.  The finished product also takes hours but you have an image to view and enjoy a lot faster than the Polaroid.

Hybrid world and Contrast...

 

Paper and Fountain Pen and Instant Film VERSUS Digital Image and Smartphone

Baby Polaroid...

 The Extreme -Polaroid  i2 and the GO-2

SX70 Soul...

 The image above doesn't do justice to the final result.  The Polaroid app doesn't have the ability to remove reflected light - oh well.

There is just something about using this 50 year old design of a camera that still turn heads and no one has been able to replicate.

The opening of the camera and even the look of the camera is something of a wonder even today.  The ability to focus to 7" and with the Mint Time Machine - help tell the camera what you want.

Loving it.

Finding treasure???

 Expired in 1984.  I doubt the 41 year old packs of Type 107 Polaroid film is any good.  I may open one to give it a try.  Sadly it now has to go into the display cabinet for history sake.

To Hybrid or Not to Hybrid...

Here's my thoughts....
                                                    

So there's a debate among Instant Photography folks about the hybrid cameras from Fujifilm.

Some feel that it's not genuine because the image is captured digitally and then printed onto instant film just like the Instax Link printers.

Because the image isn't captured onto film straight from the lens, it's no longer an instant shot.

The advantage of the hybrid is that you can apply effects and do things that our loved analog instant cameras either have a really hard time or can't do.  The hybrid (EVO's) can get really close.  About 4" away.  The i2 can get only 27" close to a subject and you have to fight the parallax issue with the viewfinder to compose the shot.

The SX70 natively can get about 7" away and with the close up filter about 4" - damn.

With my TLR - Mint TL70+ with close up filter - about 7"

The Rangefinder - Mint RF70 - only 3'

Advantage EVO.

THE INSTANT THANG...

Among photographers these phrases, "the best camera is the one on you", "get close", "f8 and be there" and what Dr. Edwin Land said decades ago.... "it will be become part of the human being, press the button and have the picture"

At present, I work with a bunch of great people from all walks of life.  So while I was in our breakroom, one of my peers loves unique bags.  So she had this one on the table...

I thought.... so cool and took the EVO out and snaped the photo.

Several "tick boxes" have been checked...

1.  The EVO is light and small so I had it on me.

2.  It is a point and shoot so there was nothing to set up

3.  I was able to take the picture and print it and gave it to her.

The Magic of Polaroid has been several things.

1.  You get a 1:1 copy (which the EVO falls short being a digital image, so it can be edited)

2.  You have a physical copy to share or keep.  It is this physical copy that makes it special - it reminds you each time to touch the print of the time you took the shot.  The print what there when the image was taken.  (EVO falls short because you can print it later - but that too is an advantage since instant film hates extreme temperatures - thus, print it later)

3.  Seeing it appear - still super cool.

4.  The smiles and instant gift - can't be beat.

So yes, if I am being 100% analog, this EVO is not it.  However, if I am being an instant shooter and need something that an analog instant camera can't do OR this EVO is on me.... it wins.

The big win is this..... it's FUN!