The book is officially out, after years of gestation and months of presales and weeks of publicity. And here’s one nice way to celebrate: with a great segment on National Public Radio’s “Weekend Edition,” with Scott Simon, who was already the voice of Saturday morning in our house. It aired this morning, complete with Polaroid Swinger jingle: listen here. And preliminary signs indicate that the book is selling nicely, thank heaven. As broadcasters say: More on this story as it develops. (“Develops,” heh. Because it’s what pictures do, see?)
I sense a Polaroid enthusiast in the house over at Brain Pickings. Well-thought-out review here.
Heath Ledger, in an undated photograph from early in his short career. Camera’s a Model 195, but a modified one with (it looks like) a nonstandard shutter and a swapped rangefinder. It may be a lens off another camera that was swapped onto the Polaroid body.
A shout-out here to Film Rescue International, a company that does remarkable work. FRI specializes in processing long-outdated film—the stuff you find in a box in the basement, exposed but never processed, perhaps dating to the Truman administration. Could there possibly be photographs on there? Of whom? These specialists will get everything they can out of that old strip of film, where images can range from superb to blank. (Factors affecting quality: age, storage temperature, film type, maybe humdity and a few other things.) Sometimes the owner of that roll is very lucky indeed, and the results, like this example posted on Film Rescue’s Website, are amazing. Judging by hair and clothes, this is probably from, what, 1957?
I have a couple of rolls of film, sitting around since my twenties, that may go in there shortly. Wish me luck.
Photo-transformation, June 13, 1974, by Lucas Samaras.
Photo: © Lucas Samaras/Courtesy of The Pace Gallery
New York magazine (my day-into-evening job) has done a beautiful spread about the fine-arts portion of INSTANT (my night job). See the online version here. I’m especially pleased to have featured Marie Cosindas in there, a Polaroid photographer of long standing who is not quite as widely known as the others these days, and ought to be.
BUY THE BOOK
Available in many bookstores, online and off-. Click the photo to order from my local, the Strand Book Store.
BUY THE OTHER BOOK
WATCH THE TRAILER
On Vimeo: click the image to view.
