Polaroid cameras

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arnstone
Posts: 127
Joined: Thu Dec 27, 2012 12:11 pm
Location: Detroit, Mi

Polaroid cameras

Postby arnstone » Mon Apr 01, 2013 5:42 pm

Question. Why are used Polaroid cameras so high in price? Is it just a collectable? Is it quality? I had Polaroid camera once, and the picture quality to me was crap. Don't most of them have plastic lenses? The instant film on the other hand, when used with a film pack back on other cameras, was pretty good. I ask this because I see alot bringing in $50-300 dollars at auction. I know the SX 70 was the first instant SLR. I saw a 690 going for $280, with 1 day to go still. :shock:

diser
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Joined: Mon Jan 28, 2008 12:32 pm
Location: Denver, Colorado

Re: Polaroid cameras

Postby diser » Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:03 am

I don't consider 690 to be collectible. The film is still available, and folks use these cameras for fun, like Lomography addicts do. It is a quality piece of equipment, with nice sonar AF, recently (kind of) made. The prices for some cameras do puzzle me though.

jimmyboy5111
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue May 28, 2013 8:22 pm

Re: Polaroid cameras

Postby jimmyboy5111 » Wed May 29, 2013 8:10 am

I find with Polaroid and picture quality, it depends on the year (or should I say, era) it came from. I have an SX-70 and yes, even compared to a Kodak Brownie, the picture quality was very much less than razor-sharp. (More like toy rubber knife sharp). Conversely, back in the early 60's, I remember my uncle having a Polaroid camera, a metal and leather-bellowed collapsable model, which took amazingly sharp pictures. I still have a few in one of my old family scrapbooks. What I really liked about them is they were dark sepia and white photos.

As for the prices fetched by Polaroid cameras, I agree... there seems to be no rhyme or reason to them. As with so many things on auction sites, what you get for an item depends on if you catch that certain impulse buyer in the right mood on the right day.


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