Instant Delight:
Family Photos Before Digital

I can still smell the heady odor of chemicals and remember the faint images appearing out of the total whiteness every time my mother took a photograph on her big Polaroid Land Camera®.

The great thing about this camera as opposed to the professional-looking camera my dad brought on trips was the instant gratification it provided. After taking the photo she would “rip” it from the camera, spread on some magic (and smelly) chemical from a little stick (looked like a Chapstick® to me) and before long, an image would emerge. Waiting for “instant” photos taught me patience if nothing else.

Today we have instant, instant with digital, but it’s not the same as those early black and whites. Because there’s no film in digital, you can take 100 snaps to get the very best one of junior displaying his new tooth or the cat snuggled in the laundry basket, but back then, there was no going back. My mother’s “mistakes” often included one family member with their eyes shut and most pet shots were of tails, but we loved to look at them just the same. When my brother was little, I had to be in every shot of him to hold him so he wouldn’t run out of the picture.

She recorded everything, from our first days at school to frost on the windows to my father’s mump-swollen face. I realize when I look at them that it didn’t really matter how these memories were recorded. I know that my grandkids will look at their digital prints in much the same way. It’s the recording of family events and the sharing that make it fun.

— Betty

About Edwin Land

Edwin Land (hence the name Land Camera) started the Polaroid company in 1937 and invented the Polaroid camera in the early 1940s. The camera, which combined the process of developing and printing photographs, revolutionized photography, especially the amateur kind. People could snap photos of their loved ones and have the results to share instantly. The first of Land’s cameras went on the market in 1948. In 1960, Land redesigned his camera with the help of the Henry Dryfuss Design firm and the popular Polaroid Land Camera was born. It was followed by the inexpensive little Swinger model in 1965, and it seemed everyone had one.

Here are a few sites with tips on taking better family photos:

Best Family Photography Tips

About.com on Family Photos

Interested in vintage Polaroid cameras or camera history? Check out:

The Land List for camera collectors and enthusiasts

About.com on Edwin Land, the inventor of the Polaroid® camera

"Polaroid," "Land Camera" and other camera names are trademarks of Polaroid Corporation.