It has been a long time since I have asked for something photo related for my birthday. I usually don’t ask, just because I’m very particular about what equipment I use, and my friends and family know it. But this year, it was different. I thought about dabbling in some old school photography, so I asked for a Polaroid 600 camera. My fiancée stepped up to the plate and delivered, gifting me an awesome 1983 Polaroid Sun 600 LMS. I had some fun with my first pack of film, but then it was time to start pushing the envelope.

An idea hit me one day, and I knew I had to try something that I’ve never seen done before: shooting off camera flash with an older Polaroid 600 instant camera.
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Needed a Polaroid picture for a project I’m working on, so I purchased a Polaroid One Step camera for $15 off a guy on Craigslist and a pack of Polaroid 600 film that expired back in 2003 for $26 with shipping from eBay. I was a bit concerned that the film wouldn’t work anymore, but found that the battery in the film pack still had some juice and that the film still developed, though the upper corners of the image are messed up.

Expired 600 film is selling for up to $50 to $60 a pack (10 photos) on eBay these days, even though new Impossible film for 600 cameras costs $24. You can also buy unexpired performance-guaranteed 600 film for about $5 a shot in bulk. Seems like a lot of Polaroid lovers are still snatching up Polaroid film while they still can.

If you’re the proud owner of a Polaroid 600 camera (and have deep pockets), this news will be music to your ears: Impossible has launched its new PX 680 Color Shade First Flush line of color instant film to replace the popular Polaroid 600 color film that was discontinued back in 2008. In addition to Polaroid 600 cameras, the film is also compatible with SX-70 models as long as you use a neutral density filter. It seems like Impossible is getting better and better at resurrecting Polaroid films — these new sample photos look much better than the shots we saw last year of its PX100 film. Each pack contains eight shots and costs $22 from the Impossible shop.

Image credits: Photographs by Brandon Long and Patrick F. Tobin

Check out these super-special Polaroid-themed greeting cards by Heather Champ. They’re made using two dark slides from expired Polaroid 600 film:

The five colour bars (celebrating the new PX 70 packaging) create a negative space heart surrounded by the idea of a instant film frame.

Once the front dark slide is cross-stitched, the front and back are dry mounted with rubber cement to folded white card stock. The inside is blank. The card is accompanied by a matching blank white envelope.

Try making these yourself as a do-it-yourself project. If arts and crafts isn’t your thing, you can buy them for a special Polaroid-lover in your life for $25 from Heather’s Etsy store.
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