I did a talk last night at the Chicago Public Library about vintage cameras, film and where this “antiquated” technology might fit in as creative tools in a digital world spun out of control. I brought in some old-timers for the audience to look at and handle, gave an overview on how they worked and how to make pictures with them again, and some of the attendees were clearly intrigued by the possibilities. But most weren’t, having more interest in which Canon or Nikon to purchase and what to do with all those digital files sitting in their hard drives. Which I completely understand, as what to do with all of those digital files long term is an issue for all of us, amateur or professional. And I’m happy to help. As part of the presentation I made prints from images made with some of the cameras, my Graflex Series C 4×5, a Diana, an old 620 folder and an SX-70. Yes, a Polaroid, and one not really old at all in comparison to some of the others. But being that Polaroid is defunct and no film was available until recently when a new company took over the technology, I figured that it warranted inclusion. I could go on and on extolling the virtues of this particular camera and film; the beauty of the images, the funky art quality, the immediacy of the finished image and the creative opportunities in manipulating the print surface. But the point of this post is simply about an image I came across as I was searching for a sample to print. It was shot at Cafe Brauer, Chicago many years ago as I was scouting the location for an upcoming reception, and my wife Marlene added the finishing touches. She was great at manipulating them, good enough to have images on national tour and in print, and looking back I marvel at the beautiful, whimsical feel she created. Old technology.
