95

This old Polaroid camera is astoundingly large. It was called the Model 95. It was designed by Edwin Land. 

It folds up and makes a chunky sound.

It’s grey.

Some people thought the Land camera could only be used on land. It can only be used on land, but that’s not why Edwin Land called it the Land camera.

Edwin Land dropped out of Harvard. Harvard gave him a degree anyway.

Edwin Land was astoundingly handsome. 

There was no Sea Camera.

Edwin Land worked on the optics system for the U-2 spy plane. His daughter asked him one day: “Why can’t I see that picture right away?” They were in New Mexico at the time.

Edwin Land used to trade cameras for photographs. He owned 25,000 of them.

Edwin’s wife was Helen.

Edwin’s wife loved the sea.

Edwin Land first discovered a two color system for projecting the entire spectrum of hues with only two colors of projecting light. It’s confusing. Two.

Edwin’s children were Jennifer and Valerie.

Edwin designed a camera called “The Swinger.”

People made fun of The Swinger and so Edwin designed the SX-70.

Edward looked jaunty in his cap.

Edwin Land liked to have women do important things in his company and they appreciated that very much. 

For years if you wanted to use it you had to order film from the Land Corporation which is the company that made the Polaroid camera. It took about a week to arrive. 

It came in a little box. The camera for this film was large and heavy and made of metal. It took pictures in an instant and they lasted forever. 

After you took the picture you had to coat the picture.

The ingredients in the Polaroid film coater were:

Isopropanol/Isopropyl alcohol, 5-15%

Zinc acetate dihydrate, 2-5%

and something called

Glacial acetic acid, 3-7%

Edwin Land died in 1991. His assistant took all his papers and notes, and cut them up into tiny pieces and threw them in the trash can.

And so, we know very little about Edwin.

The Polaroid camera is fun and important.

Edwin’s favorite colors were black and white.

I hope that is right.