Polaroid BIG SHOT

PROJECT

My work with vintage Polaroid Big Shot Portrait Cameras (circa 1973) using expired, peel-apart “pack-film,” production of which was was discontinued in 2018.

BACKGROUND

The Polaroid Big Shot is an odd, hulking, grey, plastic, box of a camera, designed solely for making portraits. The camera’s focus is fixed at 39″ from the lens on one end (front) of the box, , requiring the photographer to frame and focus the shot by moving towards and away from the subject

The Big Shot is also one of two instant cameras Andy Warhol used for his most famous, fabulous portraits of celebrities, beauties, and other artists. celebrities. In the end, it is said by many that those Polaroid portraits garnered more fame for Mr. Warhol than his paintings.

ANDY WARHOL

The artist used many cameras, including the Polaroid SX-70 for instant gratification, fun among friends, numerous self-portraits, and a Minox 35EL miniature 35mm for black-and-white, candid, paparazzi-style, flash photos of friends and nightlife. But he is most well-known creative tool, which he used is most well known for his portraits of others, primarily taken with a Polaroid BIG SHOT

–which was designed and optimized solely for portraits. According to legend, Andy often replaced his Big Shot cameras when he broke them from his constant use, or discarded them when they got jammed from chemical gunk in the rollers. It is said that he had a direct connection at Polaroid, who would keep an inventory of Big Shot cameras just for him, prepared to send by courier on demand…

Here’s what Camera-Wiki.org has to say about the Polaroid Big Shot:

“The Big Shot was one of the most unusual cameras Polaroid ever introduced. It is a rigid-bodied model that dwarfs others in the series. Released in 1971 and produced until 1973, it is designed for portrait use only, and has a fixed focal distance of only about a meter. It has a 220mm f/29 plastic meniscus lens, a fixed-speed mechanical shutter, and a fixed-focus rangefinder to help the photographer keep the subject in focus. Because the camera itself is fixed-focus, the photographer has to move back and forth until the subject appears in focus. This technique has been called the ‘Big Shot Shuffle.’ “

Read the full article at: http://camera-wiki.org/wiki/Polaroid_Big_Shot

// Camera-Wiki.org