PX70 FF

A mini review with some of the shots I've done with my first two packs of Impossible's new PX70 Color Shade First Flush edition. They did something different this time around when they announced the film. You could buy it in 3 packs, but at the price of two since its new and still some what of a beta flavor as far as color/exposure and all that goes. I think that was a really smart thing for them to do. Especially since its so new and unpredictable in some ways. Plus, its almost like a thank you to the customers for helping to test this out early on. The temp issue seems to be fine, light exposure is still an issue though. Had to accept that for the time being and make regular use of a light shield. I have to admit, I feel like I got a better handle on this film, much quicker, then I did with the PX100 FF. My first pack of PX70 was mostly about what to expect (and not a lot of great shots either), so by the time I got to the second pack I felt like I was finally getting shots that I really liked and was able to replicate somewhat. I found that with my SX-70 Sonar OneStep, I needed to either over or underexpose by half a wheel turn on the exposure dial. It seemed to be the only way to get more color to come thru or something with some darks to it. Like the PX100, it is on the lower contrast side and in general has a blue-green hue. You can coax it out though in other ways. Some are using warming filters on the camera to boost color and contrast. However, Impossible states that this film can take several days to finish developing. Most of mine I've waited 2-5 days before scanning. I do notice a gradual change in the overall color and density. It does tend to improve over time. Plus some of the darker areas take awhile and can look a little splotchy, some refer to it as lizard skin. Impossible has already announced the new version of PX70 at Photokina and should be on the market sometime in October. The samples looked nice, more color and contrast, but still with that nice old vintage quality to it. I'm looking forward to trying the new batch when its out. I do like the quality though of this edition. I think thats one of things I enjoy about the Impossible films in general is the variety of quality/experience with each edition.

Light shield flipped up, but I still like how it turned it out.

Check out the ever growing and complete set of my PX70 shots on Flickr.

Welcome Mio

Say hello to my little friend, Mio.

A couple of months ago my wife was visiting her family and they live in a small town up the coast. While there, she planned on checking out thrift stores and yard sales and asked her to keep an eye out for any old cameras or Polaroids. She found this Polaroid Mio for only two bucks! I've seen these going for anywhere from $50 to $100 brand new on ebay. Of course, I had no idea if it actually worked. You can still get film for these. Fuji makes it, Its contrasty and full of color. Its called Instax Mini. *More on that in at bottom of post. Got some batteries, takes two of the CR2 variety and finally got around to ordering some film via Amazon.com where its really affordable around $16 for a twin pack for 20 shots total. The camera works great and is very simple. Power button, distant landscape button, light or dark button, force flash on button (its always auto ready though, can't turn off) and the exposure button on the front. Once you pop the film in and close the door, you have to take a picture to eject the dark slide, after that, ready to go. It has a 60mm fixed length lens with minimum focus of 2 feet.

It really is a fun camera to use in that Polaroid ready kinda way. So long as you've got some decent light the flash won't fire so you can get some nice creative shots with it. For indoor/night time snaps, its a no brainer. It really is point and shoot. The design is a little on the odd side, switching between horizontal and vertical is slightly awkward. I do like the fact that I can get my instant fix, while not costing a lot to do it. The images are pretty darn sharp with exposures that are always great. If you find a Mio on the cheap, get it. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

 

* According to hear say and rumors - 

Apparently Polaroid licensed Fuji to make/design the Mio and to manufacture the film as well. Fuji released their own branded camera years ago, but didn't sell it in the U.S., maybe not even outside the Asia markets. A few years ago they started selling their larger wide format camera and then added the mini models with Fuji branded film. Then sometime earlier this year, the once great former shell of a creative company Polaroid decided to get back into the game again (thanks to the success of the impossible project) and partnered with Fuji and released the re-re-branded Fuji to Polaroid 300 camera. Whew, that was a lot to summarize and setup.