The Bramwell Brown Blog

#Timeless Tuesdays

#TimelessTuesdays

by Rob & Sarah

We’ve always been inspired by old school mechanical charm – the grandfather clocks and barometers of our childhood particularly – but something that we’ve noticed recently is that increasingly others seem to share this nostalgia. In the age of self-driving cars and digital assistants, there really does seem to be a renewed love for the old fashioned, analogue experience.

This got us thinking… so a couple of times a month we will be running a feature called #Timeless Tuesdays where we talk about products from the past that we loved and still love, that are part of this analogue renaissance!

First up for #Timeless Tuesday is the Polaroid camera. We don’t know about you but we have very fond memories of pressing the button and then watching the picture pop out of the camera. Shaking it while waiting and watching for the image to appear was PURE magic!

The Polaroid camera was invented in the late 1940s by Edwin Land. Whilst on holiday with his 3-year-old daughter and taking her picture, she asked why she couldn’t see the snap straight away. Land (who was unable to answer the question) set about to create a solution and in 1948 the Polaroid Land Model 95 camera was launched!

The Polaroid camera enjoyed huge success and many different models of instant cameras were introduced throughout the late 20th Century. In 1956 the one-millionth Polaroid camera came off the assembly line and Polaroid products were distributed in over 45 countries worldwide. In the 1960s Polaroid introduced instant colour film. You may even remember the Muppets starring in the 1980s ads for Polaroid including the famous Miss Piggy’s Birthday and Fozzie’s Christmas Present!

However, sadly the company filed for bankruptcy in 2001, as it had failed to make the transition from analogue to digital. In 2008 the company announced it would cease production of analogue film products, which sent Polaroid camera lovers into a frenzy. Luckily, Polaroid fan, Dr Florian Kaps founded The Impossible Project and starting selling Polaroid film again in 2010.

In 2017 on the 80th anniversary of the very first Polaroid camera, Polaroid returned to the market with a brand-new Polaroid Camera (One Step 2) for a new generation! 

We can’t help but think that although Polaroid cameras were designed in the 1940s they are the perfect solution for the digital, instant gratification age that we live in. Who doesn’t love to take a picture and instantly hold that print in their hand?! Polaroid Camera, we salute you and we’re so glad you’re back.

#Timeless Tuesdays