Instant Film Society

Instant Film Society www.instantfilmsociety.org - The IFS was founded in 2012 to increase awareness, accessibility & understanding of analog instant photography.

Established in 2012 to increase awareness, accessibility, & understanding of instant analog photography.

Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 starts TODAY!Full schedule info for PolaCon Day 1 is below.See you there!
05/29/2026

Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 starts TODAY!

Full schedule info for PolaCon Day 1 is below.

See you there!

May's Featured Photographer, Bret Watkins, answers questions from the community and offers advice to other photographers...
05/25/2026

May's Featured Photographer, Bret Watkins, answers questions from the community and offers advice to other photographers.

✨Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 NYC Presenter Spotlight ✨Zane Pollard is a photographer and tinkerer from Denton, T...
05/23/2026

✨Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 NYC Presenter Spotlight ✨

Zane Pollard is a photographer and tinkerer from Denton, Texas who has been shooting instant film for a bit over a decade. His first experience with an SX-70 led to a debilitating obsession with the camera and how it works.

Join Zane & Joaquin of the OpenSX70 project to learn the ins and outs of their new, modern, open-source SX-70 PCB replacement! This presentation will cover board features as well as technical information on how both the new PCB meters compared to other modern options and the original ECMs. Find out how the instant sausage is made!

Limited tickets remain. Get yours at the link in the comments.

✨ Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 Presenter Spotlight ✨Pete Madden Jr. is a multidisciplinary artist focusing on alt...
05/21/2026

✨ Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 Presenter Spotlight ✨

Pete Madden Jr. is a multidisciplinary artist focusing on alternative photography processes, primarily within the dynamic realm of instant film. Nick Collingwood is an analog photographer and cinematographer who loves all things instant photography and large format.

Nick and Pete love a giant camera, and so will combine forces to show off a couple more eccentric uses for 8x10 cameras and Polaroid film. Polaroid still makes 8x10 film in batches, but it is always in short supply. So with the help from a design by fellow PolaHomie Mario, Nick will show how to instead use Polaroid’s tiniest current film, Polaroid Go, to shoot what has been dubbed a Gosaic. On top of that, Pete will demonstrate how to make the biggest Polaroid transparencies you’ve ever seen using 8x10 Polaroid B&W film. He’s even got a few spectacular tricks up his sleeve for his presentation so make sure you check it out!

PolaCon NYC is NEXT WEEK! Get tix (while you still can!) at the link in the comments.

✨ Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 Presenter Spotlight✨Linus Johnson is a film photographer based in Los Angeles spec...
05/19/2026

✨ Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026 Presenter Spotlight✨

Linus Johnson is a film photographer based in Los Angeles specializing in conceptual and experimental portraiture—shooting across 35mm, 120, and Polaroid formats. Working in entertainment and music, Linus moves between tour photography and studio photo sessions. He also shares videos on analog and instant photography on YouTube (Linusandhiscamera), and is also often seen as the host of the CineStill YouTube Channel.

Learn how Linus () works as a professional photographer with instant film as an essential part of his workflow in music and entertainment. He’ll his in-depth experience working with SX-70R cameras and more.

Limited tickets for PolaCon NYC remain! Get yours at the link in the comments.

May's Featured Photographer, Bret Watkins, shares a statement on his philosophy for his work."I have long been enamored ...
05/18/2026

May's Featured Photographer, Bret Watkins, shares a statement on his philosophy for his work.

"I have long been enamored with the chemical magic of the Polaroid process. What starts as a blank canvas, instantly morphs into a square image, a snapshot of life. A photographical snowflake if you will, a special moment in time that through a click, buzz, and a chemical process becomes an artifact, a physical memory that will exist within that square frame as long as one has it. And at the root, this is Bret’s goal with his Polaroid photography; to capture a one of a kind moment that you can hold onto forever. With this ethos in my heart and camera, I set out to share this feeling with every person, every community I’ve come into contact with."

Reclaimed Purple Talk + Live Portrait DemoA closer look at Polaroid Reclaimed Purple film, from its development story to...
05/15/2026

Reclaimed Purple Talk + Live Portrait Demo

A closer look at Polaroid Reclaimed Purple film, from its development story to how it performs in-camera. LIVE at Polaroid Presents: PolaCon NYC 2026!

Ruben will open the session with a short talk on the film’s development and factory process, followed by Hatti leading a live portrait demo using Reclaimed Purple with an I-2 camera. Attendees can watch the setup and process, with portraits available on a first come, first served basis.

Limited tickets remain. Get yours today at the link in the comments!

Bret Watkins, May's Featured Photographer, shares his process. Most recently, Bret has been expanding his relationship t...
05/15/2026

Bret Watkins, May's Featured Photographer, shares his process.

Most recently, Bret has been expanding his relationship to Polaroid by adding the fiber art of embroidery to his photographic creations to create what he lovingly calls Embroideroids. These Embroideroids offer a new way to look through the photographer’s lens, to imagine what is beyond the lens and within the imagination of the artist. By adding embroidery designs and patterns atop his Polaroids, Bret works to highlight the subject matter within the photo with formal precision and with poetic intentions.

Like a painter adding paint strokes to a canvas, Bret threads new possibilities onto an already dreamy Polaroid canvas. Adding the embroidery medium to his photographic process allows for expanded creative possibilities, and has allowed Bret to deepen the story happening within the square frame of a single Polaroid shot.

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05/13/2026

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✨May Featured Photographer: Bret Watkins ✨"Bret Watkins has been a Los Angeles based Polaroid photographer for a decade ...
05/11/2026

✨May Featured Photographer: Bret Watkins ✨

"Bret Watkins has been a Los Angeles based Polaroid photographer for a decade now.
Wow, kind of wild to read that aloud as I still feel like the young man that rediscovered the medium on an indie feature film set in 2016.
The film was a q***r love story centering on a lonely, middle-aged man who decides to hire a male pr******te to recreate a road trip from his past. An incredibly made film by my friends by the way, called “Retake”, if you get a chance check it out. In the film, the lead character used Polaroid pictures from his past to create the road trip experience, so for several weeks I would see them use a Polaroid camera on set and I became obsessed. When we wrapped production, the director gave me the Polaroid camera, probably to shut me up and stop me from asking so many questions hahaha. My first, but not last, Polaroid camera was the 600 Close Up. Seeing as it was late 2016, I ran into my first problem. Polaroid no longer existed, but fortunately for me Impossible Project came to the rescue. My first year of Polaroid was very much a solo experience of experimentation with the medium. Trying to answer the question: What conditions/scenarios does Polaroid thrive in? I came to the conclusion that magic hour light was the best lighting as the warm glow of that setting sun really pop, pop, popped on Polaroid. After shooting that small window of sunset light, I organically found my next obsession. Neon on Polaroid. Like a moth to the flame, I would wander the streets seeking the glowing, sizzling Neon across the US. "

Address

Carrollton, TX
75006

Website

https://polaconnyc2026.eventbrite.com/?aff=facebook

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