instant photos

Self-developing film pictures

Instant photos are photographs that develop and print immediately after being taken, produced by specialized cameras that eject the image on self-developing film.

The format, pioneered by Polaroid, became iconic for its white-bordered prints that emerged from the camera and developed before your eyes: We took instant photos at the party.

Though largely displaced by digital photography, instant photos have seen a nostalgic revival.

Related

film · shake · develop · vintage · nostalgia · flash · selfie · border · white · frame · capture · moment · picture day · memories · candid · retro · print · faded

Categories
Opposites
development time

instant photosfilm photography

Image-making with celluloid

daguerreotypes · negatives · roll film · slide film · contact sheets

medium/format

instant photosdigital images

Pictures stored as data

digital photography · film rolls

physical vs. digital format

instant photosdigital images

Pictures stored as data

JPEGs · camera roll

Family

instant, photo, instants, instantly, instantaneous, instantaneously, photos, photograph, photographs

Familiarity
Top 200,000
Profile
Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Concrete · Positive · Everyday, not technical · Rated G