Good to see you back, Dan! Great review, you make some good points. It was useful to see the shadow comparison due to different flash positions. As for the SLR 680 outer shell, I wouldn't say it is made with "premium materials". It's made of plastic and covered with vinyl, originally.
The common sentiment most Polaroid enthusiasts share. "We want Polaroid to succeed, but these new cameras absolutely suck". I'm absolutely shocked by this too, because the after the i1, they released the Onestep2 and Onestep+, AND THEY WORKED! My Onestep+ is giving me so much more consistent, not too over exposed shots, unlike my garbage Now+ that overexposes in daylight, and underexposes indoors.
It really is head scratching how much better the OneStep 2 and OneStep+ were than the current lineup. Exposure is everything, if I could still point people to those cameras I would.
I love the sharpness of the I-2's lens but it's just a touch too wide and I think the exposure issue is a fatal flaw, I can't get consistent auto exposure on it even adjusting it to negative a bit (though that does help)
This video wasn't what I was looking for. I'm trying to find anyone documenting the process of adding batteries to old 600 cameras so I can use i-type film in my '86 Glow-in-the-Dark Polaroid. This just happened to pop up in the results and I got curious. But I'm so glad I watched it. I thoroughly enjoyed it, the production quality was great, and the information was conveyed well; clear and concise. My jaw hit the FLOOR when I saw you have under a thousand subscribers! I'd have expected anywhere from 15k-250k with the quality of your content. I'm not sure if what you'll put out will be for me but I'm gonna sub anyway to hopefully see you hit your fourth digit soon and see what else you've got coming up :]
I work as a professional photographer and I have just bought and used the i2 for the first time today… totally loved it, I am old enough to have started my working days in film and now work totally in digital - but for this, the i2… I will be charging to use this in fun shoots and will have made back the punches price plus by using it professionally and I guess that is the difference in how I am looking at this camera.. love the ability to control in manual, working using the app as a cable release is brilliant and the ability to use external flash is just so good… what I would love is a small clip on wast lever viewfinder, which I will make myself and the view finder central framing took no time at all to get use to. Haha as for the exposure compensation comment… if to the left if -2 then the 1 on the left does not surely need a - beside it…? Just saying
Excellent review, I'm getting used to shooting with the I-2 and I'm enjoying it so far, not the perfect camera tho. Would have preferred a manual focus lens, better closeup capabilities, and definitely an interchangeable battery. I'm still looking for a video of how to dismantle the camera and see how to get to the battery, and how would it be to change it in years to come. On a side note, I'm a studio shooter and the I-2 isn't compatible with 2.5mm stereo cables, you need a 2.5 MONO cable to make it work and those are getting hard to come by. I learnt this the hard way: By wasting film and looking like an idiot in front of the model. About the overexposure issue, I can picture the polaroid technicians arguing how to solve the fact that "Polaroid film needs a lot of light to look good", so they decided to bypass the meter and overexpose. In my completely manual tests with an external incident light meter the camera seems accurate.
Excellent overview. I kinda want one but I have a Mamiya universal press with a lo-fi Polaroid back. So I have all the manual control and I can change lenses. Have you thought about looking into the TL70+ from Mint?
I also can’t get around the lack of manual focus. I think if you’re gonna give manual controls, which might be used for night photography for long exposures, the autofocus isn’t gonna cut it :/ someone else already mentioned in their video that it struggles to focus at night (understandably), so why not give the option to manually focus?
One of the many reasons I don't understand the overhype around the slr680 is the fact that you're stuck with the internal flash. Though I guess that's probably good enough for most people, and most of the external flash options weren't exactly compact. Nor are many people shooting SX-70s with remote flashes.
I’m stuck on purchasing either the slr 680 or the I-2. I like the features on the I-2 but I’m not a fan of it’s battery, and the slr 680 is just classic. While it does depend on the film, would you say the outcome of the photos are relatively the same in terms of sharpness and exposure etc? which one should I get??!
i think the 680 will hold it value and the i2 will be half the price by Christmas.. The film is all the same "recipe", so a bit garbage in, garbage out, i personally would prefer the glass lens and sonar on the 680. interesting video re camera differences, or lack of nowadays ruclips.net/video/B_DNq1_J1hE/видео.html
I was genuinely hyped when this camera came out, maybe a bit disappointed because it's not an SLR. I've been to the live demonstration of this camera in Rome, I was even considering buying it, but after trying it out.. meh. The viewfinder just sucks. I love symmetry and properly framing every shot (film is expensive!) and this viewfinder just ruins it. The lens if sharp as hell, that is true, but at this price point, I am better off with my refurbished SX70. Nowadays you can get full manual control on the folding SLRs with a new PCB and a bluetooth dongle and for less money.
Assuming you don't want shadows, they can be eliminated by having the subject stand at least 3 feet in front of the wall. For $600, you can get a real DSLR.
I would really love it if Polaroid would put all of it's R&D into making their instant film as good as it used to be. I would love to use my vintage One Step on a regular basis but the film is terrible. This is what people want... good Polaroid film for the millions of Polaroid cameras already in the world.
I have owned so many different Polaroid cameras over the years and I find the I2 to be the best by far. The lens is sharpest I have experienced on a Polaroid and I'm getting consistently good results which means I'm not waiting film.
It’s ridiculous the I-2 has THE SAME EXPOSURE ISSUES AS POLAROID CORP CAMERAS. They develop the film and they developed this camera for that film natively. Compensating -1/3 like you’re using an SX70 or 600 is madness. Let alone, as someone without glasses not being able to read the viewfinder display clearly and see what I’m shooting at the same time There are times using this camera I almost feel suckered having bought it. I only hope this exposure thing can be fixed via a firmware update.
I mean, maybe $350-$375. But yeah, it needs to be cheaper, and they need to ask the users what they want. Gather ideas, and spitball with the community that uses the product. The film. And the cameras.
Good to see you back, Dan! Great review, you make some good points. It was useful to see the shadow comparison due to different flash positions. As for the SLR 680 outer shell, I wouldn't say it is made with "premium materials". It's made of plastic and covered with vinyl, originally.
The common sentiment most Polaroid enthusiasts share. "We want Polaroid to succeed, but these new cameras absolutely suck". I'm absolutely shocked by this too, because the after the i1, they released the Onestep2 and Onestep+, AND THEY WORKED! My Onestep+ is giving me so much more consistent, not too over exposed shots, unlike my garbage Now+ that overexposes in daylight, and underexposes indoors.
It really is head scratching how much better the OneStep 2 and OneStep+ were than the current lineup. Exposure is everything, if I could still point people to those cameras I would.
i recently bought black impulse portrait and polaroid spirit, impulse was 25 usd and spirit too
Ok, how are there not more likes on this video. So underrated
I love the sharpness of the I-2's lens but it's just a touch too wide and I think the exposure issue is a fatal flaw, I can't get consistent auto exposure on it even adjusting it to negative a bit (though that does help)
This video wasn't what I was looking for.
I'm trying to find anyone documenting the process of adding batteries to old 600 cameras so I can use i-type film in my '86 Glow-in-the-Dark Polaroid. This just happened to pop up in the results and I got curious.
But I'm so glad I watched it.
I thoroughly enjoyed it, the production quality was great, and the information was conveyed well; clear and concise. My jaw hit the FLOOR when I saw you have under a thousand subscribers! I'd have expected anywhere from 15k-250k with the quality of your content. I'm not sure if what you'll put out will be for me but I'm gonna sub anyway to hopefully see you hit your fourth digit soon and see what else you've got coming up :]
I work as a professional photographer and I have just bought and used the i2 for the first time today… totally loved it, I am old enough to have started my working days in film and now work totally in digital - but for this, the i2… I will be charging to use this in fun shoots and will have made back the punches price plus by using it professionally and I guess that is the difference in how I am looking at this camera.. love the ability to control in manual, working using the app as a cable release is brilliant and the ability to use external flash is just so good… what I would love is a small clip on wast lever viewfinder, which I will make myself and the view finder central framing took no time at all to get use to. Haha as for the exposure compensation comment… if to the left if -2 then the 1 on the left does not surely need a - beside it…? Just saying
Excellent review, I'm getting used to shooting with the I-2 and I'm enjoying it so far, not the perfect camera tho. Would have preferred a manual focus lens, better closeup capabilities, and definitely an interchangeable battery. I'm still looking for a video of how to dismantle the camera and see how to get to the battery, and how would it be to change it in years to come. On a side note, I'm a studio shooter and the I-2 isn't compatible with 2.5mm stereo cables, you need a 2.5 MONO cable to make it work and those are getting hard to come by. I learnt this the hard way: By wasting film and looking like an idiot in front of the model.
About the overexposure issue, I can picture the polaroid technicians arguing how to solve the fact that "Polaroid film needs a lot of light to look good", so they decided to bypass the meter and overexpose. In my completely manual tests with an external incident light meter the camera seems accurate.
Polaroid just did a firmware update to the I-2 that fixes the exposure issues. Check out the most recent reviews. Very positive to the I-2.
Excellent overview. I kinda want one but I have a Mamiya universal press with a lo-fi Polaroid back. So I have all the manual control and I can change lenses.
Have you thought about looking into the TL70+ from Mint?
I also can’t get around the lack of manual focus. I think if you’re gonna give manual controls, which might be used for night photography for long exposures, the autofocus isn’t gonna cut it :/ someone else already mentioned in their video that it struggles to focus at night (understandably), so why not give the option to manually focus?
One of the many reasons I don't understand the overhype around the slr680 is the fact that you're stuck with the internal flash. Though I guess that's probably good enough for most people, and most of the external flash options weren't exactly compact. Nor are many people shooting SX-70s with remote flashes.
I’m stuck on purchasing either the slr 680 or the I-2. I like the features on the I-2 but I’m not a fan of it’s battery, and the slr 680 is just classic. While it does depend on the film, would you say the outcome of the photos are relatively the same in terms of sharpness and exposure etc? which one should I get??!
i think the 680 will hold it value and the i2 will be half the price by Christmas..
The film is all the same "recipe", so a bit garbage in, garbage out, i personally would prefer the glass lens and sonar on the 680.
interesting video re camera differences, or lack of nowadays
ruclips.net/video/B_DNq1_J1hE/видео.html
I was genuinely hyped when this camera came out, maybe a bit disappointed because it's not an SLR. I've been to the live demonstration of this camera in Rome, I was even considering buying it, but after trying it out.. meh. The viewfinder just sucks. I love symmetry and properly framing every shot (film is expensive!) and this viewfinder just ruins it. The lens if sharp as hell, that is true, but at this price point, I am better off with my refurbished SX70. Nowadays you can get full manual control on the folding SLRs with a new PCB and a bluetooth dongle and for less money.
I-Type SLR camera is the way to go.
Thank 💚 you for your review. This Christmas 🎄 I will buy an old vintage Polaroid SLR and not the I-2.
J.
Assuming you don't want shadows, they can be eliminated by having the subject stand at least 3 feet in front of the wall. For $600, you can get a real DSLR.
I would really love it if Polaroid would put all of it's R&D into making their instant film as good as it used to be. I would love to use my vintage One Step on a regular basis but the film is terrible. This is what people want... good Polaroid film for the millions of Polaroid cameras already in the world.
I have owned so many different Polaroid cameras over the years and I find the I2 to be the best by far. The lens is sharpest I have experienced on a Polaroid and I'm getting consistently good results which means I'm not waiting film.
It’s ridiculous the I-2 has THE SAME EXPOSURE ISSUES AS POLAROID CORP CAMERAS.
They develop the film and they developed this camera for that film natively. Compensating -1/3 like you’re using an SX70 or 600 is madness.
Let alone, as someone without glasses not being able to read the viewfinder display clearly and see what I’m shooting at the same time
There are times using this camera I almost feel suckered having bought it. I only hope this exposure thing can be fixed via a firmware update.
not being able to see the viewfinder display sounds more like a you problem than polaroids.
Edwin Land's patents would have expired by now. Anything patented prior to 2004 will have expired at this point.
This camera is beautiful, like a bigger brother to the Polaroid go, it’s quite amazing to hold in hand
I mean, maybe $350-$375. But yeah, it needs to be cheaper, and they need to ask the users what they want. Gather ideas, and spitball with the community that uses the product. The film. And the cameras.
Maroon.