Polaroid Retinex is new round framed instant film to celebrate colour theory
Oct 9, 2023
John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
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Polaroid has announced a new Polaroid i-Type Color Film Round Frame Retinex. It was designed to celebrate the Retinex colour theory of Polaroid founder Edwin Land. This theory explains how we see and understand colour.
The new film is a special limited edition, according to the company, with each box containing 16 shots. There are 10 distinct frame types, with each offering an interesting way to present your photos.
Polaroid Retinex – 10 unique frames
Polaroid has a strange, TVA-style introductory video for the new film that I would have loved to have been able to embed above. However, Polaroid has disabled embedding, for some reason, so I can’t. You’ll have to just visit Polaroid's YouTube channel to see it.
The new limited edition Retinex film is available in packs of 16. Each of those shots contains an exposable area surrounded by a circular frame. There are ten distinct frames, and you could pull any one of them in any given sheet, but I suppose you probably won’t know which you’ll get until you’ve made the shot.
Celebrating Edwin Land’s Colour Theory
Edwin Land’s colour theory looks at how our brain not only sees colour but how it can also be confused. The way colours interact with each other can completely change how they look. It’s a similar sort of concept to the way colour magazine prints and computer screens work.
Colour magazines and computer monitors use differently coloured tiny dots to make our brains see a completely different single colour. Polaroid exploits that effect here to produce some quite unusual frames.
These limited special edition frames are a genuine tribute to Polaroid’s rich heritage, allowing photography enthusiasts to own a piece of our history. It’s a fusion of science and design that embodies our commitment to innovation and Edwin H. Land enduring legacy.
Polaroid Chairman, Oskar Smolokowski
Price and Availability
Polaroid i-Type Retinex Edition film packs are available to buy now individually, or in two-pack and three-pack options for $33.99, $67.98 and $101.97 respectively. There’s no discount for the larger combos. They all work out to $33.99/pack.
John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
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One response to “Polaroid Retinex is new round framed instant film to celebrate colour theory”
Hi there,
just a quick note: The Polaroid photos below in the article where my mail address is shown are not by me, but by Francesco Sambati!
Best regards, Julia