New Polaroid Mod instant camera lands with four creative modes

The new Polaroid Mod

(Image credit: Polaroid)

The newest product from Polaroid is the Mod, further refining and deepening the rebooted company’s relationship with instant analogue film and its long association with the creative classes.

Up until now, Polaroid’s modern era of cameras (like this summer’s Go Generation 3) has been pitched at the intersection of point-and-shoot convenience and love of tangible physical media. Mod retains the analogue form factor that has been part of the Polaroid ethos since the original 1972 SX-70 camera and which has been thoroughly revitalised under the brand’s new ownership.

More importantly, the Mod offers a freshly flexible approach to instant photography, adding to genre’s rich colours and inevitable unpredictability with four dedicated creative modes to dial in. These include Split Shot, which puts two separate exposures on one photo, a motion freeze function that uses the flash to fill in a crisp image atop a backdrop of motion as well as a double exposure function.

Finally, there’s a Light Painting mode, or as a photographer would say, a long exposure. Couple these functions with the immediacy of the Polaroid system and you have instant art; in the company’s own words, ‘spend the day creating shots that would take AI one minute’.

Polaroid’s original USP as the only way of achieving instant imagery hasn’t been relevant for decades, so the company is doubling down on its heritage and its unique ability to turn a moment in time into a single, tangible, physical object. A Polaroid is a precious thing, especially in what the company is quick to call ‘a world chasing speed and pixel-perfect results’.

‘Pod encourages photographers to slow down, experiment and embrace the curiosity, play and unpredictability that make analogue photography unique,’ the company says. Stine Bauer Dahlberg, chief product officer at Polaroid, describes Mod as having ‘creative experiences built into the physical design of the camera. That’s why the four shooting modes sit directly on the dial rather than behind menus or settings… A lot of the engineering work went into making each mode intuitive to use while still giving you room to play with the result. We wanted the camera itself to encourage you to try something different every time you pick it up.’

Polaroid Mod, available now from Polaroid.com, @Polaroid

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Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House, and co-edits the long-running things magazine weblog.