Super-Sized Snapshot

Polaroid’s 20×24 cameras, built in the late 1970s and named for the dimensions of their snapshots — 20 by 24 inches, are the largest living Polaroid cameras in the world. (There was once an even bigger one with 40×80 snapshots but the film has run out.) Five of these 20×24 cameras still exist, and one resides in New York City’s 20×24 Studio. The Studio’s director, artist John Reuter, and the director of photography, Nafis Azad, demonstrate the 235-pound camera, and Christopher Bonanos, author of Instant: The Story of Polaroid,  explains how this camera fits into Polaroid’s history.

Credits

Additional Images Courtesy of: John Reuter/20×24 Studio Princeton Architectural Press Andy Warhol © Bill Ray Chuck Close, The Pace Gallery Fay and Andrea: William Wegman Studio Polaroid Bonnier Corporation SX-70: Danny Kim

Meet the Producer

About Flora Lichtman

Flora Lichtman was the host of the podcast Every Little Thing. She’s a former Science Friday multimedia producer.

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