With the late 1970s and 1980s being a prime time for instant photography, it’s not surprising that camera companies thought about challenging the reign of Polaroid. Perhaps unknown to many today or forgotten by most, Kodak did so by releasing their doomed attempt at instant cameras and film in 1977.
“Man’s best friend makes some of man’s best pictures,” goes the intro for today’s featured Kodak camera commercial from many decades past. As the trend with many of the company’s ads and commercials from the era, it came with some suggestions on how to get the best shots of the so-called Kodak Moment — pet portraits included!
Among the photography trends that have been enjoying some sort of renewed interest in recent years is 3D photography or stereoscopic photography. As part of the film photography revival, the technique has found its way into the creative tools (and Instagram feeds) of photographers who are charmed by the unique results.
These days, sharing photos is just a matter of tapping away on our smartphones and sending photos from our camera roll on social media and messaging apps. Quick, easy, and convenient. Modern. Back in the days, however, you need to have something tangible if you want to share a photo with family and friends.
We can fault Kodak for not directing its innovations to adapt to the digital age. But we definitely can't deny that the company made some pretty significant contributions and interesting ideas to photography during its heydays.
Built-in flash and flash attachments for cameras are now so commonplace that we don't really give it much thought. But with today's featured vintage camera ad, we are reminded of a time when using flash meant slapping one of these little explosive contraptions called Flashcubes on a Kodak Instamatic camera.
With the recent vintage camera ads we've featured being on the fun and interesting side, it was only a matter of time before we spotted and shared today's commercials. If you've shot with or still have the Minolta compact featured here, you're in for a treat.