Film cameras
Polaroid SX-70 How to take pictures Reference guide
Reference guide for Polaroid SX-70 How to take pictures. 32 pages in English. Read the original PDF, download or print a copy without registration.
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Document details
- Brand
- Polaroid
- Model / document
- Polaroid SX-70 How to take pictures
- Document type
- Reference guide
- Language
- English
- Pages
- 32
- File size
- 6.8 MB
- Category
- Film cameras
- Document date
- Not specified in catalog
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Find a term, then jump to its page in the original PDF. Image-only pages may not be searchable; check the PDF for exact wording and diagrams.
Page 2 · Read text
CO NTENTS Opening . 4 Closing 5 Parts 6 Holding 8 Viewing 9 Focusing 10 Loading T4 Shooting 15 Daylight 16 Flash 2I Close-ups 24 Time Exposures 25 Trouble-shooting 26 Care 32 Warranty and service policies 33 Service centers and offices 36 This booklet tells you how to make good pictures with your Polaroid SX-70 Land camera. lts companion booklet, "The World of SX-70", is full of picture ideas, and information about how to use the ideas in your own pictures. To get a f ree copy, please check the box on the registration card at the back of this booklet. lf you have any questions, call us. Our Customer Service repre- sentatives are always glad to , discuss any questions about the camera. We can be reached on weekdays from 8 AM to 5 PM, your local time. From anywhere in the USA except Massachusetts, cal I 8OO-225-L384 tol l-f ree. From Massachusetts and anywhere in Canada, call collect 617 -864-4568.View original page 2
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www.butkus.us OPEN ING Hold the camera in the palm of your left hand. Lift the small end of the viewfinder cap, and pull it straightup... . . . until the cover support (A) locks.View original page 3
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& CLOSING
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Push the cover support toward
the rear of the camera.
Press down on the
viewfindercaD...
. . . until both sides of the
camera close.View original page 4Page 5 · Read text
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PARTS OF THE CAMERA
Viewfinder Viewfinder cap Focus Wheel Lighten/ Darken
control
Flash socket
Digitally signed by Mike Butkus
DN: cn=Mike Butkus, o, ou=Butkus.Mike Butkus org, email=mike@butkus.org, c=US
Date: 2025.01.26 17:12:34 -05'00'
:tf:a
Yellow bar
to open film door
Shutter button
Film compartment
Rollers
Film door (shown open)
Picture exit slot
(under front edge)
Serial number Electric eye
(some cameras)
Lens (4 element, 116 mm, f / 8)View original page 5Page 6 · Read text
The f ilm pack provides ten 3r/e x
37e inch pictures. In each pack is
a flat battery to supply power for
pictures made with that pack.
The picture counter, on the rear
of the camera, is blank when the
camera is empty, goes to 10
when a pack (even a partly used
or empty one) is inserted and the
film door is closed. lt counts
down, tells you how many more
pictures you can take. After 1O
pictures, it stops at 0, won't let
you waste a flashbulb.
t\\'ru
To make a picture lighter, turn
the Lighten / Darken control so
more white shows; to make a pic-
ture darker, turn it so more
black shows. The control auto-
matically returns to the Normal
position (shown) when the
-I camera is closed.View original page 6Page 7 · Read text
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HOLDING
Hold the camera in Your left
hand, thumb and fingers behind
the hinge (A). Your fingers should
not block the exit slot (B) where
the picture comes out of the
camera, or touch the bellows (C)
where any pressure might inter-
fere with movement of the mech-
anism inside the camera.
Hold your right hand like this,
thumb and i ndex f inger extended,
other fingers curled tightly into
the palm of your hand.
li. ,,.;
,\ -ii,
f ,;r.:
f;i,f i
Put your thumb behind the shut-
ter, without touching the bellows
(C), and put your index finger on
the focus wheel, as shown.View original page 7Page 8 · Read text
VIEWING
Raise the camera, holding it so
your eye is about an inch from
the viewfinder, and look through
the center of the eveoiece.
You should see a square black
f rame around the scene.
lf you don't see all four corners of
the f rame, move the camera
slightly until you do.
The split circle you see in the
vieMinder is a focusing aid,
which is explained on page 12. www.butkus.usView original page 8Page 9 · Read text
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FOCUSING
The key to good SX-70 pictures is careful focusing. Spend a few minutes
now learning what it means and how you do it. The care with which you
focus makes the difference between taking consistently beautiful pic-
tures and disappointing ones.
Focusing means adjusting the
lens of the camera to get the
sharpest, clearest image of your
subject in the viewfinder. You do
it by rolling the focus wheel-
just as you might focus with a
pair of binoculars. lf you tip the
camera up, you will see the lens
move in and out as you roll the
focus wheel back and forth.
That's how it focuses on an
object.
SHARP FOCUS IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT FOR FLASH
In addition to controlling sharpness, focusing also controls exposure for
flash pictures. As you roll the focus wheel, the camera automatically sets
the right exposure for the distance for which the lens is focused - from
10 inches to 20 feet. lf your subject is 5 feet from the camera, but you
have focused for some other distance, your flash picture will be too light
or too dark. Only if you focus with care can the camera give you well-
exposed flash pictures.View original page 9Page 10 · Read text
HOW YOU FOCUS WITH THE WHOLE I[/AGE Look at your subject through the viewf inder. Pay no attention to the split circle when you focus with the rvhole image. Roll the focus wheel all the way in one direction, then all the way in the other. Notice that the image changes f rom f uzzy (Iop picture) to sharp (bottom pic- ture) and back to fuzzy, Return the wheel to the point at which the subject began to look sharp and clear. Now roll it just a bit in each direction until you are sure that the most important part of your subject is just as sharp and clear as you can make it (bottom picture). As you focus, concentrate on the part of your subject that you want sharpest in your picture. For pic- tures of people, that will usually be the face. Focusing is like tuning a radio for best reception. Turn slightly past the perfect setting once or twice to be sure you have found it.View original page 10
Page 11 · Read text
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HOW THE SPLIT CIRCLE HELPS YOU FOCUS
The split circle is most helpful in dim light and for flash pictures.
Place the circle over a vertical line in your subject. The front seam of a
shirt or dress, a necktie, a scarf, a lapel, a piece of jewelry, the line
between light and dark areas, are all good examples.
Choose a line which is the same distance from you as the point you want
sharpest in your picture, not behind it or in front of it.
, your subjectWhen the line through the circle is broken O
is out of focus.
Roll the focus wheel until the line becomes continuorc . S
Now your subject is in focus.
The split circle helps you to focus, not to frame or to view. lt is placed low
in the viewfinder so it will not interfere with viewing. That means that you
may have to ref rame your picture when you use the split circle to focus.
After focusing, check to be sure you see in the viewfinder just what you
want in your finished picture. Ref rame if necessary. lf you placed the
circle somewhere on a face - the nose, the jawline or an eyeglass frame -
you will have to ref rame to center the face in the picture.
Don't change your distance from the subject after focusing. You can
move the camera up and down or from side to side, but don't move it
closer to or farther f rom the subject.View original page 11Page 12 · Read text
When the line is broken Jf - , your subject is out of focus. When the line is continuous , +your subject is in focus. After focusing, you may have to ref rame to center your subject .View original page 12
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www.butkus.us LOADING & UNLOADING Push down on the yellow bar to open the film door, which should open by itself . Never force the door open. Insert a film pack, pushing it all the way in until a narrow strip at the end of the pack (A) snaps open. Close the f ilm door. The film cover comes out. Remove it and save it to order copies. lf the f ilm cover does not come out, see page 30. To remove an empty pack, open the f ilm door and use the yellow tab to pull the pack out.View original page 13
Page 15 · Read text
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DAYLIGHT PICTURES
Your SX-70 viewfinder shows you
just what you will get in your f in-
ished oicture. This is a feature
valued by professional photog-
raphers because it allows them to
compose a picture carefully
before pressing the shutter but-
ton. With the SX-70, you can do
the same. Look at the oicture in
the viewfinder. Think about what
parts of the scene you want to Move in close when possible;
include in your picture and what make your subject the main
parts you don't want. point of interest.
Keep the background simple.
You can often eliminate distract-
ing elements from a picture by
changing camera angle. Try
shooting down from a high angle,
using the ground as background.
Hold the camera steady until the
picture comes out of the exit
slot. This is especially important
when the light is not bright. In
dim light, the camera shutter
stays open longer than in bright
light. Any camera movement
while the shutter is open will
cause a blurred oicture.View original page 15Page 17 · Read text
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LIGHTlNG
Exposure for daylight pictures
is controlled by an electric eye
that automatically sets the
lens opening and shutter speed lf the background is a large partaccording to the light condi- of the picture, and the light ontions it "sees" in the scene. the background is brighter thanThe kind of light and the direc- thg light on the subject, the elec-tion it comes from have an tric eye will set the correct expo-important effect on the quality sure for the background. Thenof your pictures. the subject will be too dark. Move
Two lighting rules to remember in close to your subject so the
for daylight pictures: background lieht will have little
.o Try to have the light fall on the effect on the exposure setting.
subject from behind you, or
from the side.
o Try to take pictures where the
lighting on the scene is even -
about as bright on the back-
ground as on the subject.
Excellent lighting conditions for
outdoor pictures of people are
found on bright, hazy days, or lf the background is a large part'
when a cloud covers the sun. of the picture, and the back-
Another good light is bright open ground is much darker than the
shade - for example, next to a subject, the electric eye will setbuilding on a sunny day with the correctexposure forthe back-
nothing overhead to block the ground. The subject will be too
light from the sky. light. This time, move in closb to
make your subject darker.
lf you want a lighter or darker
picture of the same subject in
the same spot without changing
location or lighting, adjust the
Lighten / Darken control.
Turn it so more white shows (top,
left) for a lighter picture, so more
black shows (bottom, left) for a
darker picture.
1gView original page 17Page 19 · Read text
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COLD WEATHER
At temperatures below 60'F,
keep the camera and film warm
- inside your coat or in a warm
pocket - until you are ready to take a picture. Put the develop-
ing picture inside your pocket
as soon as it comes out of the
camera, being careful not to
bend it.
lf the camera and film become
cold, development may be
affected, causing pictures to be
darker than normal and too blue
(top picture). To keep this effect
to a minimum (bottom picture),
turn the Lighten/ Darken control
one or two marks toward Lighten
and keep the developing picture
warm.
iln#
HOT WEATHER
When the temperature is over
85"F, development may be
affected, causing pictures to be
lighter than normal. Turn the
Lighten/ Darken control toward
Darken, one mark if a small
amount of adjustment is needed,
two if more is reouired. While
the picture is developing, don't
let it "bake" in the heat of direct
sunlight or on a surface warmed
by the sun.View original page 19Page 20 · Read text
FLASH PICTURES Use flash for all pictures except where there is plenty of daylight. You can take flash pictures of subjects from 10 inches to 20 feet from the camera. Insert the FlashBar array into the socket, pushing it in firmly. After it has fired all 5 bulbs on one side, remove it and turn it around for f ive more f lashes. When all the bulbs have been fired, remove the FlashBar. Pic- tures taken with a dead FlashBar in place will not be correctly exooseo. Three points to remember when using flash: . Focus carefully. o Watch the background. . Have everyone about the same distance from the camera. FOCUS CAREFULLY Focusing controls exposure for flash pictures. Inaccurate focus- ing will cause flash pictures that are too light or too dark. A Pic- ture can be reasonably sharP and still too light or too dark. THE BACKGROUND IS IMPORTANT Place your subject close to a colorful background if you can. Color adds interest to the picture, and placing the subject close to the background means that they will both be well-lit. Fair-haired people, brightly col- ored objects or f lowers are very effective against a dark back- ground. Place the subject several feet away from the background and move in close to get a big image.View original page 20
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FLASH PICTURES OF GROUPS
When a picture includes several people, they should all be about the
same distance f rom the camera so all will be lighted evenly by
the f lash.
In the left picture, the people were at varying distances from the camera
and each was lighted differently. The photographer focused on the
woman in the center, who is the only person correctly exposed.
In the right picture, everyone was about the same distance frorn the
camera and each person was lighted equally by the flash. All are
correctly exposed.
22View original page 21Page 22 · Read text
FLASH REFLECTIONS
lf you aim the camera directly at a mirror, ,7F: a ref lective surface -
shiny wall, window, photograph,
or painting - your picture will be ,a' spoiled by a ref lection of the
flash, a "hot soot." You can avoid
this problem by standing to one )l.
ln]IJ sidefromofanyouranglesubjectratherandthanshootinghead-on.
The same principle applies to
people wearing glasses. Ask
them to turn slightly away from
the camera.
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.sd6!dn:$r#iiView original page 22Page 23 · Read text
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CLOSE-UPS
Your SX-70 is especially designed
to open a new world of beautiful,
exciting close-up pictures. With
no accessories you can come as
close as 1OYz inches. The closest
pictures will show your subject
at half its actual size. Be sure
you have enough light, and hold
your camera steady. You'll get
best results in bright sunlight,
open shade, or with flash. In dim
light, without flash, you'll need to
use a Tripod Mount #111 and
a tripod.
The professional way to get a
sharp image when close to the
subject is to set the focus wheel
at its nearest setting, then care-
fully move the camera back and
forth slightly until the subject is
as clear and sharp as possible in
the viewfinder.
lf you want to get even closer,
you can. A simple close-up acces-
sory that f its over the lens lets
you take life-size pictures of
subjects as close as 5 inches
from the camera. For more infor-
mation, ask your dealer or^*.4#ffi Polaroid Customer Service.
24View original page 23Page 24 · Read text
TIME EXPOSURES In dim light, the SX-70 can make automatic time exposures as long as 14 seconds. For best results, the light on the scene should be fairly even. Indoors, a bright light orwindow in thescene maY "fool" the electric eye; the rest of the oicture will be too dark. SX-70 film gives the most natural colors when it is exposed in sunny daylight or with the light from a FlashBar, which closelY matches daylight. You can also get beautiful pictures indoors with other kinds of lighting. Although pictures taken indoors without flash may not faithfullY reproduce the colors of the sub- ject, they often have a charm and beauty that makes them even more attractive and interesting than flash pictures of the same subject would be. The camera should be on a firm support - a tripod is best - and you will need a Tripod Mount #111 (A). The Remote Shutter Button #712 (B) is helPful in preventing camera shake. Press the shutter button gently, holding it in for at least a second - you will hear the mirror flY uP. Then you can let go of the button and the camera will do the rest by itself. When the electric eYe has completed timing the exPo- sure, the shutter will close and the picture will come out and start to develop. 25View original page 24
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