Ah Polaroid, I love your naming conventions.

Somebody over at Polaroid was a comedian. I am consistently amused and titillated by the names of Polaroid cameras.

A few of my favorites:
The Button, because it's cute as a Button, of course. Duh.
The Amigo because it's a camera! It's flesh colored! It's your friend! Not creepy at all!
Oh look! It's the Electric Zip! I hope I don't get a shock when I press the shutter! Zing!
(a. yes I am a dork, and 2. why do my fingers keep trying to type shitter instead of shutter?)
The Big Swinger. Ahem. Hmm. This was in the 70s, and there is a couple using their Big Swingers on the manual cover. I'll let you make your own assumptions.
The Cool Cam! It's cool! Hence, you will be cool if you buy this camera! Didn't anybody ever tell Mr. Edwin Land that if you have to tell people that you're cool it's kind of a self-canceling thing? In spite of all this, he was cool, and it is a cool camera. Dang.
The Big Shot. I have nothing bad to say here. This camera was SO GIGANTIC, I went from feeling like a total nerd using it to feeling like King of the World. It totally works. Plus Andy Warhol loved this camera. Done, and done!
The Square Shooter. Was this camera only for taking pictures of my friends? HAHAHAHA. Ha.
The Time-Zero. Interesting. I either want to go Orwellian (see George Orwell's 1984) with this one, or Reznorian (See Nine Inch Nails' Year Zero).
Or, it's the end of the world.
Or, hurry up go get one now before time is out!
I'm in a quandary. So I'll move on.
The Super Clincher. This one kills me. Why does it remind me of a certain posterior anatomical orifice? That can't have been what they were going for. Am I the only one? Is it a deal breaker? Or a "Clincher"! Wait, I get it!
No I don't.
And fittingly, I'll end here.

(Git you one at The Collector Detector)

Is this thing on?

Hello World. So. I used to be a programmer, can ya tell? Then I realized that I could use my evil computer powers for good instead of making zillions for giant conglomerate banks.

Good as in, spreading the love(obsession) of vintage cameras. I think that qualifies for good, yah?

So I joined my husband's vintage collectible business and now I get to buy & sell vintage cameras all day long! How cool is that! (Check me out - The Collector Detector)

Going to auctions is one of the best perks of this job - you never know what kind of goodies you'll find. And it still amazes me every time I find a Polaroid kit or an adorable 50s snapshot camera in the most incongruous of locations.

My newest baby is a teensy little Bilora Box Camera. He's currently sitting on my shelf between a Polaroid Spirit and a Brownie 8mm Movie Camera. He looks a bit forlorn, like "Who are these freaks?".

Somebody soldered a metal handle on his head. What a tragedy. I think I'll move him to the shelf with the wooden horses and that weird alien cat statue.

I got an Argus A2B delivered yesterday - it's in pretty nice shape except for a little speckling on the lensplate. For some reason I love the look and feel of these cameras and the Dasco/Pickwik/Detrola style cameras. They just scream Art Deco. Although I suppose they're a little more Art Nouveau in reality.

Ok kids, back to work for me. I've got about 100 new cameras in to clean up and get out into somebody's lucky little mitts.

Toodles!

http://TheCollectorDetector.net