25 South Carolina to Texas (on Polaroid)
I went to Denton, TX for Pola-Con 9!
It’s been a long time since I hopped into my 2004 Toyota Tacoma for the long haul to Texas. This time around, I’d be driving to Denton, TX for Pola-Con 9, a gathering of other people that are also obsessed with this sub-medium within photography.
It’s a 14 hour drive, but instead of bringing a bunch of cameras I wouldn’t use, I decided to only shoot Polaroids on this drive.
I’d be starting my drive on my usual route through the mountains from South Carolina to Tennessee. I had to of course take the same photo I’ve taken dozens and dozens of times.
You can watch the more detailed video about this trip here:
I’d stay the night in Chattanooga, but then I’d be making a run for Texas early the next morning.
Finally making it to Denton, I wandered around a bit, but eventually found a gathering of people with instant cameras.
Denton is really into Halloween.
It was a fun trip, I highly recommend going to an event like this if you’re into a niche sub-genre of photography. You end up getting to meet a lot of interesting people who are doing things you haven’t even conceived of, and it’s easy to socialize when you all have a common thing to gush over. I came away encouraged about the future of instant film and the creativity that exists in the photography world in general.
But eventually, I had to head home.
Another long distance road trip in the Tacoma in the books. The alternator gave out in Alabama on the way back, but we got it fixed up pretty quick. I’ve missed long road trips like this, I feel like I haven’t had the chance to do something like this in a while. Originally, I wasn’t supposed to go alone, but being alone with my thoughts, music, and podcasts ended up being a really nice time.
Traveling Polaroid-only is highly preferable honestly, because it really requires next to no work on the editing or culling end of things. You just take a snapshot and move on. It’s like going iPhone-only but cooler and more fun. You should try it for yourself!
Looks like a fun trip and great photos. I have tons of Polaroids sitting on the shelf as I have always loved using them growing up. I think only one of them is useable now due to film type but these inspire me to take it out again.
Awesome photos. A lot of your subject matter seems to fit a Polaroid look; is that a deliberate thing, or do you try to shoot what you're drawn to, and it's more happenstance how well they work together?