Holgaroid/Polaroid/Holga Polaroid Back

I just bought a Holga 120GCFN with glass lens for 17 pounds. It takes

awesome pictures considering its just a big lumpy peice of cheap

plastic machinery. But then I saw that you can upgrade your Holga to

take instant pitures using a Holga Back, which looks quite impressive

and all but cost 3 times as much as the Holga itself (around

60pounds). So my question is, is the Polaroid back worth getting? Is

the quality as good as any other pic taken with a Holga? Is it worth

the money? Where can I get a cheap Holga Back? And is there anyone who

wants to sell me one?

I own a Polaroid back for my HOLGA and I rarely use it. I have had a very low success rate while using the back. I prefer the look of my images on b&w or color negative film.

I have used both b&w and color type 80 films with the Polaroid back and have found that the b&w films are much sharper. My color pix always seem to come out too blurry.

My advice to you if you are going to get the back is to make sure you buy an extra camera for it so that you can shoot film and Polaroids. If you use the back you can't have film in the camera.

Jay,

I also own the Polaroid back for my Holga 120S and I love it. I'd recommend looking for a used one on Ebay, as they tend to be less expensive than one new. Maybe Kim would sell you hers?

Shooting with polaroid film has it's own challenges but I've found it to be a lot of fun. The color film I've used (Type 89) does seem more soft than the Type 84 B&W film but I don't think they're "blurry" by any stretch.

I've not run a roll of 120 through my Holga since purchasing the back. I like the immediacy of the Polaroid film with regards to both feedback and "processing."

I recognize that the back might not be for everyone, but I really enjoy using it.

<< My advice to you if you are going to get the back is to make sure you buy an extra camera for it so that you can shoot film and Polaroids. If you use the back you can't have film in the camera. >>

With the dark slide on the Polaroid back, you can easily remove the back from the camera mid-pack and put in a roll of 120 if you'd like. There's no need to carry around a second Holga body.

I was thinking of getting one of these, but I'm really not sure it's worth the expense. I just picked up an old Polaroid Colorpack 82 for three pounds in a charity shop, and it's a much cheaper way of getting Polaroid images, that still have a toycam look about them.

See my first results here - http://www.livejournal.com/users/splee/235153.html

But...if a Holgaroid back came along at the right price, I'd snap one up. I do like my Holga a lot, and the immediacy of it would be wonderful.

<i>With the dark slide on the Polaroid back, you can easily remove the back from the camera mid-pack and put in a roll of 120 if you'd like. There's no need to carry around a second Holga body.</i><br>

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yes... BUT if you want to shoot both Polaroids and film you cannot do both simultaneously. You can only shoot one or the other- regular film or Polaroid. Once you put a roll in the HOLGA you have to complete the roll before putting on the back. You can't shoot film if the back is on.

<< yes... BUT if you want to shoot both Polaroids and film you cannot do both simultaneously. You can only shoot one or the other- regular film or Polaroid. Once you put a roll in the HOLGA you have to complete the roll before putting on the back. You can't shoot film if the back is on. >>

This seems sort of obvious, but ok. The fact that a polaroid back exists at all for a toy camera is still astoundingly delightful (to me only?). I'm not sure how many people would expect that a Holga have the same level of functionality as a fully professional medium format system. But if someone were to produce a roll film holder to fit the Holga, I'd pick up a couple :)