i just bought an sx-70 land camera a few days ago uniformed of the discontinuation of time zero film and so was very very glad to find your incredibly helpful website. i am definetely a visual learner and this was thorough and fantastic! thank you so much. i was afraid i wasn't going to be able to use my new beauty. i look forward to modifying mine soon, thanks again for you willingess and efforts to share this with the rest of us!
mark

hello - i just bought a sx-70 land camera as well. i removed the black nubs on the film cartridge and it seemed to load smoothly. however, it did not eject the black card and continues to make a 'whirring' noise. could you please help as to what you think the problem might be.

thank you,

sarah

DOes anyone know any sources for inexpensive 28mm neutral density filters ?

if you can't find a 28mm ND2 or find it too expensive, the alternative is to purchase a Corkin ND2 filter. It's a square filter that can be adapted for an camera. I bought one (it's 85 x 85mm) and am going to cut the size i need from it, like Adrian did for the cd cover. You can probably get four from the one piece of filter. So, keep one and sell the rest!

Thanks for the info. I held out on buying an SX70 on ebay and just came home with one from a local thrift store for $3 (!!!).

This is a long shot but I thought I'd ask. I noticed that Polaroid has made an offical adapter kit which includes the ND filter for the Japanese market. Does anyone know if anyone is offering those kits in North America? Or an english friendly Japanese site that will ship to Canada?

I can be reached at the name above via googles mail service.

for the filter, try here at unsaleable.com

I bought the official polaroid filter but still got pictures completly white (even turning the darken/lighten dial). I was wondering if I could follow your suggestion and add another stop by replacing the photocell with a white plastic...any help would be greatful...
Thanks a lot !

i haven't yet made the mod to my sx-70 but will have to soon being that I only have two more packs of time-zero left in my stockpile :-( but once i do, will i get the same "old" look from the 600 film? i love the washed out color and hues of yellow and blue that often come through with time-zero. will i still get this effect? will different neutral filters make a difference?

I have a SX70 model 1000. its a non-folding one.
this one :
http://i24.ebayimg.com/06/i/08/81/2d/0b_1.JPG

well the lens sticks out way more as you can tell. and the viewfinder is different and square shaped. any instructions as to how to convert a model 1000 camera to the same way so that 600 film runs smoothly with it?
Thank you.

Thanks for the informative tutorial (I found it when searching for information on the official Polaroid ND kit for my SX-70.)

So, if I were to find the Coolpix ND4, would I then have no need for making the clear plastic circle to place over the photocell?

Nice job on the visual demo. I'd read the web page put out by Polaroid but was hesistant to make the suggested mods because I didn't want to screw things up. I will try them today. Thanks!!

Also, for those who would rather buy something pre-made and don't mind spending the money, I found a merchant out of CA. The site is: http://www.sx70s.com/products.html I got this link from the Japanese site SX70 Forever at: http://www.sx70.jp/e/index.html

Please note that I don't endorse either one of these sites as I have no experience with them, I'm just trying to be helpful.

Cheers.

I located a Hakuba 28mm ND4 filter at J&R (go to www.JR.com) for $4.98. There are limited quantities. It fits great on my SX70 Sonar. I did not remove the light meter's ND filter, and even though it is an ND4 filter, I can see just fine through the viewfinder. However, the pictures I have taken in full daylight are a little washed out, so it still requires some tweeking with the light meter (dark/light knob) to get a properly exposed photo.

Is there a way to adjust or modify the electronics of the camera to recalibrate the photo sensor to the faster film?

Thanks for posting all this. I bought my SX-70 off ebay the other day and was ensured by the seller that the film was still available. Your post has helped me immensely! Thanks :)

When adjusting the old SX-70's for 600 film, you must bear in mind that the new film is actually ASA 640, or a bit MORE than two stops faster. With an ND-4 filter [a 28mm, screwed into the lens tunnel or a 38 mm jammed into an accessory holder] you will have to take the L/D control about one notch to the dark side. The fact that the old shutters have probably slowed down a bit over 30 years doesn't help, either! An ND-8 filter, which reduces light by 87.5%, rather than 75%, actually works well in bright sunlight, and yields very warm colors. With that, you could go one notch to the lighten side and do well, too. With all of those options, there is really no point in removing the light cell filter. Another point: When using the 28mm screw-in filter, you have the option of removing it for truly spectacular flash coverage, with lighting for ASA 150 film being looked at by ASA 640 film. I've lit a room 30 feet deep with a 2350 flash -- just by taking the ND-4 filter off!

Exposure Cell Filter removal:
Hi, I just removed the Expos. Cell Filter and replaced it with a (thick) business card holder. That's what holds your identification when visiting a conference or similar. The PROS:
- thick enough so it would stay flat
- easy to cut (scissors)
- you do not need to force the ring in place. It clicks in easily.
- Of course this gives only 1 stop gain -> I took a shot positioning the darkening wheel to -1 and exposure was dead-on.
Good luck, regards, Volker

Hey everyone,

Just want to let you all know that a brand new film has been developed for the SX-70. It's called SX-70 Blend. It's made from the original cartridge, so it fits perfectly into your camera. It provides more vivid colors, better resolution, and sharper contrast than any of its predecessors. The ND filter is built into the cartridge itself, so the results are precise and and there's no darkening of your viewfinder. It's part of a new production from the Netherlands and fresh until 2008.

I've got it in-stock and available for sale at www.lordofthelens.net

I just used a piece of plastic off a blister card, like what a Hot Wheel comes in or something. Sliced it out with scissors with a quickness.

Hi! This mod is very helpful, but I was wondering if you can manipulate the 600 film like you could with the time-zero film?

Thanks,

JN

I just force my 600 or 779 filmpack into the camera. It works all the time. Kind of like a punch into it. It seems like that little spring thing in the middle catches it. It's kinda tough to cut the nubs off the pack with scissors every time, so it's nice to have a quicker alternative (of course, I could remove the center thing... but the pressure from the metal flap is probably necessary(?)) I also have an official Polaroid ND filter. I'm not sure what value it is, but I'm guessing it's a -4 filter. It adheres to the front ring. I really wish I had the info to readjust my camera to accept 640 speed film.

try keh.com for 28mm nd 4 & 8 filters. they usually have a handful for only $3 each, way cheaper than that japanese stick-on

So I just found an SX 70, until now I've been using an autofocus sx 70 and that's worked out very well after I removed the small density filter, I tried the same out with this new SX 70 I found, which is considerablly older, I believe one of the first made with brown real leather and silver body, and with the exposure set all the way to darken and the density filter replaced with a clear plastic circle, it still gives me ultra bleached photos. They all seem to have a white haze over the top of the images even after modifying it as much as I did my Autofocus SX 70, the bottom of the shots are ok looking but then fade into a bleached white towards the top of the polaroid, I'm wondering, is the white haze simply from the 600 film speed problem or could there be something wrong with the camera, it seems to be in excellent shape!

I bought a Cokin P153 (ND4) filter, as it was 10 Euros in the grabbelbin, and the 28mm B+W was 40 Euros. Used a 2 Euro coin to get the size right. Its a piece of work to grind down to the correct size with a leatherman, but is doable in about 30min, your milage may vary. For the cover of the lightsensor I used a thick plastic foil (the Cokin filter came in it), you can cut it with sissors, no need for the cd case operation. works perfect for me.
Thanks for the inspiration, I think I shot 20 pols on the first day I did the conversion :-)

I have a SX-70 Sonar OneStep and followed your instructions on putting the 600 cartridge into the slot. But when I close the camera, the dark slide is not ejected. Nothing really happens actually. Does this mean my SX is dead?

David, That doesn't necessarily mean the camera is dead. If you didn't hear any sound and nothing happened when the film was loaded then maybe it was just a bad pack of film. Are you by chance using expired film? If it was new film then yes the camera might be history. Cheers!

I bought my ND filter from CKC Power who is selling a 28mm ND4 filter for 12 dollars plus shipping.

http://www.ckcpower.com/filters.htm

Got it right away and it works perfectly with my first generation SX-70:
http://img39.picoodle.com/img/img39/8/6/11/f_polaroidm_e129256.jpg

Anyone know if there's a zoom lens available for the SX-70? I know the Japanese site posted above offers one, but I was wondering if there was a cheaper alternative. Thx!

Hey Guys !

Great tutorial ..

I was doing some massive internet research before buying the sx-70. I'm from europe where its very hard to get the same filters as in the US and shipping is just to expensive .. Any europian guys here who could help me out ?

And what is realy the best ND? number you can get for a sx-70 Alpha ?

Thanks a lot ,

Rick

There is NO LONGER any need to destroy your SX-70, or to darken the viewfinder with a screw-in filter or a cheap stick-on filter. There is also no need to buy grossly overpriced "Blend" film!

Just slip a $5.00 [3 for $14.95] durable and multi-re-usable PackFilter into the 600 or 779 pack, OVER the dark slide....and away you go! I've sold over 400 sets of 3 of them in just a couple of months on eBay, and they're working very nicely! You're using inexpensive 600 film from Wal*Mart, but the camera thinks it's good old T/Z!

Three new ideas:
1. For the filter, shoot one 135 simple B&W film if you have an old 135 Camera laying around. Simply photograph a clean background. Make it unsharp, so you have no structures, but that should not really affect the result. When you measure the middle of a white area it will exposure to 50% grey. But that´s for a virtual print. In the developed negative it will be more bright like i remember this. so simply take a series starting at +1f exposure in steps of 2/3f to may be -8 or more like you think. As a result you should have a nice series of nd filter. Thats only for the photocell! Or try old pieces of developed other film.
2. next idea. You don´t need optical quality for the cell! Take some nd folie for movie light equipment. Should be much more cheaper! Kodak had also nd filter folies, but they were not so cheap as i remember, they are optical quality.
The best is to gather for a swatch-book, the samples should be big enough to cut more filters out of them. (Rosco, Strand).
3. What about an resistor adding in the circuit? any electronic freaks out here?

As I love this tutorial, I am wondering one thing. How do you achieve these results with a OneStep/Time Zero SX-&0 non-folding camera? I did the card trick (where you insert the card so that the nubs don't catch the spring) with my Time-Zero OneStep and it worked fine. But I tried with my regular OneStep and it didn't work. The button (sorry, I'm so horrible with remembering names of stuff) that is pushed to take the photos, seems to be pushed inside and won't let me take photos. Ack!

Basically, I would love more info on the non-folding OneStep's & TimeZero camera's & how to properly modify it to accept 600 film.

I apologize in advance for daftness, incorrect camera terms, etc. I just simply enjoy taking photos and overlook the "camera speak". LOL!

The comment above about the Packfilters is dead on. I've bought one from this fella on ebay and it works fantastic in my SX-70.

Is the cartridge a battery too?

I just the a "Polaroid: The Button"

It had three cards in it that weren't used;
the camera doesn't work though.

Does it need a new cartridge for more cards and battery power?

Hi, I just bought an SX 70 and have no film to test it with. It seems to be in very good shape, but when I press the shutter button I can't see any shutter closing like with a normal SLR camera - just get a short click. Does this type of camera rely on a battery in the film to make the shutter work?

I just want to thank you for the SX-70 help and to tell you that your site has some wonderful fun information and images.

Great tutorial! Just picked up my sx 70 after more than a few years of neglect and was both disappointed and shocked to find Polaroid had discontinued Time Zero film. Now I'm on a quest to find a solution for this unfortunate truth before the pumpkins down the road are harvested. Curious to learn what Paul, above, is referring to when he describes the $5 Packfilter which allows one to fool the camera into behaving like it's loaded with Time Zero. Paul? Anyone?
It's so great to witness all this sharing of ideas. Remarkable!

wow if it wasn't for you i think i would have just thrown the camera out! is it possible to get the same effects as the time zero film? Where can i buy a 28mm n/ filter?
thanks for helping everyone with this problem!
boyd

Hi -

Thanks for a great tutorial - worked like a champ on my Sonar Onestep. Before that I tried the Packfilter advertised above, and it almost ruined my camera as it would jam inside all the time.

Your method works great - thanks for putting it up for all to see!

Thanks so much for the detailed explanation, that was reaaaaally helpful! Do you happen to know what's the best procedure to adjust my sx-70 1000 polaroid camera? The only difference that seemes to be is the square objective!

How about, after installing performing the mod with the sensor, I simply turn the exposure knob to -1. Would this give me a needed one stop? Thanks, M

Quick way to get the 600 cartridges in: swipe the cartridge across the pavement a couple of times to "sand off" the nubs. Been doing it for years and it works like a charm!

Hello guys, would like to know if any of you knows where I can buy an sx 70 converted, ready to shoot !
Tks

Looks like you can buy SX-70 film again, though not from Polaroid.

http://www.sx70blend.com/

I looked on ebay for the Packfilters but could not find them. Does anyone know where or who is selling them? Thanks.

and what about the sx-70 sonar one step camera, does it needs nd filter too?
thanks!

Would you know if there is a video/film about the SX 70 camera? I am a librarian and a teacher asked for the video - I'm not finding any mention of a film about this camera.

Thanks for the help.

Thanks for posting this how-to. I shared with on my blog http://photography.uber.com/

FORGET ABOUT ND4 FILTERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think it's a good idea to remove the cell filter and using an ND2 filter, either for the lens or for the filmpack (for the pack it seems there are only ND4 out there?!)
Why? THE CAMERA WILL EVIDENTLY USE FASTER SPEEDS, AS SUGGESTET BY THE PHOTO CELL!
You will gain one stop, a big difference in low light situations! Cheers, Knut.

Since the lense of the One Step SX-70 Polaroid camera is different that the one showed above, how do i change the lense, without breaking the camera?

or do i just slide the tab all the way on the dark side?

AAAAAAAAaarrghh its sooo annoying to get film. its soooo rare and expensive and i want sx-70 not crappy 600. why did polaroid discountinue its production? Its supposed to be a one step camera!!!!

yea where can we find the $5 pack filter now?
Filters all seem to be so costly everywhere. I found one on Ebay but its $25!

Is the paul guy still selling em?

I have a problem, i have the ND Filter over the lens and I've changed the photo cell, and it worked great. Only a few days ago it was taking photos like this:

http://i28.tinypic.com/zs48k.jpg

and today with the same light conditions, and expoure settings its taking photos like this:

http://i30.tinypic.com/mw2vif.jpg

Can anyone help?

hi, thanks a lot for the tutorial, really usefull.

I did change the filter, but didn't use a CD ; i used a PIECE OF PLASTIC FROM A WATER BOTTLE ; it's VERY EASY to cut and not thick at all ; it took me 10 minutes with a cissor. Of course you need a white translucent bottle, not blue or green colored.

hi. i recently found a polaroid one step land camera and it takes sx70 film. i'm wondering if this tutorial will work for my camera or if i need to do something else, if so, what would it be?

thanks sososos much for this! i got my camera for 2 bucks at a second hand store and i just got all my 600 film off ebay. Its taking a few photos for me to figure out the right setting on the light meter but i'm so happy i can use the camera!

x

this is definitely a helpful tutorial. thanks for it!

although what if i use 600 with my sx-70 without any filters? how bad would the quality turn out? are there any samples i could take a look at of photos without filters?