Polaroid

Meet Alex Alex has been working as an iOS developer here at Polaroid for a little over two years. Back at university, he found that his course in computer science wasn’t quite moving as quickly as he would’ve liked, so he turbocharged himself by reading books and watching tutorials. Fast forward and Alex is now working on improving our apps – his favorite project thus far has been pimping out the Polaroid iOS app with photo editing tools. He also codes in his spare time too – and not just coding, he’s a jack-of-all-trades who designed, developed, tested and published his own app for tracking finances. He couldn’t find one that suited his needs, so he just made one instead. Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/e7bMNrgE When not behind a screen, Alex loves to skateboard. At least three nights a week he’s outdoors skateboarding through the streets. Despite being able to clear 12 stairsteps at a time on his skateboard, he still claims that most of the time he’s just trying to avoid breaking any bones. 

Meet Seetha In 2022, Seetha decided it was time to shake things up. She’d always dreamed of living abroad, yet despite her extremely supportive parents, it was only after many loving assurances from her sisters that she finally took the plunge. Originally from Kerala, she was working in Bengaluru in Karnataka when she decided to swap southern India for northern Europe and moved to the Netherlands – without ever having set foot in the country beforehand! At first she was struck by the difference in culture, in particular office and working culture, but she’s since become enamored with this beautiful little country. Though Seetha has only been with Polaroid for less than a year, she’s got more than a decade of Android experience under her belt. She loves the fact it’s open source as well as the freedom she has to create on the platform – seeing something she’s built out in the real world and being used by the public still gives her kicks to this day. When feeling less adventurous, Seetha likes to read or binge thriller crime shows on Netflix. When feeling more adventurous, she loves a good solo trip. Her favorite destination to date is Manali in northern India, with scenery to die for and the best paneer cheese she’s ever tasted.  

For the first time ever, Magnum Photos and Polaroid have partnered to elevate instant photography through the eyes of photographic storytellers. The partnership features the photographic approach and craft of Jim Goldberg, Newsha Tavakolian and Enri Canaj, 3 renowned Magnum photographers known for their deep, empathetic storytelling and commitment to capturing real life in all its complexity. Together, we’re also launching an Open Call to discover new photographic storytellers who prefer real experiences, mistakes and authenticity over the often futile search for perfection. The open call invites all photographers worldwide to submit their photography portfolio (digital, analogue or Polaroid photography) and an idea for an empathy inspired story. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/enuwnr9B Open from July 15 until August 12, 2024.

Meet Jennifer Since joining Polaroid in 2012 (technically she joined the Impossible Project), Jennifer has spent over a decade working on our film chemistry. Starting out as a Junior Photo Chemistry Engineer, she’s now Team Lead for Chemistry and Film and spends every day running experiments to uncover and implement improvements wherever they can be found. Improvements aren’t the only thing Jennifer has been able to find – one month into the job she met a certain Senior Operator who would later become her husband and the father to their three kids! Growing up in Greece and now living in Germany for over 20 years, Jennifer’s a bit of a polyglot, being fluent in English, Dutch, German and Greek. She’s also a certified Zumba instructor. After being frustrated one too many times by classes being canceled and never being allowed to choose the music, she and a girlfriend decided to take matters into their own hands and get qualified. When not doing chemistry, working out, or seeing her friends, Jennifer’s guilty pleasure is watching horror movies. Sparked by watching Freddie Kruger films when she was young, she can’t get enough of anything that offers the chance of a good jump-scare.

Meet Julie   Julie’s been the HR Manager for our offices in Amsterdam, New York and across Asia for a year and a half, joining us after completing an internship in Germany. Originally from a city close to Manila in the Philippines, she worked for an international engineering firm for eight years before winning a scholarship for a master’s course in Spain. Since then, there’s been no looking back, and she’s taken full advantage of being in Europe to indulge herself in as much traveling as possible – Italy is her favorite place so far.   When not traveling, Julie likes to lean back with a good book and has recently discovered a growing love for science fiction, which all began after she learned of the Trisolaran threat (if you know, you know). Her other principal hobby is trying to meet all the cats and dogs in her neighborhood, which she takes very seriously. Almost as seriously as her adoration for Taylor Swift.                                                                                  

Meet Angelina   Angelina’s been part of the Polaroid team in France for over three years. She’s changed roles a few times, but has always been working in the marketing space and is currently our Wholesale Marketing Manager for EMEA. Angelina loves working in retail marketing because of the tangibility of seeing your work out there in the real world.   Outside of work, Angelina enjoys hitting the town with her friends now that she can again! Both her own and the kids of her friends have now reached an age where they can be trusted at home, which means they can finally go out together to restaurants and bars on their own again. She’s also obsessed with travel and checks out new destinations as much as she can – later this year she’s off to Japan for three weeks. Unbeknownst to many, Angelina sports a full back piece and full sleeve tattoo – back in the day when her friend was beginning his career as a tattoo artist, Angelina more than happily volunteered herself as a model!

Meet Sam   Sam has been part of the Polaroid team in Amsterdam now for almost a full year, joining last year in July. Working as a Digital Product Manager, Sam’s proof that career pathways come in all shapes and sizes – after trying his hand at two different courses at Bournemouth University in the UK, he decided that studying just wasn’t for him. He started working for a tech start-up in London doing some data entry on a temporary basis, and within five years he'd climbed his way up the product ladder to the role of Group Product Manager. His two self-proclaimed strongest talents; his ability to translate technical concepts to business types and his ADHD, which he sees as his superpower at work.   He relocated to Amsterdam to start at Polaroid where he helps to manage the Polaroid app and everything connected to it. While he’s really enjoying the Amsterdam raving scene, he also has his sights set on securing his skipper license so he can chase his dream of sailing across the Atlantic. 

Meet Hatti   Hatti began working at Polaroid almost a decade ago when we were still the Impossible Project based out of Berlin, but her connection with us stretches back even further. While studying photography in the UK, she attended a workshop run by Impossible and never lost contact with the team she met that day, and built on the relationship by testing new film and shooting sample images. So when she had to decide where to complete her internship, there was only one logical choice. Her first assignment with Polaroid was in the deep end in the best possible way – a month-long Impossible Project roadshow across the US, visiting stores and conducting workshops. When she got back to Berlin she turned her hand to social media, content creation and running the studio sessions, and now here in Amsterdam she’s our Senior In-House Photographer.   Hatti is currently working closely with John Reuter to master our largest format, 20x24. John runs the 20x24 Studio in New York and has become like a mentor to Hatti, working together on a bunch of different projects, including a recent 20-day project at the Venice Biennale. Outside of work, Hatti’s loves include fancy dinners, her British short hair Cecil, tattoos, and her eclectic taste in music which stretches from Norwegian black metal to 70’s tunes. 

For the release of the Polaroid B&W 600 Film – Monochrome Frames, it’s not just the frame color that’s new. Our team in the Lab in Enschede have overhauled the chemistry for richer detail, lighter contrast, and more reliable results. Jennifer Haster, the Team Leader for Film & Chemistry, explains how they did it: 1. With our current B&W chemistry, we noticed a slight browning to in images over time. The positive (the image you see printed) was reformulated to create more reliable results that experience less browning. 2. Our old black and white chemistry paste was comprised of 18 materials. However, one of these chemicals was removed, which ledto an increase in TBHQ - a chemical that improves contrast 3. To get the best possible results, the team had to experiment and tweak the various levels of TBHQ alongside other chemicals including the alkali levels. This created the best contrast and detail. Have a look at the new film frames here: https://lnkd.in/eFUZWifF  

Meet Ruben   Ask Ruben and he’ll tell you that dreams can come true. He’s been obsessed with Polaroid since purchasing his first 600 series camera back in early 2018. The purchase was inspired by the discovery of some old instant photos of his dad in a cabinet, and he now owns over 100 different Polaroid models. In 2019 he drew the attention of our creative team who reached out to ask to use one of his photos on our packaging, and on learning that we had our factory in the Netherlands and we had an opening on the team for a Quality Technician, he dropped out of uni and chased the opportunity.   It's now 2024 and Ruben has grown into a Product Coordinator working from our Amsterdam office, though he goes back to the factory weekly to keep tabs on the R&D and quality projects running there. His passion and experience have made him into a real link between the two locations. When not at work, Ruben likes to hit the road to discover abandoned locations all around Europe and document them on Polaroid photography, regularly taking five or six different cameras and up to 50 packs of film on each trip!   Check out his award-winning shots here: https://lnkd.in/eehfxcXe