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Polaroid SX-70 Sonar Onestep Sears Special - Black with Chrome Front and Brown Leather

The SX-70 is a folding single lens reflex Land Camera first produced by the Polaroid Corporation in 1972. It was the first instant SLR in history, and the first camera to use Polaroid's new integral print film, which developed automatically without the need for intervention from the photographer.

 

The SX-70 has a folding body design, a 4-element 116mm f/8 glass lens, and an automatic exposure system. The camera allows manual focus as close as 10.4 inches (26.4cm), and has a shutter speed range from 1/175s to more than 10 seconds. This makes the camera incredibly versatile, and it can be used in pretty much any situation, from portraits to long exposure photographs.

 

This type of SX-70 is the "SONAR Onestep". Quite literally it is one of the best model of SX-70 cameras available.

 

The main feature of this amazing model is its AUTOMATIC FOCUSING system. When the shutter button is pressed halfway, a series of ultrasonic chirps is emitted from an electrostatic transducer located under a gold plate above the lens. These chirps travel to the subject and bounce back to the camera’s receiver, alerting the camera to the subject’s distance, and the lens is turned via a motor to focus accordingly.

 

Don't think for a second that this automatic focusing is gimmicky! Simply put, its one of the most accurate automatic focusing systems ever made, and will outperform most new digital SLRs. It can focus from infinity down to 26cm in under 1 second!

 

Of course, you can over-ride the auto-focus and focus manually with the touch of a button if you want to.

 

The SONAR SX-70 models also features a tripod socket as well as a neck strap, to make the camera more portable to carry around. Most standard SX-70 models did not have these features.

 

This particular model is the rare "Sears Special" version. The Sears Special was a effectively an SX-70 Sonar branded for sale at "Sears" stores (a chain of retail stores in the USA). It differed from standard models in its color scheme, which featured a mix of both black and chrome look panels and brown leatherette.

 

The Sears Special was originally covered in a cheap "porvair" vinyl leatherette. This was removed and the camera was reskinned with genuine brown cowhide.

 

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Uploaded on February 8, 2014
Taken on May 18, 2013