Do out of date polaroid films work ?

Question

after watching big brother tonight and seeing them using a polaroid i was like i want a polaroid camera :) yes i know their quite dear to use as the films arent exactly cheap but i looked on ebay and their is quite a few out of date polaroid films on sale their ! so i was just wondering if anybody knew if it is possible to use an out of date film and if they do turn out ok ! thanks x

Answer 1

You never know.

The expiration date is an estimate of the useful shelf life, which means, on that date, if the film was stored under expected store/warehouse conditions, it should meet the manufacturer's specs, even if it's not necessarily 100 percent.

Obviously, the day after that, not much has changed, and so on... so you might well find this film is perfectly fine even a year later.

But that's just a guideline. Film is based on a number of chemicals, and it's not really time that causes the film to lose its potency, but heat applied over time. If film is stored under ideal conditions, it should last well beyond the expiration date. If it's stored in very hot or other troublesome conditions, it may be bad long before the expiration date has passed.

Really, the only way you can know is by shooting it.  

Answer 2

I agree with what Hazydave has said, but I have something to add: can to use an instant photo camera have a sense today? The digital cameras have a very better quality image (resolution and colours) and are really cheaper than a few years ago; by a digital camera you can take hundreds of photos and print only the ones which really interest you; the printing is not a problem: there are many small portable and battery suppled printers which are very easy to use and offer a perfect printing quality.