Cameron Davis IV

Primarily shooting with a Polaroid SX-70, I have specialized in emulsion lifts (or “Polaroid Transfers”), getting one-of-a-kind images on to paper. It’s a risky process and definitely not as easy as Instagram Reels would make you believe, but I’ve destroyed enough of my photographs to have a pretty high success rate. Happy to teach you sometime :)

I’ve also taken my Polaroids, scanned them at super high resolution, and blown them up into Giant Polaroids. These are 1-of-1 prints that directly represent the original photograph. No fixing colors or adding filters. Just a high quality, archival print that is as one-of-a-kind as the photo that’s included with it.

Polaroids manifest some desire I have for the physical. And like most things that exist in the physical world, they decay and are fundamentally imperfect. A growing admiration for Wabi Sabi has created a respect for transience, that we must treasure the people and things that we can touch and feel and see because they will not be around forever. Beyond that, something about Polaroids brings a nostalgia to each moment, even if the photograph was captured just moments ago. Closing the gap between when something is deemed "nostalgic" and the present moment is important to impart with my work.

Alright, the jig is up. I’m also a comedian. I spent 7ish years in Chicago learning improvisation and comedy sketch writing. I love to perform and create, so I hope it’s not too off-putting if you met me in a comedic context (or vice versa) and are now seeing the full me. Whoops… As a true gemini, I like to keep my separate personas separate.

Jk. I’m human and contain multipedes.

Follow me at @camerondavislol for the day-to-day rigmarole.