In An Instant...

(click to see them larger)

Mike and I have been taking a few Instax photos of each other when we take outfit shots. It's always trial and error with the sun. Even if we over or underexpose the image, we roll with it anyway. It kind of makes our collection more fun! Here are three from recent outfit adventures!

The top one is my all time favorite, and the picture is currently my desktop background. He's so cute!

Feeling really inspired lately! Can't wait to share goals, dreams, and current happenings with you all soon! Stay tuned for an official launch date for my e-book! And drop back by in a few hours to check out our first sponsor giveaway for November!

Is an Instax Mini or Wide on your wishlist this holiday season? Check out my 210 vs. Mini 7s review here! Maybe it'll help shed some insight on which to buy!

Instant Decoration...

Chances are highly likely that a vast majority of you either have an Instagram account or own an Instax/Polaroid instant camera of some type. They're definitely hot currently and they produce awesome small images that are fun to share with family and friends. I have over 700 photos in my Instagram, 6,500 in my camera roll on my iPhone 4 (yikes!), and several hundred Instax and Polaroids just sitting in a box on my vanity. I want to display them so badly, but we're limited on wall space. 2 of our walls in our loft are solid brick (so that's a no go!), one wall is cabinetry and my Etsy packing station (another no-go), so that only leaves the large wall behind our bed/loft (which is fully taken), and a smal area off to the side above a dresser. Phew! I've seen so many people do so many rad things with their pictures, so I'm here to ask YOU for your opinions!

For starters, here are a few fun places where you can get the most out of your Instagram photos:

PostalPix - PostalPix is a fun app you can download to your iPhone (or Droid?) to choose the Instagram photos you'd like to send off (or any photos from your Camera Roll!) and have printed! They come back in sizes 4" x 4", 4" x 6", 5" x 5", 5" x 7", and 8" x 10". I have more than my fair share of 4" x 4" (they're a really great size!) But no idea of how to showcase them! Elsie has chosen a really fun way to showcase hers, but I don't think we have the wall space to do it sadly. Still, I keep mine in a nice little box until I find a way! Even if we end up just lining them on the wall like E, perhaps I can break them up into smaller sections and spread them around the house...

Blurb Instagram Books-  If you like the idea of making them into a coffee table type book, Blurb might be the answer for you! I love this idea and it's a great idea for a special gift, but I like the option of constantly adding new ones. With this you sort of have to make a decision on where it will end (unless you buy more in the future!). Super cute, but again, not exactly perfect for us!

StickyGram - You can turn some of your Instagram photos into magnets for your fridge! I love this idea and I'd love to order a few for ours (Does anyone have an invite they'd send my way for StickyGram?!). It's a bummer that you need an invite to join but hopefully they'll open up to the public soon! Cute and functional!

What are some other Instagram tools you know of? Feel free to share below!

Now for my giant box of Instax and Polaroid photos! Yeeeesh! I don't even know where to get started with those! They're so very very special to me and I'd love to have them out on display as decoration in our home, but as usual, I'm at a loss for inspiration! I know many people do awesome Polaroid walls or hearts, and they're so super cute (and may be what we end up with), but I want to make sure I exhaust all the other options first! Rachel thrifted the perfect photo album for her Instax pictures! If only we could all be so lucky! But it's good to know I'm not the only one with this problem :) I've strung them up on twine with clothespins. I've stuck them to the wall. I've got a handful in a little wire photo holder, etc. And I still have hundreds I'd love to share! THIS is proof enough that a billion different versions exist of the Polaroid wall! 

How do you showcase your Instax/Polaroid pictures? What are some of your favorite ways you've seen it done? Bonus points if it includes pictures/links of examples!

PS; This is in no way sponsored by or affiliated with anything discussed above! I'm generally just a gal in need of some storage/organization tips for display and wanted to share any resources I currently had! And it's sad that I have to even disclose that... 

Natalie + Nathan Instax

Alison + Tyler Instax

Catherine + Michael Instax

Liz + Derek instax

Behind The Scenes: Instax Moments

Here are some Instax images from the past few weeks! I haven't used my little cameras in quite a while so it was good to show them some light finally!

Do you have an Instax camera or Polaroid you still use? Feel free to share some of your favorite photos! (How do you store/share/show your developed Instax pictures at home?! I'm looking for a creative way to showcase mine opening in our home but nothing has come to me yet! I'd love your input!)

Instax Mini vs. Instax 210

One of the questions I get very very often is which FujiFilm Instax camera I prefer over the other. Of course I welcome them with open arms because I'm pretty passionate about both of them, but I felt like maybe it was time to dish it all out in the form of a blog update and also to open up the comments to your personal reviews and opinions, too! Because this is just that... my opinion! I'd love to hear what others think! I'll forewarn you that this will be image heavy!



So we'll start with the Instax Mini since that was the first one I purchased back in November 2009! I wanted to treat myself to something nice and that cute little brown camera was just smiling at me! Let me preface these by saying this: If you want to buy them for the cheapest price, buy via Amazon.com! At least in my experience! I purchased my Mini for $70 + tax and film and I purchased my 210 for $80! I saw them at Urban Outfitters earlier this week for $105 and $135 respectively! Yikes!

Instax Mini - Choco

Pros:

• Convenient size. Easy to fit in a bag and carry out.
• Credit card size photos fit nicely in wallet.
• Photo size makes for great Christmas ornaments!
• Takes great photos indoors with low-light!
• Takes even better photos outside.
• The aperture settings are easy to understand and sensible.
• They make great impromptu business cards! (Try it!)
• Comes in different colors.

Cons:

• The picture size is half the size of the 210 yet roughly the same price.
• It is very aperture-sensitive. Easy to over and under expose!
• Really only "work" vertically. Horizontal photos are hard to compose.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Instax Wide 210

Pros:

• Larger picture size makes more of an impact.
• Comes with a close-up adapter for self shot portraits.
• Takes nice outdoor photos with decent lighting.
• Works both vertically and horizontally without appearing "odd".

Cons:

• Far from the best at indoor photos.
• Blurry shots produced if you forget the close-up adapter at times.
• Heavy and large! The 210 is very very bulky and makes it hard to carry around.

Verdict

My personal opinion is so very very torn. Mike and I have had the conversation multiple times and it's hard to really choose between the two. I love the size of the pictures from the 210, but I guess if I had to choose just one (like, life or death situation here!) then I'd go with the Mini because it's small enough for me to carry around, I can use the pictures for so many things, and it really handles low light situations well. Plus who can deny the cute and quirky personality of an alien-looking brown camera?!

But I'm interested in what you think! Do you own either camera? Which do you prefer? Are there things about each of them that would make it/break it for you? Let me hear about them in the comments!

Click through the jump below to see a whole heck of a lot of instax images! I scanned them in yesterday so why not share them?! (Note: I could've scanned them at a higher resolution so they're a bit blurry! Whoops!) Seriously... there are a lot of pictures after this jump! Haha