Polaroid Spectra AF User manual

SPECTRA AF

This book contains operating instructions
for the Polaroid Spectra AF camera
(see p. 2.)The text refers to pictures
on these fold-out pages.
Este manual contiene las instrucciones
de operation de la camara Polaroid Spectra AF
(p. 23). El texto hate referencia a las figuras de
estas hojas desplegables.
•Get in close to subject (p. 20)
•Acerquese al sujeto (p. 42)
•Add foreground interest (p. 20)
•Anada interes al fondo (p. 42)
16 17

•Use color in pictures (p. 20)
•Use el color en las fotografías (p. 42)
•Keep background simple (p. 20)
•Mantegna un fondo sencillo (p. 42)
14 15

•Distant background: too dark (p. 10)
•Fondo distante: demasiado oscuro (p. 32)
•Close background: good picture (p. 10)
•Fondo cercano: buena fotografía (p. 32)
12 13
•Flash off: facial shadows (p. 8)
•Flash: apagado sombras en la cara (p. 30)
•Add foreground interest (p. 20)
•Anada interes al fondo (p. 42)
10 11

1

2
34
56

9
78

IMPORTANT
SAFEGUARDS
As with any battery-operated equipment, observe
these basic safety precautions:
1
FOLLOW ALL OFTHESE INSTRUCTIONS.
2
CLOSELY SUPERVISE CAMERAWHEN IT IS
BEING USED BY OR NEAR CHILDREN.
3
DO NOT USE CAMERA IF IT HAS BEEN
DROPPED OR DAMAGED - UNTIL IT HAS
BEEN EXAMINED AT AN AUTHORIZED
POLAROID SERVICE CENTER.
4
TO AVOID ELECTRICAL SHOCK HAZARDS,
DO NOT DISASSEMBLE CAMERA. SERVICE
OR REPAIRWORK MUST BE DONE ONLY BY
AN AUTHORIZED POLAROID SERVICE
CENTER. INCORRECT REASSEMBLY CAN
CAUSE ELECTRICAL SHOCKWHEN CAMERA
IS USED AGAIN. DO NOT IMMERSE IN
WATER OR OTHER FLUIDS.
PLEASE KEEPTHESE
INSTRUCTIONS

The camera
The camera 2
The control panel 3
Using the camera Open the camera 4
Check the control panel 4
Load the film 4
Position your subject 4
Take the picture 5
To remove an empty film pack 5
Features
The autofocus system 6
The viewfinder displays 7
The programmed flash 8
The recharge indicator 8
Flash range 9
The exposure control 9
The self-timer 11
Photographing through glass 12
Guide to better pictures
Lens care 13
Picture care 13
Film care 13
For information and help 14
Warranty 15
Troubleshooting guide 16
Picture-taking tips 20
Camera, film specifications 21
Contents
?

2
The camera a Sonar rangefinder
(sends out sound waves
to measure the distance
to your subject).
b Film door release
c Film door
d Film exit slot
e Photocell-silicon photo-
diodes
(measures light
from the scene and light
from the flash, indoors
and outdoors).
f Film shade
(protects the
picture from light as it
exits the camera).
g Programmed flash
h Self-timer indicator
i Patented Quintic lens
(three element, 125mm
lens system.)Ten-zone
focusing from 2 feet
(0.6m ) to infinity.
j Hand strap
(adjustable)
k Release latch
(opens
and closes the camera).
l Viewfinder
m Neck strap connector
(see attachment instruc-
tions that come with
neck strap).
n Tripod socket (under-
neath the camera).
o Two-stage shutter but-
ton
(press halfway to
restore the green light;
press the rest of the way
to take the picture.To
delay ejecting the pic-
ture, hold the shutter
button down).
The camera

The camera 3
The control panel a Feet or meters selec-
tor
(slide it down using
the tip of a ball-point
pen, and the distance
reading in the view-
finder will be in meters).
b Audio signal switch
(slide it down when you
want to turn off the
warning tone, beeps, or
chimes).
c Self-timer switch
(slide
it down to get into your
picture).
d Sonar autofocus over-
ride
(slide the switch
down to turn off the
autofocus system).
e Programmed flash
(slidetheswitch downto
turn off the flash).
f Exposure control
(adjust it to lighten or
darken a picture).
g Rapid-recharge indica-
tor:
Green /;gM (means
the flash is ready to fire
and you can take a pic-
ture).
h Picture counter (counts
down to show how
many pictures are left in
the film pack).

4
Open the camera
Place both hands under the camera as shown. Slide the
release latch back. The camera will open automatically.
To close the camera (picture 4):When you have finished
using the camera, close it to protect the lens. Hold the
camera as shown. Slide the release latch back. Push both
sides of the cover down until it locks.
Check the
control panel
When you want the camera to be fully automatic , be sure
all the switches are in a row as shown in picture 2.
Note: When the switches are not in the automatic mode,
there is a red mark (or green symbol for the self-timer) vis-
ible on the panel.
Load the film
Use only Polaroid Spectra color film. Other Polaroid films
cannot be used with this camera.
Push the film door release
down
.The film door will open.
Hold the film pack by its edges only and slide it all the way
into the camera.
Position your
subject
You can take the most pleasing pictures of people,
both
indoors and outdoors,
when they are
3 to 5 feet (0.9m to
1.5m) away.
Indoors:
Your subject should be within the
2 to 15 foot (0.6m
to 4.6m)
flash range. For best results, your subject should
also be near a light-colored background.
Outdoors:
Your subject should be at least
2 feet (0.6m)
away
from the camera.
Using the camera
1
2
3
4
(pictures 3, 4)
(pictures 5, 6)

Using the camera 5
Take the picture
Slide your left hand through the hand strap and hold
the camera as you would a pair of binoculars.
For horizontal pictures, hold the camera as shown in
picture 7. For vertical pictures, position the camera with
the flash on top as shown in picture 8 to get the best
results.
To remove an empty
film pack
After you take the tenth picture, the picture counter
sets to zero and three chimes sound to remind you to
remove the empty film pack.
Push the film door release down to open the film door.
Pull the blue tab to remove the film pack.
When the camera contains an empty film pack:
•You wilI hear three chimes when you open the camera
•You will hear three chimes and then see a flashing zero
in the viewfinder when you press and hold the shutter
button
halfway
5
(pictures 7, 8)
(pictures 5 & 9)

6
The autofocus system
As you press the shutter button, your camera sends
sound waves - within 10 thousandths of a second - to the
central part of the scene (approximate area circled in
white, see illustration).
The sound waves are used to measure the distance to
the person or object (in the central part of the scene) that
is closest to the camera.
A built-in computer then uses this measurement to pro-
vide the correct lens setting, so be sure that:
• The sound waves must have a clear path to your subject. If
an object (candlestick, centerpiece, etc.1 prevents the
sound waves from reaching your subject, the lens will
focus on that object, and your subject will not be clear
and in focus.
•When photographing more than one person, place
everyone the same distance from the camera.
•When taking a picture through glass, turn off the auto-
focus system.
Features

Features 7
The viewfinder displays
When you have a film pack in the camera and press the
shutter button
halfway
, a display appears in the viewfinder
to help you take the best possible picture.
When you see a
number in the viewfinder
, it tells you the
distance to your subject (in feet or meters).This number
will help you follow the distance recommendations
throughout this book.
When you see a
green “good picture” symbo l, the condi-
tions are right for taking a good picture. Press the shutter
button the rest of the way.
When you see a flashing yellow“caution”symbol and hear a
warning tone
, you should correct a problem before taking
the picture.The distance reading will help you identify the
problem.When you see:
The number 1: Your subject is too close. Release the shutter
button and stand at least 2 feet (.6m) from subject.
A number from 16 to 20: Your subject is beyond the flash
range. Release the shutter button and move closer to your
subject to keep within the 2 to 15 foot (0.6m to 4.6m) flash
range.
A number from 2 to 15: The flash is off.
Slide the flash switch up to turn the flash
back on.
Note: Distance readings do not appear when your subject
is beyond 20 feet (6.2m).
The good picture symbol

8 Features
The programmed flash
Every time you take a picture, indoors or outdoors , your
camera blends light from the scene with just enough
flash to provide the right lighting for the best possible
picture.
In the sample outdoor scene, photographed without
flash (picture 10), bright sunlight has created harsh facial
shadows.
Your camera blends sunlight with just the right amount
of flash to soften shadows and reveal facial details (pic-
ture 11).
The recharge
indicator
The Polaroid Spectra features a rapid recharge flash with
recharge times usually less than a second. The green
light on the control panel will come on and the flash will
automatically begin to charge every time you:
•Load film into the camera
•Take a picture
•Press the shutter button halfway
•Open the camera
When the green light comes on, the flash is ready to fire.
The light will stay on for 20 to 30 seconds.
If you want to take a picture after the green light has
gone off, lightly press and release the shutter button to
turn the green light back on.
(pictures 10, 11)

Features 9
Flash range
Indoors: Your subject should be 2 to 15 feet (0.6m
to 4.6m) from the camera.
Outdoors: Your subject should be at least 2 feet
(0.6m) away.
The exposure control Use the picture control when you want to retake a
picture to make it lighter or darker.
When retaking a picture to make it lighter:
Slide the control all the way up (a).
When retaking a picture to make it darker:
Slide the control all the way down (b).
Any partial adjustments will not affect your exposure.
The control must be adjusted all the way in either
direction.
After you have finished taking the picture, do not forget
to return the control to the normal position (c) .
Special situations
Pictures taken of people in highly reflective beach or
snow scenes often turn out too dark. You may want to
set the control all the way up to the lighten setting (a)
before taking this type of picture.
alighten
bdarken
ccenter

10 Features
Backgrounds too dark?
If the background of a flash picture is too dark but your
subject is well illuminated (picture 12), the background is
too far away.
Moving the control to the lighten setting will not correct
this problem, so be sure the exposure control is in the
normal position.
Retake the picture, placing your subject near a background
and keeping both within the 2 to 15 foot (0.6m to 4.6m)
flash range (picture 13).
(pictures 12, 13)

Features 11
The self-timer The self-timer lets you get into your picture.
To use this feature, place the camera on a tripod or other
steady support. If you attach the camera to a table tripod,
be sure the camera is positioned over one of the tripod’s
legs for proper support.
Frame your picture in the viewfinder and press the shutter
button halfway to be sure you get the green “good pic-
ture” symbol.Then release the shutter button.
Slide the self-timer switch all the way down (a).You now
have 12 seconds to get into your picture.
During the first 10 seconds, the camera will beep and you
will see a flashing red light (b) on the front of the camera.
Two seconds before the camera takes the picture, the red
light will stay on and the beeps will become a steady sig-
nal to remind you to hold still and smile.
After the camera has taken the picture, it will not eject the
film until you slide the self-timer switch up (c). Do not
close the camera before you slide the switch up.
If you want to stop the 12-second countdown, slide the
switch up (c) to turn off the timer.
Note:When the self-timer switch is on there is a green cir-
cle visible in the control panel.
a
b
c

12 Features
Photographing through glass To avoid focusing on the glass and getting a flash
reflection, turn off the autofocus and flash systems by
sliding both switches down, as shown (a, b).
When you turn off the autofocus system, the lens sets
for distant scenes (15 feet (4.6m) to infinity), requiring
the picture to be taken in a special way:
•Be sure the scene is at least 15 feet (4.6m) from the
camera and in daylight.
•Frame the picture in the viewfinder and press the
shutter button halfway (you will not see a distance
reading because the autofocus system is off).
•When you see the green “good picture” symbol, take
the picture.
If you see the flashing yellow “caution” symbol and
hear a warning tone, there is not enough light to take a
good picture.
Important
When you have finished taking the picture, turn on the
autofocus and flash systems by sliding both switches
up (c, d).
ab
cd