Polaroid Team Up With Magnum Photos

Who said perfectionism was a good thing? If you're an aspiring artist there's one piece of advice you should take heed of above all: Have the courage to be imperfect. Don't believe us? Just take a leaf out of Polaroid and Magnum's call-out campaign, awash with the slogan: 'Become the next Imperfectionist'.

The campaign in question is less of an advertising ploy and more of an act of encouragement to urge young aspiring photographers to submit their work with the chance of winning a dual sponsorship by both Polaroid and Magnum. Selected winners will be gifted the Polaroid I-2 Camera, excess Polaroid Film as well as exclusive mentorship from Magnum photographers so that the next generation of talent learns how to 'to capture real life in all shades of grey'.

What's long set SHOWstudio apart from other digital platforms is our willingness and dedication to supporting tomorrow's creatives, whether via the medium of fashion film, design or photography. No project serves as a better example than our Class of 2020 series - where we teamed up with Adam Andrascik to create an online showcase for 2020's U.K fashion graduates in response to the cancellation of Graduate Fashion Week due to the coronavirus pandemic. Joining us in our fight to have the next generation's voices heard loud and clear is Polaroid chairmain Oskar Smolokowski who exclusively told SHOWstudio:

'Together with Magnum, we want to open up the magic and creative storytelling power of instant photography to more photographers worldwide. Supporting talent and the continuous evolution of the art of instant photography is nothing new to Polaroid and we want to continue inspiring and supporting photographers within our community and the ones new to the world of Polaroid.'

There's truly no better subject than 'life' for budding photographers - one that offers infinite cultural exchanges and differing viewpoints, many of which contrast your own. The sanctity of life - and often, lack thereof - has always been a topical theme for young photographers, particularly those who favour the model of instant photography to help tell their stories. Recognising this, Polaroid and Magnum's open call doesn't just ask people to submit their portfolios, it also requests an empathy-inspired story idea to be submitted via magnum.com by 12 August, 2024, ready for winners to be announced by 26 August. Renowned Magnum photographers involved in the partnership include Newsha Tavakolian, Enri Canaj and Jim Goldberg, all of whom have illustrated a lifelong commitment to revealing the complexities of real life, the latter of which expertly uses Polaroid to convey such travails. Touching on where Polaroid's uniqueness lies, Smolokowski added:

'Polaroid photography used to be essential in fashion during fittings for immediate look reviews. Today, with photoshop, iphone photography and AI technology available, Polaroid offers a raw, authentic contrast to glossy fashion photography. Using a Polaroid camera in fashion work preserves the raw, unfiltered human emotions with all its imperfections of one unique moment.'

Picture yourself as fashion's next in-demand photographer? There's only one thing you've got to do - apply to Polaroid and Magnum's call-out now. Submissions will be accepted between 15 July and 12 August with the winner announcement taking place 26 August. For common FAQ's and the competition's submission link, click here.