Behind the Lens: Creating Tumbleweed with the Polaroid 20×24 Camera

Years ago, I had the rare opportunity to photograph with the legendary Polaroid 20×24 camera, one of the largest instant cameras ever made. When I learned the camera was coming to Seattle, I knew I wanted to create something with it.

The session came together quickly. I gathered objects from my ranch and drove to Seattle with tumbleweeds, found farm objects, my snakeskin boots, fabrics, and a loose idea of what I wanted to explore.

Working with the 20×24 was completely different from working with a traditional film camera. Each exposure produced a one-of-a-kind, large-format Polaroid, making every decision about composition, light, color, and placement part of the final photograph.

The tumbleweed became the unexpected star of the session. Against the fabric backgrounds, its sculptural form and delicate texture took on an entirely different character. What began as an ordinary object from the Western landscape became something graphic, abstract, and almost surreal.

The resulting Tumbleweed series is part still life, part experiment, and part of my continuing fascination with objects and imagery of the American West. The original session also produced photographs of farm objects and a self-portrait featuring my snakeskin boots.

For me, these photographs are also a reminder of why I still love working with film and vintage photographic processes. There is an unpredictability to them that changes the way you see and create.