The Polaroid Land Camera Model J33, produced by Polaroid between 1961 and 1963, had an Electric Eye that enabled automatic exposure, and a built-in flash that used flash bulbs and required a battery. It was also one of the last Polaroid cameras to use instant roll film. The moment a picture was taken, it triggered the chemicals embedded in the film to instantly develop that single image within the camera. In 1963, Polaroid launched pack film cameras. These cameras used individual sheets of film that developed the image outside the camera once the picture was taken.

Edwin H. Land (1901 – 1991), the inventor and founder of the Polaroid Corporation, originally developed the concept of instant photography as a hobby during World War II (1939 – 1945).