Edwin H. Land: Did the Photography Industry Honor Him Enough?

Edwin Herbert Land was the inventor who founded Polaroid Corporation. Attached to his name are a number of inventions which are used in photography until today. Among them were inexpensive filters used for polarizing light, and his Polaroid instant camera which takes picture taking and developing in at least 60 seconds.

Land was born on May 7, 1909 in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Land attended Harvard University to study chemistry but left Harvard after his first year to move to New York. While in New York, Land invented the Polaroid film, the first inexpensive filter that can polarize light. However, this endeavor was difficult for Land since he lacked the needed laboratory tools. He would often sneak into the Columbia University laboratory at late night to solve his problem. He scoured into the scientific literature in New York City Public Library for previous works that tackle polarizing substances. During his experiment, he produced the film that contained millions of micron-sized polarizing crystals.

Joined by his Harvard physics professor George Wheelwright, Land established Land –Wheelwright Laboratories for the commercialization of his Polaroid technology. Wheelwright’s family was financially well off so he decided to fund the company. The company’s early successes in developing polarizing filters used in photographic filters and sunglasses attracted a number of Wall Street investors who funded Land-Wheelwright Laboratories’ further expansions.

In 1937, Land renamed his company as Polaroid Corporation. Further development and production of sheet polarizers were registered as Polaroid trademark. During World War II, Polaroid was commissioned for a number of tasks which included production of target finders, dark-adaptation goggles, passively-guided smart bombs, and the Vectograph, a stereoscope that can spot camouflaged enemies from aerial photography.

At Polaroid, Land earned the reputation for marathon research sessions. Whenever he developed an idea, he would brainstorm and tirelessly conduct experiments until his problem is solved. Food was brought to him just to remind him to eat. It was said that once, he wore one set of clothes for eighteen days while experimenting on polarizing films. As Polaroid grew, Land had to hire teams that would shift assisting him in his research.

Through the last years of his life, Land continued to design optics, including the ones used in the revolutionary spy plane Lockheed U-2. Land also discovered the two-color system that can project the entire spectrum of hues using only two colors of projecting light. This theory was later incorporated in the Retinex theory of color vision.

Land died on March 1, 1991. He was 81 years old.