2025-08-20 03:15:00
This isn’t about the latest piece of tech or some camera fresh off the assembly line. Nope, it’s just a 1981 Polaroid Sun 660 that I hunted down for my birthday.
I’d dropped photography a few years back, tired of everything that came with it: lugging gear around, endless technical fiddling, post-production, sorting, and filing thousands of images… The whole digital routine had completely killed the joy of the moment for me.
Then I saw the ad for the new Polaroid Flip, and that instant gratification thing immediately caught my eye. The idea of just pressing a button and having a photo develop right before your eyes… sure, it takes a few minutes, but it’s still something analog, something tangible.
Before splurging on the new model (the Flip), I thought to myself: why not try out an old one first? They’re easy to find on resale sites. And that’s how I scored this Polaroid Sun 660 for about twenty CHF.
Using this camera threw me back twenty years, to when I was obsessed with lomography and those quirky cameras that produced imperfect but oh-so-charismatic results. That’s exactly what I found again with this Polaroid: photos that are sometimes dark (often very dark, actually), never technically perfect, but with an authenticity that gives them a soul.
Embracing that imperfection is what makes the camera so charming. Every shot is unique, with flaws that become its best features.
A bonus is that this camera makes people smile. Everyone laughs and everyone absolutely wants to have their picture taken with it, which is quite an advantage.
Let’s be real: at almost 2 CHF per shot, every photo has a price tag. But is that really a flaw? This financial constraint forces you to think, to take your time framing the shot, to ask yourself if the moment is truly worth capturing. Gone are the days of compulsively shooting 20 photos of the same thing. Here, every click of the shutter counts.
It forces you to think before the shot and not after..
What I love most is showing this camera to my kids, who are used to the instant gratification of digital. With the Polaroid, you have to wait 15 to 20 minutes for the photo to develop properly. If you want to share it, you have to scan it first. But most importantly, you have something real in your hands, something you can touch and feel without needing a screen.
This different approach to photography is opening their eyes to a less connected but more tangible world, and from talking with them, I can tell it fascinates them.
The Polaroid Sun 660 has made me fall back in love with photography by bringing back its contemplative and precious side. It’s a camera that slows you down in a good way, makes you savor every moment, and produces memories that are as imperfect as they are unforgettable.
2025-08-14 05:45:00
An impromptu DJ mix featuring a bunch of tracks from minimal to electro.
I hadn’t really prepped for this mix, but I remembered to hit record this time to share these few tunes.
2025-05-31 19:35:00
This mix was put together spontaneously. I just dug through my vinyl collection without a clear idea of what to play, going from label to label, rummaging here and there. That’s how I ended up with this.
You can listen to it here—hope you enjoy.
I wanted to include the release dates for the tracks in the tracklist. Well, that hurts.
2025-05-08 01:45:00
Today, here’s what I posted on Instagram:
I’ve decided to remove my posts from Instagram as I no longer feel aligned with the values of this platform. You can still access my photos at alienlebarge.ch/photos. All my active social profiles are listed on my website as well.
More info on alienlebarge.ch/quit-instagram
Yes, I’ve decided to leave Instagram for now. Maybe it’s just for a while (which I hope isn’t the case), but we’ll see.
The only thing I find unfortunate is that Instagram is the main communication channel for many companies I’m interested in (I’m looking at you, Eurorack module manufacturers). That’s why, for now, I’ll keep an account just for browsing. Maybe I’ll use services like RSS-Bridge. I haven’t looked into this yet.
Some of the reasons I’m leaving Instagram are as follows:
Now, if you want to keep seeing my photos, you’ll need to come here.
2025-04-24 14:40:00
I have created my first Kirby plugin.
It transforms handles like @[email protected] into proper links, such as <a href="https://server.xyz/@username" title="@username's profile on server.xyz." class="...">@username</a>.
I developed this plugin for personal use, but it may also be useful to others.
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge.bsky.social
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
@[email protected] changes to @alienlebarge
This is my first plugin, so I’m open to any advice.
2025-04-17 22:45:00
Kirby had been on my radar for many years.
A few years back, I went to a workshop with Bastian at Beyond Tellerand in Düsseldorf. I really dug Kirby, but I never really found the time to get into it. Or maybe it’s more accurate to say I never made the time.
Having to start paying to build my Eleventy-based site was what finally pushed me to switch. But there were other reasons too:
After plugging away at it for a few weeks, the site is finally live. It’s definitely not finished, but I figured I’d launch it once the basics felt solid. But you’ll probably find things that aren’t quite working yet. No worries.
Expect the site to change a bit over the next few days.
Alright, here we go!
