They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But we still look through old pictures and can’t remember exactly where they were taken or what was going on.
So, while pictures are great visual memories, writing a few well-chosen words beneath them can make them even more special.
You might be posting your newly minted Polaroid photos on Instagram and need a caption.
Or maybe you are hanging them on your wall and want to jot down a special note under each one.
Or you might be making a scrapbook for a best friend and want to write messages on the Polaroids in it.
Whatever your reasons for wanting to find words to pair with a Polaroid picture, this article has you covered.
36 great notes to write on Polaroid pictures
- Memories in the making
- Me and you, captured on film, December 2022
- It’s the flash for me
- Do more than just exist
- Simple pleasures
- Only a fool for you
- Candid moments
- Polaroid photo dump of the best weekend
- Frozen in time
- Lately…
- We looked better in person, I promise
- Smiles for miles
- Take notes…this is how it’s done
- The stars aligned and we captured it with a little plastic camera
- Our friendship is as one-of-a-kind as this polaroid
- Girls just wanna have sun
- Times like these >>>
- All my favorite women in one place
- Soul sisters
- Moments are fleeting, memories are forever
- Take me back to summer
- Salty and happy, San Diego, 12.07.23
- Pretty girls turn heads, my girls break necks
- Thanks to Polaroid for making our messiness an aesthetic xx
- Obsessively grateful for this life
- Friends like these
- Us doing us
- When the reward is worth the risk
- The adventure crew
- The boys
- Warriors in a world of worriers
- The food dudes
- Beasts in their natural habitat
- The day we beat the crowds and got the fresh pow all to ourselves
- Chasing the sun
- Bucket list item #234 ticked off
Captions for Polaroid pictures on Instagram
Most of us are familiar with Polaroid pictures. They are taken by a camera that produces a finished print almost immediately.
They have a signature white border that is perfect for jotting down the date and place the photo was taken or for writing a special note.
Polaroid cameras have a unique filter that makes them the perfect way to give your memories a vibey VSCO aesthetic.
To get the best of both the digital and analog worlds, take candid Polaroids and then take a picture of your prints for Instagram.
If you are drawing a blank when it comes to writing something to accompany a post of your prints, check out this list of Instagram-worthy captions.
1. Memories in the making
This is a classic caption, but it is particularly appropriate for Polaroids.
No matter how advanced our smartphone cameras get, there will be something special about the candid snaps of an analog camera.
If you are handing a Polaroid camera around at a party, you are literally asking your friends to freeze memories in time.
That makes this the ideal caption to post on the gram when you share your latest batch of Polaroids.
2. Me and you, captured on film, 2 December 2022.
This makes a great caption for a Polaroid of you and your other half. Adding the date to an Instagram caption for a Polaroid is always a nice idea.
Even though Instagram will keep its own record of when you posted the picture, including the actual date the photo was taken gives this caption an old-school feeling.
A vintage-inspired caption fits perfectly with the aged aesthetic of a Polaroid picture.
You could also send this message and the Polaroid in a text to cheer someone up, because it would remind them of the good times you’ve had together.
3. It’s the flash for me
If your Polaroid picture depicts a very obvious flash, you could post it on Instagram with this caption.
This is a good way to inject a bit of humor into your post.
4. Do more than just exist
If the Polaroid you’re posting shows you doing an outdoor sport or is of you in a particularly beautiful setting, you can post it alongside this caption.
If you love adventures of all kinds, then this is the caption for you.
5. Simple pleasures
This is a nice caption for a Polaroid of you enjoying a coffee, meal, or good drink.
Alternatively, it would also make a nice text to accompany a picture of a walk.
6. Only a fool for you
If you’re posting a cute Polaroid of you and your boyfriend or girlfriend goofing off together, this is the perfect caption.
It would also be well suited to a nice photo of you two looking at each other with eyes that seem to be saying, “You are beautiful.”
7. Candid moments
If the Polaroids you want to share with your followers aren’t posed photos, then this is a lovely, short note to caption your post with.
It is a simple, accurate description of what the Polaroids show. It also has a vibey ring to it.
8. Polaroid photo dump of the best weekend
If you’re sharing a series of Polaroids that you took on a weekend away or on a holiday, you could caption the post “Polaroid photo dump of…”
This adds an extra twist to the idea of the photo dump, which is a popular way of sharing photos on Instagram.
Photo dumps are basically just a series of photos that relate to a specific event or time period, or just that all have something in common.
A Polaroid photo dump is a cool concept that takes two popular Instagram trends and combines them.
9. Frozen in time ❤️
One of the qualities that sets film photos apart from digital ones, is that they make you feel like you have captured a fleeting moment.
Because we can always lift our smartphones back up, press delete, and re-capture a moment in a similar photo, our on-screen photos can feel like they’re a dime a dozen.
This caption for an Instagram post of a Polaroid is a nod to the unique feeling film cameras give us of having captured a moment that only existed once.
10. Lately…
Use this caption if you’re sharing a series of photos taken over a longer period of time.
For example, you can use it if you’re sharing Polaroids that you took over the course of a month.
There may not be much to tie the Polaroids together, because they might all have been taken on different days.
This caption will help your followers make sense of why you are posting them together.
They’ll understand immediately that the Polaroids you’re sharing are a kind of summary of the last little bit of your life.
Don’t be surprised if people hop into your DMs and you find yourself constantly responding to “What’s up?” if the photos you’re sharing look like you’re having a really fun life.
11. We looked better in person, I promise
A funny Instagram caption can often boost the number of likes a post gets.
If you are sharing a blooper-style Polaroid of you and a friend not looking your best, this caption will add just the right tone to the post.
Given all the posing and self-promotion that happens on social media, people always appreciate someone who isn’t afraid to laugh at themselves.
12. Smiles for miles
If you’re sharing a group photo in which everyone is smiling, this is a cute, not-too-serious caption to post alongside it.
The rhyming gives this caption a fun-loving feeling, which will perfectly complement your Polaroids.
13. Take notes…this is how it’s done
You could use this caption on a particularly cool Polaroid of you doing something difficult, such as surfing an epic wave.
Or, you could use it on a silly photo of you doing something objectively ridiculous. For example, if you were in a hot dog eating contest, you could use this caption on a picture of you with ketchup all over your face.
Okay, sure, most people reading this probably don’t enter hot dog competitions, but you get the idea!
14. The stars aligned and we captured it with a little plastic camera
If you’re sharing a Polaroid of you at a reunion with old friends, this is a lovely caption to post with it.
It is both witty and sincere, and is suited to any kind of reunion, whether that is a school reunion, a meeting with an old friend, or anything in between.
Captions for polaroid pictures for girls
While there is a lot of overlap between what a girl and guy might write on the bottom of a Polaroid, there are many caption ideas that will tend to appeal more to girls.
Get ready for a whole heap of “girly” sentiments and cute ways to describe female friendship in this next part of the list.
And don’t worry, the boys will get their turn next.
You might want to take a sharpie to your physical picture and caption it IRL. Or you might be looking for a good, girly caption for a Polaroid you’re posting online. Whatever situation you’re in, this section has you covered.
15. Our friendship is as one-of-a-kind as this polaroid
Polaroids are unique. Once they’ve been printed, you can’t reprint them.
This is a beautiful idea that you can incorporate into a caption about friendship.
If you’re creating a Polaroid wall in your bedroom and want to write something on a picture of you and your bestie, why not choose this?
16. Girls just wanna have sun
The Polaroid you’ve taken will need to feature the sun—and you and your girlfriends—if you want this caption to make much sense.
If you took Polaroids during a day out at the beach, this would be a great thing to write on one of them.
Whether you keep it in your wallet or add it to your Tumblr, these words are the perfect addition to your picture.
17. Times like these >>>
“>>>” means “greater than.” So, this text essentially means that times like the ones you’re having in the picture are the best.
This is a cute way to express a longer thought in just a few symbols, which means it will fit perfectly on the bottom of a Polaroid.
18. All my favorite women in one place
If you have a Polaroid of a group of your girlfriends, this note adds a nice touch to the photo.
Calling your friends your favorite women brings home the idea that the picture means a lot to you and has captured a very important part of your life.
19. Soul sisters
These are the perfect words to write on the bottom of a Polaroid of you and your best friend.
Soul sisters are two women who connect as sisters on a spiritual level, even though they are not actually related.
So many girls and women feel this about their best friends, so writing it on a Polaroid is a nice expression of how much you care for your bestie.
20. Moments are fleeting, memories are forever
Polaroids capture fleeting moments and turn them into memories that will last forever.
That makes this the ideal thing to write on an instant picture, especially if it was taken in the middle of a fun social event or an adventure.
21. Take me back to summer
If the leaves are starting to turn, you might look at a picture of you and your friends soaking up the sun and just want to be back in a bikini.
If that’s the feeling that comes over you when you look at a Polaroid, you can write “Take me back to summer” on it.
You could also include the year if you want to make sure you never forget when it was taken.
22. Salty and happy, San Diego, 12.07.23
“Salty and happy” is a classic caption for a beach photo.
Add the place and date to help you remember which beach you’re standing on when you look at your picture in a few years.
23. Pretty girls turn heads, my girls break necks
If you and your girls are all dolled up in a Polaroid, this caption is a great way to go.
If you got it, flaunt it, and if you know that you and your friends look good, don’t be afraid to own it.
24. Thanks to Polaroid for making our messiness an aesthetic xx
There is something wonderful about film photography’s ability to make “unkempt” look “vibey.” If you have a great outdoor photo of you and your friends, why not add this funny text to it.
It shows that you know you probably smelled terrible, but that Polaroid’s natural filter has somehow just made you look cool.
Captions for polaroid pictures for boys
Guys tend to share less on social media than girls, and they also tend to take fewer photos.
The upside of this though, is that the photos they do take tend to be more epic.
They will always want to capture the particularly exciting times. As soon as someone is up a rock wall, or riding the barrel of a wave, the camera seems to come out.
Guys’ photos tend to be more adventure-based, and fewer and further in between.
This means that the captions they write on Polaroids will have a different feel to the ones girls use.
If you are a guy who wants to share a Polaroid on social media, here is a list of notes you could include as captions.
You can also just write them on the bottom of your Polaroid using a sharpie and keep the photo in your wallet as a keepsake of a great time.
25. Obsessively grateful for this life
Showing gratitude for the good things in your life is a good look.
In fact, gratitude is a great thing to write about when you’re bored, because it can boost your mood and give you a new perspective on things.
You can also show it publicly by posting this caption with your Polaroid on Instagram. Or you can just keep your gratitude to yourself and write it on the bottom of the photo as a self-care exercise.
Focusing on the positives and expressing appreciation for the good things in our lives never hurts.
26. Friends like these
This is a great thing to write on a picture of you with a group of friends. The idea is that you can’t find friends like yours just anywhere, and that you can’t go wrong with friends like the ones you have.
It is an affectionate thing to write on a Polaroid that depicts you and your closest frines.
27. Us doing us
Whether you’re hanging out of the side of a tractor or alley-ooping on a basketball court, caption a photo that’s characteristic of you and a friend with, “Us doing us.”
All friendships look a little different. Whatever it is that makes yours special, capture it in a Polaroid and add this text to it.
28. When the reward is worth the risk
Do you have a Polaroid of you winning a competition? Or of you injured, showing off the fish you’ve just caught?
Whatever the success you achieved was, it you captured it on camera, this should be your go-to caption.
29. The adventure crew
If you have a picture of you and the boys in full kayaking gear, riding horses, or carrying trekking backpacks, this is the text to write under it.
Especially if you’ve taken a picture of you and a group of guys that you tend to do outdoorsy group activities with, this caption is ideal.
30. The boys
There are roughly three types of friendship: best friends, close friends, and acquaintances.
Some men spend their time with just their best bro. Others spend it with a small group of their closest buddies.
Still others tend to hang out with a big group that they would loosely define as their friends.
Whichever camp you fall into, there is surely a group that you spend time with.
If you have a Polaroid of all of you together, “The boys” makes a great caption.
31. Warriors in a world of worriers
This caption only really works if the Polaroid it is under features you and your friends doing some kind of difficult physical activity.
You might have war paint on because you’ve just finished a football game.
Or, you might be all decked out in camo because you’ve been paintballing. Let’s just say you’ll know the right picture to use this text on when you see it.
32. The food dudes
There are no ifs, ands, or buts, about it. You know this note would be perfect for a Polaroid of you and your bros sitting down for some epic chow.
Whether you’re sitting down to big burgers, a table-length pizza, or a brightly colored sushi boat, you and your friends + food = the food dudes.
33. Beasts in their natural habitat
Again, another good caption for a photo of you and your boys in the wild.
Whether you were swimming, hiking, climbing, or doing something else that justifies calling yourselves beasts, add this caption to the Polaroid you took.
34. The day we beat the crowds and got the fresh pow all to ourselves
This one’s for the ski photo. If you know, you know.
Picture fluffy white powder and evergreen trees and you and the boys all decked out in good gear.
If your polaroid looks anything like this, this is the caption for you.
35. Chasing the sun
This makes a great caption on a surfy photo, or on a photo of you climbing a mountain just before sunset.
Or, really, for any photo that has any sun in it.
36. Bucket list item #234 ticked off
Are you standing in front of a famous monument? Are you on top of an epic peak? Are you dressed in an elaborate costume in the middle of the Rio de Janeiro carnival?
This is the kind of caption you have to save for a special moment, but it gets across the point that what was happening was an out-of-the-ordinary, once-in-a-lifetime event.