Using polaroids instead of digital photo is like collecting vinyl records, it has been claimed.

Reported by NewsChannel5.com, photographer Elsa Dorfman explained: "There's always people that are going to say vinyl sounds better."

However, Polaroid recently announced it is to discontinue its line of instant film, meaning photographers like Ms Dorfman have less than a year before their supply runs out.

The news has upset a number of photographers and artists who rely on polaroids for their work, such as New York-based Patrick Winfield.

"In the end it's going to come down to a business decision," he said. "The company's not going to save it [just] for these people that are nostalgic for the film."

However, Polaroid claims to have simply adapted to the changing consumer market with digital printers and has introduced Zink Imaging technology.

These portable printers heat dye crystals onto paper, developing colour images transmitted from digital cameras and mobile phones.

Steve Hoffenberg of Lyra Research recently told the New York Times that people around the world will take around 478 billion pictures for the photo album on their mobile phone this year alone.