Pinhole Cameras

A pinhole camera is a simple camera without a lens and with a single small aperture — effectively a light-proof box with a small hole in one side. Light from a scene passes through this single point and projects an inverted image on the opposite side of the box. The human eye in bright light acts similarly, as do cameras using small apertures.

Up to a certain point, the smaller the hole, the sharper the image, but the dimmer the projected image.

A pinhole camera's shutter is usually manually operated because of the lengthy exposure times, and consists of a flap of some light-proof material to cover and uncover the pinhole. Typical exposures range from 5 seconds to hours and sometimes days As far back as the 4th century BC, Greeks such as Aristotle and Euclid wrote on naturally-occurring rudimentary pinhole cameras. For example, light may travel through the slits of wicker baskets or the crossing of tree leaves.

A pinhole camera consists of a light-tight box with a pinhole in one end, and a piece of film or photographic paper wedged or taped into the other end. A flap of cardboard with a tape hinge can be used as a shutter. The pinhole is usually punched or drilled using a sewing needle or small diameter bit through a piece of tinfoil. This piece is then taped to the inside of the light tight box behind a hole cut through the box. The best pinhole is perfectly round.

Pinholes (homemade or commercial) can be used in place of the lens on an SLR. Use with a digital SLR allows metering and composition by trial and error, and is effectively free, so is a popular way to try pinhole photography.Special features can be built into pinhole cameras such as the ability to take double images, by using multiple pinholes, or the ability to take pictures in cylindrical or spherical perspective by curving the film plane.The concept is very closely linked to Camera Obscura

http://www.exploratorium.edu/science_explorer/pringles_pinhole.html

You can also make them with 35 mm film

http://alspix.blog.co.uk/2005/12/31/matchbox_pinhole~428481/

How to Make a Pinhole Camera



Pinhole cameras are easy to make and fun to use!

You will need to bring these items with you to your next lesson.

A box with four sides, a bottom and a lid (a shoebox would be best). It would be best to paint the inside of this in matt black beforehand so it is dry.

A sheet of black sugar paper or a roll of tinfoil

Sellotape

Scissors

A needle or drawing pin

Bluetack



1. First, you will need to make sure that no light can get into the box once the lid is on, so

tape up any rips or joins. (Don’t put the lid on yet though!)

2. Cut a hole in the side of the shoebox.

3. Cut out a square of sugar paper or tinfoil. Make sure it’s bigger than the hole and then tape it to the inside of the box so the hole is covered.

4. Take your drawing pin or needle and very carefully make a small hole in the centre of the foil.

5. Create a lens cap over the front of the lens that you can easily remove but keep lightproof.

6. In the dark, bluetack a piece of photo paper on the opposite side of the box to your hole. Tape up the lid of the box and ensure the lens is covered up.

7. Take your camera to the position you want, point the tinfoil end of your camera towards something bright & expose for 10 seconds in the first place ( it will take some experimentation with exposure time depending on the lighting conditions and the size of your aperture & box).

8. Bring the box back to the darkroom. In the dark, open the box then develop, rinse then fix the paper.

9. Take digital images of the whole process and research camera obscuras and pinhole cameras so you can add it to your sketch book.

Links
Alternative Photographic Processes