![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
Pinhole Photography: Right Back to Basics
Why Pinhole Photography? It's fun. It's creative. It's educative about the basics that photographers deal with whenever they do their thing. What is Pinhole Photography? At its simplest, a pinhole camera is just a light tight cardboard box with a piece of aluminium pie dish containing a pinhole to expose the film or photographic paper. Of course you need to design a shutter, (your thumb will do), some way to hold the film in place and a system to seal up the opening where you put the film in the pinhole camera. There is no viewfinder; you just point the pinhole camera in the right direction. You can draw some lines on top of the camera to indicate the field of view. Exposure times for pinhole photography are usually measured in minutes. Exposure Determination. Work out your exposure by the hit and miss method, also known as exposure determination by experimentation. This is where you say "Ooooh. I reckon about two minutes." Then if it turns out ok, well and good. But if it's not right, you either double it or halve it for the next exposure, depending on your assessment. Nothing wrong with that method for pinhole photography. Suitable Camera Size. Let's say you're using 4"x5" photographic paper. The diagonal of your paper is about 160mm. If you make the distance from the pinhole to the paper about 50mm to 80mm this will be ok. Length of about half the diagonal of the film. You could make the length 20mm to 50mm giving quite a wide angle. There's nothing to stop you building your pinhole camera around a four foot length of drainpipe giving you a 1200mm telephoto pinhole camera, except that the exposure time might be in the order of several hours or all day. My best pinhole cameras have used 8"x10" film and have a length of 50mm to 70mm. Everything is in focus from 250mm to infinity. Angle of view is around 135 degrees.The light runs off at the edges of the image. Note: 100mm = about 4" End of Technical Stuff. There is much more technical stuff that can be studied but that's all you really need to know to get started. So empty the breakfast cerial packet and build a pinhole camera. Practical Stuff. You can use pretty much anything light tight to make a pinhole camera: biscuit tin, breakfast cerial packet, 20 litre oil drum, golden syrup tin, jam tin, match box, black ice cream container etc. etc. Would you believe you can even use your mouth? Yes, in the darkroom put a short piece of 35mm film in your mouth and close it. Go outside and press the aluminium with the pinhole firmly against your lips, then open your lips for about 10 seconds keeping your head still. Reverse the procedure. You can work out the rest for yourself. Consider whether it will be better/easier to use the end or side of your tin/box. If you use a jam tin you can use alfoil and a rubber band for a lid. Use black paint inside a shiny tin if you have some handy. Invent a shutter. Black plastic and masking tape will do. If you decide on a jam tin or golden syrup tin with the pinhole in the side, consider using a baffle that springs tight against the sides of the tin to fasten your film too. A piece of plastic milk bottle will do. Handy items to have around are: breakfast cerial packet, masking tape, blue tack, plastic milk bottles, rubber bands, alfoil, scissors, knife, glue. Your pinhole camera will give a negative image on your photographic paper. In this modern, computer age it will be possible to scan, change to a positive and computer print. An SLR camera can be used for a pinhole camera simply by removing the lens and attaching a pinhole with black sticky tape. If you are making a pinhole, look for the smallest needle in the set. It's important to have a smooth, burr free pinhole for the sharpest possible image. Ideally, push the tapered section of the needle through in several stages, gently removing the burr with fine wet and dry paper between actions. Rest the foil on cardboard as you push the needle through so you don't stretch the foil. So Build a Pinhole Camera I think that every photographer needs to build at least one pinhole camera and experiment with it. There is so much to be learned from pinhole photography which is photography at its most basic. Laurie McArthur is a wilderness landscape photographer, based on the New South Wales Far South Coast, Australia. Laurie's images may be viewed at http://www.southimage.net/
MORE RESOURCES: Réhahn : Impressionism – From Photography To Painting The Eye of Photography AI Will Not ‘Kill’ Photography, But it Will Certainly Do This The Phoblographer Former DDN chief photographer and editor, Skip Peterson, dies Dayton Daily News Does Your Discomfort Photographing Strangers Keep You From Being a Good Street Photographer? Fstoppers The Man Who Changed Digital Black and White Photography Forever The Phoblographer Framing the Artist: Photography, Music, and the Power of Being Seen I CARE IF YOU LISTEN Learn the Color of Color: Mastering the Art of Color Photography DIY Photography Photo Focus: The magic of photography Charleston City Paper 17 delightful Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards outtakes Popular Science Enhance your deep sky workflow with Seti Astro Suite DIY Photography Costa Christ Elevates Natural Light Photography to Fine Art CandysDirt.com Julian Lennon on Photography, Life as John Lennon’s Son, and New Single with Gregory Darling Popdust Starting photography changes your POV The Baylor Lariat The Viltrox AF 25mm f/1.7 Air: Compact, Versatile, and Well-Suited for Street and Event Photography Fstoppers World Athletics Media Academy: developing new talents in journalism, photography and TV commentary World Athletics 15 breathtaking images from the Nature Photography Awards Popular Science Flo Fox, 79, Dies; Street Photographer Overcame Blindness and Paralysis The New York Times Do you really need to own more than one camera? Amateur Photographer Elane Photography v. Willock ADF Media PHOTOS: The past week in photography, stories in the Bow Valley Rocky Mountain Outlook - Bow Valley News How to photograph a supermoon Space.com Della Chen, photographer and filmmaker who told her community’s story The Seattle Times ‘The city spoke louder than ever’: Covid-19 through the lens of SF street photographers The San Francisco Standard Murphy facing two charges of unlawful photography Southern Standard Art Museum at USJ Presenting Rare Civil War Photographs http://www.we-ha.com Winners of the 2025 World Nature Photography Awards The Atlantic Me, Artist Photographer! The Eye of Photography How Christie’s $792,000 AI Artwork Auction Will Impact Photographers The Phoblographer Exhibition at The Met Illuminates the Early History of American Photography The Metropolitan Museum of Art The New Art: American Photography, 1839–1910 The Metropolitan Museum of Art 6 Best Zoom Lenses From 2020 For Every Photographer The Phoblographer Sony World Photography Awards Has Revealed the 10 Category Winners of Its 2025 Open Competition My Modern Met "I photographed a fierce storm raging along the rocky coast of Ireland with my Nikon Z9 and a super-telephoto lens" Digital Camera World Opinion | Photos are disappearing, one archive at a time The Washington Post Powerhouse awards annual architectural photography commission Architecture AU How I Fell Back in Love with iPhone Photography The New Yorker Penn State student newscasts, photography earn top awards in state competition Penn State University Sony World Photography Awards Unveils Stunning Finalists in the 2025 Professional Competition My Modern Met New images released to celebrate 75 years of Formula 1 Australian Photography AI can make you look like a master photographer Boing Boing Anderman Photography Lecture: Terri Weifenbach Denver Art Museum Eye for the Wild Photography Contest runs until April 15 Cochrane Eagle Deborah Willis NYU | Tisch New innovations and Photography pricing updates in 2025 the Adobe Blog Rebel, photographer, addict Meduza Anderman Photography Lecture: Conversation with Dawoud Bey Denver Art Museum BG photographer shares nature photography to focus on the light rather than the dark BG Independent News The Best Portable Star Trackers for Astrophotography in 2025 DIY Photography My Best Photography Advice for 2025 Fstoppers |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
RELATED ARTICLES
Digital Film Processing is Really the Only Option for Truly Quality Prints Digital photography has taken off like wildfire these days, primarily due to its ease and quality in its digital film processing. With a good digital camera, it's as though you're using the very best Kodak film for every single one of your digital photos. Underwater Photography: The Wonders Under the Sea The world of photography is an amazing one. It's been with us for quite a while now but it is constantly changing. Selecting Your First Digital Camera Purchasing a digital camera is a wise decision, particularly if you take a lot of pictures and you want to control how they are developed. Camera prices continue to plummet and Americans are exchanging their 35mm cameras for digital devices at a record pace. Using a Camcorder to Record Family Events Quickly and Easily Let's start there (but not spend too much time on it because you are probably already checked out on their use):On/Off - On some brands you actually have to find two or three switches to accomplish this. You may be required to choose between camera and VCR or VTR, you may have to open shutters over the lens or remove a lens cap, and you may have choices about snapshots, locked, standby, or video. Picture Framing for Photographers - Part 2 There are two sources for obtaining the moulding for making a frame. You can firstly start with a straight piece of timber, and using a home routing system make your own moulding shape with a rebate to take the art work. Who Had The Better Brushes Leonardo or Michelangelo? Ordinary photos of dull subjects do actually sell, but the dramatic shots generally have an unusual element that makes them stand out from the crowd. They are well-composed and they carry no excess baggage. Picture Framing for Photographers - Part 1 Imagine being able to frame all your own photographs just as well as a professional. You can save enough money to easily pay for all the necessary tools, and the convenience of being able to do it yourself frees you from having to get someone else do it. Photo Equipment Lists You arrive at your photo shoot excited about the images you are about to take - that is, until you realize that you have left an important piece of equipment at home. You now will have to improvise, spend extra money or time to replace the item, or go without it for the shot. Digital Camera Memory - An Introduction The digital camera is essentially a computer-based device, whose core is controlled by the computer. And as a result the photographs are stored in a location called memory. Becoming A Digital Artist On A Budget So, you want to become a digital artist but paying several hundred dollars for Photoshop seems too much. Don't worry, there are dozens of very inexpensive tools you can use available on the Internet. Making Money With Digital Photography And Live Events A few years ago I became interested in digital photography, mainly for web publishing and personal reasons. You know, how nice is it now to NOT have to deal with film, scanning pictures, and the costs of developing all of those "not great" photos that you didn't know were so bad until you paid to have them developed!So, at the time I got my first digital camera a friend of mine was playing in a rock band, and needed pictures for their web pages and promotional printings and ads. How To Avoid Or Reduce Red-Eye Photography with the aid of a digital camera is beyond doubt very fascinating. However, it also has many a nooks that the users of the digital camera must be aware of and also must be well educated to deal with in order to produce good photographs worth the most prized digital camera. Start Your Own Photography Business from Home Anyone with the right camera equipment, and the necessary skills can set up a home business, marketing photography. You need only to convert a room of your house into an office, and then you can work immediately. Applications of Underwater Video Cameras There's so much you can do with an underwater video camera. If you enjoy snorkeling or diving, you can use the camera to show your friends and family the beautiful tropical fish, colorful coral reefs, and other underwater treasures you encountered on your vacation. Digital Wedding Photography: Myth Vs. Reality 1. Myth: Digital photos are pixilated or fuzzy. Digital Cameras & Resolution While analyzing any camera, one of the most important qualities of a photograph that a person seeks, is resolution. This word itself needs a brief discussion before progressing onto its implication upon a digital camera. Tips for Purchasing a Digital Camera Lens Your lens is an essential element to good photographs. It's not just your camera. Safari Wildlife Photography Top Four Tips I've been practising wildlife photography on safari for over twenty years now in places like the Kruger National Park, Chobe, Okavango Delta, and Hwange game reserves and these four tips have been indispensable in making sure that I get some decent wildlife photographs.1. Camcorder Techniques: How To Make Home Movies Your Family And Friends Will Be Excited To Watch Pre-Production:It's all got to start somewhere, so before you even charge your batteries, rewind those tapes or pack the car, take a seat and have a good think about what you are planning to shoot with your camcorder. 'Planning is the key' to a good production even if you're just shooting a small home movie. Photography 101 Part 1 Photography 101 Part One Equipment: camera, meter, flash, tripod This article is a simplified photography course directed at new photographers out there who want to know where to start. If you really want to learn photography the first thing you need is a good affordable and reliable camera. ![]() |
home | site map |
© 2006 KeralaClick.com |