Did you know that you can make a working camera out of items you most likely already have lying around the house? Although they look like complicated mechanisms, basically cameras are dark boxes with a small hole to transfer light from an external subject to a photosensitive material placed inside. Follow the steps below to make a pinhole camera, using metal or cardboard containers.
Steps
Method 1 of 5: Body Building
Step 1. Choose a cylindrical can or a rectangular box
Get a container that is the size of a regular camera and that is clean. For example, you could use an old paint can, cereal box, shoe box, or coffee can. Make sure the container has a tightly closed cap.
Step 2. Paint the inside and outside of the container black
You could also cover it entirely with aluminum foil, but be careful to avoid creases and tears. This way you will avoid any reflection of light inside the box.
- Make sure you paint the cap entirely as well.
- Let the paint dry completely before continuing.
- If any paint peels off or becomes damaged, carefully repaint the box before using it for photographing.
Step 3. Determine the size of the pinhole
The distance between the hole and the film will determine the final effect of your photos. The foil will be on the opposite side of the hole, so probably on the cap if you are using a tin.
- The size of the hole is very important, because it determines how sharp or blurry your photos will be.
- For a container with a distance of 7-15 cm between the base and the cap, use a sewing needle number 70 that you will insert halfway into the container, thus creating the hole.
- Try to make a hole as circular as possible. Turning the needle as you push it in will help you get a more precise and "clean" hole.
Step 4. Create the pinhole in the base of the container
You can directly puncture the base of the container with a needle, otherwise you can make a larger hole, about 1-1.5 cm per side in the base of the box, and pierce a thin piece of paper or metal with the needle to then apply on the large hole. The second method would be preferred, because it allows you to get a more precise hole and to try again if you fail on the first try.
- If you choose the second method, take some black construction paper or a thin sheet of metal and pierce it by placing it on the large hole created in the box, then secure the material in place with strong adhesive tape.
- Good materials to use for the second method are thick aluminum foil, the malleable metal of a food container, or card stock.
- Check that the hole is well done by looking into the box from the cap side, where the film will be, and looking through the hole. Make sure you can clearly see what's on the other side of the hole. A page from a book or document will be a good object to use for this test.
Method 2 of 5: Constructing the Shutter and Viewfinder
Step 1. Cut out the shutter from the black construction paper
Opaque cardstock that does not let light through is the best material for this purpose. Make sure the cardstock is thick enough not to bend during use.
- Cut out a 5 cm square from the cardboard. Make sure this is large enough to completely cover the hole you made in the bottom of the container.
- Secure the square to the camera body with tape along one side, above the pinhole. This piece of tape will be like a hinge that will allow you to open and close the shutter when you want to block or let the light through.
- Use any type of sturdy tape, such as electrical tape or duct tape.
Step 2. Apply a piece of tape to the opposite side of the square
Use a less adhesive tape than the previous one (electrical tape is fine, the duct tape is too strong) and block the other side of the shutter under the pinhole while you are not photographing, to prevent light from filtering inside the camera..
Step 3. Make a crosshair with cardboard
This will allow you to replicate the field projected by the pinhole onto the film and will help you imagine what your photograph will look like.
- The front viewfinder should follow the shape of the film used and should be placed directly over the pinhole. Block it with glue or strong tape.
- The rear viewfinder should be on top of the camera and function as a peephole that will allow you to view your photo. You can make one with a metal washer or by cutting a perfect circle out of cardboard and gluing it to the rear sight. As before, secure it with strong tape or hot glue.
- To photograph subjects closer than five feet, position the subject lower in the viewfinder, compensating for the parallax error between the viewfinder and pinhole.
Method 3 of 5: Loading the Camera
Step 1. Choose whether to use film or photo paper
If you decide to use photo paper, you can load it into your camera in particular lighting conditions.
- Using photographic paper, you will need to load it in a room lit with a safety light, or with a flashlight filtered through at least three layers of red cellophane.
- The flashlight will need to be 2 to 3 meters away from the camera, so hanging it from the ceiling and working below it might be a good solution.
- Unlike photographic paper, film must be loaded in total darkness. Learn to load the machine with a piece of paper first in the light and then with your eyes closed, so that you get used to working in the dark, before trying to load the actual film.
Step 2. Determine the size of the photosensitive material
You will need to cut the film into smaller frames, the size of which will depend on the overall size of your camera body.
- For small cans, you can use foil cut into 6x9cm pieces. For a camera made from a 4-liter can of paint, cut the film into 10x15cm pieces. In a 1 kg coffee can you will have to insert film cut into 5x8 cm rectangles. These measures also apply to the use of photographic paper.
- Use foil film if possible, which is completely flat and therefore easier to handle.
- Make sure you cut out the paper or film in the dark. A closet should be fine if there are no gaps to let the light in.
- If you are unsure of the size of the film to use for your camera, be careful about the size of the sensitive material you will be cutting out - you can always crop the photo after developing it.
Step 3. Charge your camera
Place the photo paper or film inside the camera body, opposite the pinhole.
- In complete darkness, block the photosensitive material using loop-folded tape. You may need to put tape in all corners of the sensitive material to prevent it from curling. Absolutely do not put any piece of tape on the front of the material, as it may damage or prevent image formation.
- Make sure the side of the paper with the emulsion is facing the pinhole. You will be able to distinguish the side with the photo emulsion by its shiny and shiny appearance. For the film, however, the side with the emulsion is the one folded inside the spiral when you unfold it.
- If you can't identify the side with the emulsion, wet your finger and touch both sides of the paper or film in the corners. The sticky side is the one with the emulsion.
Step 4. Close the camera
Make it totally light-proof by making sure any cuts, cracks or holes are sealed with black paint, aluminum foil or black electrical tape. Any undesirable little amount of light that gets inside will ruin the photograph.
Method 4 of 5: Photograph
Step 1. Place the camera on a flat surface
You can either place it on a table, counter or any other flat surface, or attach it to a tripod using rubber bands or tape. Due to the sensitivity of the shutter, the camera will need to be completely still while you photograph.
Step 2. Determine the exposure time
If you use film you will only have to expose it to light for a few seconds, while in the case of photographic paper the exposure will have to last a few minutes.
- If you use film, the exposure time will depend on the ISO sensitivity of this. The higher the sensitivity, the shorter the exposure times. A 400 ISO film will have to be exposed for a time from 2 to 12 seconds, depending on the brightness of the framed subject. For a 100 ISO film the time will be between 8 and 48 seconds, and for a 50 ISO film between 16 seconds and 1 minute and 36 seconds.
- If you use photographic paper, the exposure time will vary between one and several minutes, even if there are products made for very long exposures, even up to several months!
- You will need to practice determining the right exposure time for you, but remember the basic rule of exposure: the more external light, the shorter the exposure time.
Step 3. Point the camera at the subject
Remember to take parallax into account by framing your subject a little lower in the viewfinder.
Step 4. Open the shutter
Pull up the bottom tape to allow light to pass through the pinhole. Use great care in this step, so as not to shake the camera.
- If your exposure time is several minutes or a few hours you can also lock the shutter in the open position, so you don't have to keep it open manually.
- If the place where you are photographing is windy, you can also place a heavy object, such as a stone or a shoe, on top of the camera to hold it steady.
Step 5. Close the shutter
After keeping the shutter open for the necessary time, glue the shutter back in the closed position to prevent further light from seeping into. During the exposure time, an image will have formed on the film or photographic paper. All you have left is to develop the photosensitive material.
Method 5 of 5: Developing a Photograph
Step 1. Choose if you want to develop the photos yourself or take them to a photo lab
DIY development is a process that requires several materials, including many chemical reagents and solutions, a darkroom, and, if you use film, an enlarger. Film and photographic paper used in a pinhole camera can be taken to a laboratory and developed like any other film or paper. If you decide to develop yourself, however, read on to find out what you will need to do.
Step 2. Learn how to develop black and white film
For a traditional development, three solutions will be needed: the development, the stop bath and the fixing.
Step 3. Purchase development materials
In addition to a darkroom, you will need a developer solution, a fixation solution, water, pliers, cloths, a glass plate and a security light in your darkroom. Your darkroom will need to be completely dark, except for the security light.
- You can also use orange LED bulbs as safety lights.
- You will also need 3 plastic pans, such as those for washing dishes. Fill the first with about 5 cm of developer solution, the second with 5 cm of water (used as a stop bath) to stop the development process, and the third with fixing solution.
Step 4. Remove the film or photo paper from the camera
Do this only when you are in the dark room lit exclusively with the safety light: the white light will destroy your photo.
Step 5. Use an enlarger to print the negative from the film to the photo paper
If you used the photo paper directly in the pinhole camera, skip this step. Otherwise place the negative on the negative holder, turn on the magnifier and adjust the aperture to the necessary aperture for your photo.
You may need to create a contact sheet to test the various apertures before choosing one. Make the specimen by covering the paper with black cardboard, then uncover it as you change the aperture to produce strips with different exposure
Step 6. Place the photo paper in the developer solution
After printing the negative onto the photo paper, place it in the developer bath with the forceps. Observe as the image appears on the paper and remove it from the solution, using pliers, when it reaches the desired degree of development.
- Gently shake the bowl of developer solution back and forth to wet the photo paper well.
- Always remember that the image will appear darker under white light when you come out of the dark room.
Step 7. Transfer the photo paper to the stop bath for about ten seconds
The stop bath should be plain water at room temperature.
Step 8. Using the pliers, place the paper in the fixing bath for two minutes
Step 9. Remove the photograph and wash it under running water for a couple of minutes
Hang the photo to dry, or dry it with a hair dryer.
Advice
- The most important part of building a pinhole camera is making sure the inside is completely shielded from outside light.
- If you use aluminum foil for the hole, avoid crumpling it too much and make sure the tape is completely flat and snug against the cardboard.
- If you want to overlay multiple images in your photograph, cover the shutter with black construction paper as you change the subject.
