Cool Photography - Pinhole Cameras That Will Get Your Creativity Going

By DeeDee Dobson

I am sure I’m not the only one with piles of film from my pre-digital days. I had half a fridge door full, and just couldn’t bring myself to throw it out. I needed a fun project to put it to good use.

Pinhole photography is both fun and creative, and since Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day falls on April 26 this year, now is a great time to give this technique a try.

Pinhole photography is nothing new - the basic optical principles are mentioned in 5th century BC texts from China, and the first documented photos taken with a pinhole camera are from the mid-1800s. You can make a pinhole camera from just about anything, and people do, but in most cases, you have to load and unload the film in total darkness, which can be tricky. If you do want to give pinhole photography a try, but prefer not to hide in a closet to put the film in, check out these cameras:

Pinhole Blender’s Cameras The “cookie and tea tin” cameras from Pinhole Blender accept 35mm, 120 and 4×5 film (although you do have to load the 4×5 in darkness) and come in several different configurations with 1, 3, or 6 pinholes. They all have 2 knobs on top to advance the film, and they also take a little bit of the guesswork out of shooting pinholes by providing you with exposure suggestions. These are great, affordable cameras ($20 to $80) for anyone who wants to give pinhole photography a try.

Holga Pinhole Cameras The Holga cameras, which originated in Hong Kong in 1982 and immediately became hugely popular with photographers worldwide, come in many different configurations - small and medium format pinhole among them. Both have one shutter speed (B), standard cable release and tripod threads and a pinhole opening instead of a lens. The 35mm camera has an aperture of f/175, while the medium format’s is f/192. A package including either camera, 10 rolls of film and cable release (highly recommended) is $100.

The Hexomniscope If you get hooked on pinhole photography and want to give something truly unique a try, check out the pinhole camera from Pinhole Resource. The Hexomniscope is a round, medium format (120 film) camera with 6 pinholes (f/180) and 6 shutters around its body, so if you choose to expose through all of them, you get 6 overlapping 60 degree images. It comes with a CD with instructions, and costs $1,590.

Digital SLR Pinhole Camera If you have a digital SLR and would rather work with what you’ve already got, you’re in luck. Doing pinhole photography on a DSLR is really easy - just buy an extra body cap (roughly $3), drill a tiny hole in the middle, and put it on your camera. Instant pinhole!

So What Is Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day? It’s a worldwide annual event, held on the last Sunday in April, to encourage people to take some time off from technology and get back to basics for a day. You can use any pinhole camera (homemade is fine) but you have to take the pictures on that particular day (April 26 this year). Then upload your photos (so if you use film, you need to have it developed and scanned) and submission form, and if the “Coordinating Team” selects any of your photos, they will be displayed online. - 23546

About the Author:

DeeDee Dobson adores the color pink. On her blog, she talks about gorgeous pink digital cameras and shares her ideas for cool photography