Pinhole photography is one of the first and simplest forms of photography. In it's simplest form, pinhole photography is nothing more than placing a pin sized hole in a light proof box and exposing light sensitive photographic paper through the hole. The shutter can be as simple as a piece of electric tape held in place over the hole and removed to expose the 'film', to a full on modern day shutter.
Pinhole cameras can be made out of most anything, and have. Grade school students make them from milk containers in class. And of course you can spend plenty of money on the finest pinhole cameras that are made from fine woods, and have precision made brass lenses with holes drilled different sizes for different aperatures. If you would like more information go to my links page and click on the links for pinhole photography.
I truly feel that pinhole photography is more of an art then it is photography. When I get my normal photography shots back and have some great images. It's because I've spent hours in the field teaching myself the technical aspects of capturing images. And a lot of it is based on knowing what to do in certain situations. Not to say that luck is not involved, because it is, it's a big part of it. But with pinhole photography you really get to be creative not only with the photography itself, but with constructing the cameras and lenses. So when you set out with a camera and lens that you just built the night before. Not knowing for sure what the results are going to be. And you get those great images, with their overall fuzzy focus, dark edges, and whimsical feel. I really get excited. I hope these images excite you as much as they do me. |
