 
In the world of photography, with its glossy
magazines, expensive cameras and sophisticated lenses, pinhole
photography is probably one of its best kept secrets. In fact, you
don't need a fancy camera, or even a lens, to take great photographs!
All you need is a lightproof container, some photographic film and a
pinhole. Not only is pinhole (ie lensless) photography easily
affordable, but it is incredibly satisfying and terrific
fun! If you haven't already tried it then perhaps I could persuade you to
give it a try.
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I first became interested in pinhole photography
in 1998, and have been hooked on it ever since. I was once asked, "Why
pinhole photography?". I struggled to find an adequate explanation,
however after some reflection I offered the following explanation:
Pinhole photography can be absorbing, affordable,
alluring, artistic, beguiling, bewitching, captivating, challenging,
charming, compelling, compulsive, delightful, different, enchanting,
entrancing, engaging, engrossing, enrapturing, enthralling, expensive,
experimental, fascinating, fun, gripping, inexpensive, irresistible,
intriguing, magical, riveting, spellbinding, uncommon, unusual,
scientific, simple, time consuming and unique, but not necessarily all
of these things at the same time!
If you are already a pinhole photographer and have
a website of your own then you might like to consider joining the
Pinhole Photography Ring.
This page contains a number of links to useful
resources that relate to such things as: pinhole cameras, exposure,
reciprocity failure, books, links, etc. I will add to it, from time to
time, as I come across other items that I think may be of interest, so
please bookmark it and visit this page again if you are interested in
pinhole photography.
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A pinhole camera need not be very sophisticated.
All you need is a light tight container, such as a biscuit tin, some
way of mounting the film in the camera and a pinhole of a suitable
diameter, in place of a lens. For any given focal length there is an
optimal pinhole diameter which produces best results.
With an ordinary camera, the depth of focus
reduces, as the aperture increases. With a pinhole camera, all
distances are in the same focus because the aperture is extremely
small. In other words, a pinhole camera appears to have infinite depth
of focus. This means everything in the field of view is in focus.
When designing your pinhole camera it is important
to choose a pinhole diameter that is appropriate for the focal length
of your camera. The focal length is the distance from the pinhole to
the film plane.
Whilst a precision pinhole is not absolutely
necessary, knowing the diameter of your pinhole is helpful! The list of
photography links includes
suppliers of precision laser drilled pinholes.
Eric Renner's excellent book Pinhole Photography - Rediscovering a
Historic Technique contains a table of focal lengths versus
pinhole diameters.
It is important to paint the inside of the camera
with matt black paint, to reduce internal reflections.
Some Web sites that are solely devoted to pinhole
photography give detailed information on how to build a pinhole camera.
Some of these sites are included in the list of photography links.
If you do not feel inclined to build your own
pinhole camera, there are plenty of companies around that would be
delighted to supply you a camera that meets your requirements! Once
again, have a look at the Web sites listed in the photography links.
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Amateur Photographer magazine
announced the arrival of a 120 roll film pinhole camera called Zero
2000 in the UK on 7th April 2001.
These limited edition cameras were made in Hong
Kong by the Zero Image Company. The Zero
2000 is made of kiln-dried teak from Thailand and
hand-turned brass (dimensions 5.25" x 3.25" x 1.75"), weight 250g
(1lb), has an 0.2mm (0.0079") diameter pinhole, f-number 138, focal
length of 25mm (1"). Angle of view is 130 degrees. Image circle is
87.5mm (3.44"). It takes 120 roll film, 12 images to the roll, a film
counter window, hand-operated sliding shutter, tripod mount, and brass
exposure guide attached to back of camera. The tripod socket is 1/4in
thread.
Note: The genuine Zero
2000 was available directly from the manufacturers Zero
Image Company. Whilst they did not have any authorized dealer
or manufacturer of their products in the UK, their products could easily
be obtained via their site. Beware inferior imitations, or copies, of
this camera which could be found in the UK.
Each genuine Zero 2000
camera is numbered on a brass etched plate and comes with a
certificate. This camera is beautifully made and very attractive in
appearance.
The Zero 2000 was reviewed
very favourably by Amateur Photographer magazine in the issue dated
28th April 2001. Copies of Amateur
Photographer equipment tests are available from Old
Timer Cameras Limited.
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I built myself a wooden pinhole camera which took
a standard double-darkslide 4x5 filmholder, so that I could use 4x5
sheet film. I added a brass handle to make carrying it easier and three
brass feet to ensure that it is always stable, no matter how unlevel
the surface it is resting on.
The photo above shows my home-made camera mounted
sideways on a Slik mini-tripod (the brass handle is fitted to the top
of the camera). I chose to use a precision pinhole of 0.4053 millimetre
(ie 0.0160 inch) diameter and focal length of 120 millimeters (ie 4.72
inches).
In order to calculate the f/stop, I simply divided
the focal length by the pinhole diameter, where the focal length is the
distance from the pinhole to the film plane. Consequently, the f/stop
of my camera is 120/0.4053 = f/296.
I used Ilford DIN 400 HP5 Plus 4x5 sheet film. The
white tops of the darkslides can just be seen in the photograph above.
The first pinhole photograph that I took with this camera is shown
below. I was pleasantly surprised by the results.
The photograph above was taken on Ferring beach on
15 March 1998 at 9.00 am on a cold grey overcast day. As the light
level was quite low I gave it an exposure of 4 minutes 30 seconds. As
it turned out, this was probably too long, but I was learning to cope
with reciprocity failure.
I would gladly repeat the experiment if only I could find those pebbles
again!
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If you are impatient and want to see instant
results, then you might like to consider getting a Polaroid film holder.
They are not exactly cheap, however they do make
4x5 pinhole photography a lot easier, not to mention quicker. If you
are serious about 4x5 pinhole photography, then make sure you put one
on your wish list! Given the popularity of digital photography
and demise of film, if you are lucky then you might be able
get a used one at a reasonable price.
Calumet supplied Polaroid film
holders such as the 545 Pro 4x5 Sheet Film Holder, shown above. They
also supplied both B&W and colour Polaroid film. The B&W
cut film called Polapan Type 54 is rated at ISO 100. The B&W
cut film called Polapan Type 72 is rated at ISO 400. The colour cut
film called Polacolor Pro Type 79 is rated at ISO 100. Needless to say,
B&W Polaroid film cost less than Polaroid colour film.
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As with any camera, it is necessary to get the
exposure right. The correct exposure for a pinhole camera depends on
the f/stop, the film speed and the amount of light reaching the film.
With most pinhole cameras the f/stop is constant, and the film speed is
known, so the amount of available light is the only variable. The light
level can be measured either using a handheld light meter or an
ordinary camera. The problem is that most lightmeters do not cater for
f/stops like f296!
The Pinhole Camera Design Center used to provide a
handy Pinhole Camera Exposure Guide which enabled you to extrapolate
from more ordinary readings to ones suitable for your pinhole camera.
In fact, they used to provide a whole range of useful calculators,
including: Pinhole Camera Design Calculator, Pinhole fStop Chart, Zone
Plate Generator, Pinhole Exposure Guide, Pinhole Size Calculator, Light
Meter Calculator.
I used to set my lightmeter to the speed of the
film that I was using and then take a reading at f64 and use a
conversion table to find the corresponding exposure at f296. For
example, if the exposure given by my lightmeter was 1/30th of a second
at f64, then the corresponding exposure given by the Pinhole Camera
Exposure Guide was 1/2 second at f296. When exposures exceed one
second, you need to add time for reciprocity failure.
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In general, exposure can be described by the
following equation:
E = I x T
Where E is exposure, I is intensity and T is time.
This is a reciprocal equation (ie as intensity increases, the time must
be decreased proportionally) which in photography is known as the
reciprocity law. If the intensity of light is doubled and the time is
halved, the exposure will stay the same. If the light level falls to a
quarter, then the exposure time would have to be four times as long.
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The reciprocity law is true within wide limits,
however reciprocity fails when light intensity is very weak and the
exposure long. This generally occurs when the exposure is longer than
about a second. Reciprocity also fails when light intensity is great
and the indicated exposure time is very short (less than 1/1000th of a
second).
Getting the exposure right in pinhole photography
can be a bit tricky when exposure times exceed one second, this is
because reciprocity fails when light intensity is very weak and the
exposure is long.
Most B&W films begin to experience
reciprocity failure at exposure times of one second or more, which is
quite common in pinhole photography. The only way to compensate for
reciprocity is to increase the already lengthy exposure time.
Reciprocity failure can be a substantial problem for pinhole
photographers.
It helps to have an accurate light meter, however
reciprocity failure means the exposure necessary to produce adequate
minimum density will be greater than a meter reading indicates.
Additional exposure is needed to compensate for reciprocity failure.
This required correction can be surprisingly large and varies with the
kind of film used. Experimentation is often necessary in order to
produce best results, which makes it all the more interesting.
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External links
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