1. The Pinhole Camera

2. The Pinhole Camera A brief history
1. The Greeks knew about the image-making properties of the pinhole. 2. Alhazan (Al-Haytham) 1,000 years ago,
explained the theories behind the pinhole,
the image inversion, and the theory of the
lens.

3. The Pinhole Camera 3. Leonardo DaVinci may have used the
pinhole as a tool to study perspective in the
1500s.
4. Della Porta reinvented the pinhole camera
and probably coined the term "Camera
obscura."

5. The Pinhole Camera Advantages that pinholes have over lenses:
The nature of pinhole images
Advantages that pinholes have over lenses:
1. Great depth of field - relative clarity from a few
centimeters to infinity.
Free of any linear distortion - lenses distort,
pinholes don't.
3. Wide angular field - the closer to the film plane the wider the field of view.

6. The Pinhole Camera Other properties:
4. Dilation of time - time exposures in broad
daylight: most moving objects are motion
blurred, smeared or disappear entirely.
5. Concentric drop - off of brightness-lending more
emphasis to the center of the image.
6. Overall softness - in both focus and tonal
contrast.

7. The Pinhole Camera
Constructing a Pinhole Camera

8. The Pinhole Camera Constructing a Pinhole Camera
1. Secure a cardboard box between about
12"x12"x10" and 24"x24"x20" (30x30x25 to
60x60x50 cm).
2.  Leaving a top flap able to open, seal the cracks
with tape to cover any light leaks.
3. Take something about the width of a pencil lead or
pen tip, make a hole in middle of a box side as
shown.  

9. The Pinhole Camera Constructing a Pinhole Camera
4. Enlarge the hole until the inverted image is
bright, but not blurred.
5. If the hole is too big, tape over it with duck
tape and try again.
6. View bright objects as depicted in the
above slide.

10. The Pinhole Camera

11. The Pinhole Camera The focal length
1. Focal length is the distance from the pinhole to the
film plane.
2. Focal length and pinhole diameter determine
exposure factors for the camera.
3. A given focal length has a corresponding, optimum
hole size that will produce the best image qualities.
4. A longer focal length increases the exposure time
required and, conversely, pinholes closer to the film
plane require less exposure time.
5. Holes closer to the film plane produce greater wide-
angle effects and holes further away produce
telephoto effects.

12. The Pinhole Camera The pinhole 1. The smaller the hole the longer the
exposure time required.
2. The smaller and rounder the pinhole the
sharper the image.