Worldwide Pin-Hole Photography Day

Written 13 years ago by Mark Evans

You may or may not know this, but today (26th April 2009) is Worldwide Pin-Hole Photography Day, so to mark this fine occasion, many enthusiasts around the world will be capturing pictures with their rudimentary home-made devices for upload to the Worldwide Pin-Hole Photography website.

What is Pin-Hole Photography?

Pin-hole photography is the most basic form of photography. It differs from conventional photography in that no lens is used, and instead a ‘pin-hole’ is used for light to project onto a piece of film inside. Pin-Hole cameras are most commonly made of every day items, such as small boxes or tins, with a very small hole poked in one side. The small aperture usually means that the f/stop of the cameras are large, requiring the use of long exposures; this coupled with the fact there is no lens creates the characteristic softness of most pin-hole camera images.

What is needed?

Many common house hold packages lend themselves well to becoming a pin-hole camera, anything from foil baking trays to Pringles tubes have been used successfully to create working cameras. Not much in the way of materials are needed, only a creative mind, and a good imagination. To find out how to make a pin-hole camera and add your pictorial efforts of Worldwide Pin-Hole Photography Day to their website check out the resources section here.

Pin-Hole Examples

$Photo by refractionless$

Photo by refractionless

$Photo by refractionless$

Photo by refractionless

Photo by Scott Speck

Photo by suÃ…â€ºlik

Photo by Alicia

Using a pinhole camera can be a fun way to get into photography, and could be a great way to keep the kids occupied for a day or two, or indeed can be a good way for present photographers to understand the smaller points of this mysterious art a little better. Either way, using a pinhole camera brings the amusement back into photography, so go build one and have some fun out there.