Principle of a pinhole camera. Light rays from an object pass through a small hole to form an image.

Holes in the leaf canopy project images of a solar eclipse on the ground.

A home-made pinhole camera (on the left), wrapped in black plastic to prevent light leaks, and related developing supplies.

A pinhole camera is a camera without a glass lens. An extremely small hole in a very thin material can focus light by confining all rays from a scene through a single point. In order to produce a reasonably clear image, the aperture has to be about a hundred times smaller than the distance to the screen, or less. The shutter of a pinhole camera usually consists of a hand operated flap of some light-proof material to cover and uncover the pinhole. Image File history File links Pinhole-camera. ... Image File history File links Pinhole-camera. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 1112 KB) Summary Images of the sun during a solar eclipse through the leaves of a tree. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 1112 KB) Summary Images of the sun during a solar eclipse through the leaves of a tree. ... Photo taken during the 1999 eclipse. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2592x1680, 1066 KB) Summary A picture I took of my pinhole camera equipment. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2592x1680, 1066 KB) Summary A picture I took of my pinhole camera equipment. ... For other uses, see Camera (disambiguation). ... Photographic lens One of Canons most popular wide angle lenses - 17-40 f/4 L The zoom lens of the Canon Elph A photographic lens (or more correctly, objective) is an optical lens or assembly of lenses used in conjunction with a camera body and mechanism to make images... a big (1) and a small (2) aperture For other uses, see Aperture (disambiguation). ... It has been suggested that Leaf shutter be merged into this article or section. ...

A common use of a pinhole camera is to capture the movement of sunlight over a long period of time. This type of photography is called Solargraphy. Pinhole cameras require much longer exposure times than conventional cameras because of the small aperture; typical exposure times can range from 5 seconds to hours or days. The shutter speed dial of a Fujika STX-1. ...

The image may be projected on a translucent screen for real-time viewing (popular for viewing solar eclipses; see also camera obscura), or can expose film or a charge coupled device (CCD). Pinhole cameras with CCDs are sometimes used for surveillance work because of their small size. Photo taken during the 1999 eclipse. ... The camera obscura (Lat. ... A charge-coupled device (CCD), is an integrated circuit containing an array of linked, or coupled, capacitors. ... For other uses, see Surveillance (disambiguation). ...

Invention of pinhole camera

As far back as 500 B.C., Greeks such as Aristotle and Euclid wrote on naturally-occurring rudimentary pinhole cameras. For example, light may travel through the slits of wicker baskets or the crossing of tree leaves ^[1] The ancient Greeks, however, believed that vision is enabled by rays emitted from the eye. The discovery that vision results from rays entering the eye rather than being emitted by it enabled a much better understanding of the pinhole camera effect. It was the 10th-century Muslim mathematician, astronomer and physicist Ibn al-Haytham who published this idea. He also invented the first pinhole camera after noticing the way light was streaming through a hole in a window shutter. He improved on the camera after realizing that the smaller the pinhole, the sharper the image (though the less light). He designed the first camera obscura (Lat. dark chamber). As a side benefit of his invention, he was credited with being first man to shift physics from a philosophical to an experimental basis.^[2] (Arabic: أبو علي الحسن بن الحسن بن الهيثم, Latinized: Alhacen or (deprecated) Alhazen) (965 – 1039), was an Arab[1] Muslim polymath[2][3] who made significant contributions to the principles of optics, as well as to anatomy, astronomy, engineering, mathematics, medicine, ophthalmology, philosophy, physics, psychology, visual perception, and to science in general with his introduction of the... The camera obscura (Lat. ...

In the 5th century BC, the Mohist philosopher Mo Jing (墨經) in ancient China mentioned the effect of an "image forming through a pinhole". Along with experimenting with the pinhole camera and the burning mirror of the ancient Mohists, the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD) Chinese scientist Shen Kuo (1031-1095) experimented with camera obscura and was the first to establish geometrical and quantitative attributes for it. In the 13th century , Robert Grosseteste and Roger Bacon commented on the pinhole camera. Between 1000 and 1600, men such as Ibn al-Haytham, Gemma Frisius, and Giambattista della Porta wrote on the pinhole camera, explaining why the images are upside down. Pinhole devices provide safety in viewing solar eclipses because the observer views the diminished intensity of the pinhole image rather than the full light of the eclipse itself. Founded by Mo Zi (whose actual surname was Di, and whose given name was Mo), Mohism (墨家), or Moism, is a Chinese philosophy that evolved at the same time as Confucianism, Taoism and Legalism (Hundred Schools of Thought). ... Mozi (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Mo Tzu, Lat. ... China is the worlds oldest continuous major civilization, with written records dating back about 3,500 years and with 5,000 years being commonly used by Chinese as the age of their civilization. ... Northern Song in 1111 AD Capital Bianjing (汴京) (960–1127) Linan (臨安) (1127–1276) Language(s) Chinese Religion Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism Government Monarchy Emperor  - 960–976 Emperor Taizu  - 1126–1127 Emperor Qinzong  - 1127–1162 Emperor Gaozong  - 1278–1279 Emperor Bing History  - Zhao Kuangyin taking over the throne of the Later Zhou... Events Edgar the Peaceable crowned King of England. ... For broader historical context, see 1270s and 13th century. ... This is a Chinese name; the family name is Shen Shen Kuo or Shen Kua (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) (1031–1095) was a polymathic Chinese scientist and statesman of the Song Dynasty (960–1279). ... Events Collapse of the Moorish Caliphate of Córdoba. ... Events The country of Portugal is established for the second time. ... Geometry (from the Greek words Ge = earth and metro = measure) is the branch of mathematics first introduced by Theaetetus dealing with spatial relationships. ... A scale for measuring mass A quantitative property is one that exists in a range of magnitudes, and can therefore be measured. ... For the Nova Scotia premier see Roger Bacon (politician). ... (Arabic: أبو علي الحسن بن الحسن بن الهيثم, Latinized: Alhacen or (deprecated) Alhazen) (965 – 1039), was an Arab[1] Muslim polymath[2][3] who made significant contributions to the principles of optics, as well as to anatomy, astronomy, engineering, mathematics, medicine, ophthalmology, philosophy, physics, psychology, visual perception, and to science in general with his introduction of the... Gemma Frisius, seventeenth-century woodcut by E. de Boulonois For the crater, see Gemma Frisius (crater) Gemma Frisius (or Reiner Gemma, December 9, 1508 - May 25, 1555) was a mathematician, cartographer and instrument maker. ... Image:Giovanni della Porta. ...

Selection of pinhole size

Generally, a smaller pinhole will result in better image resolution (sharper picture) as the projected circle of confusion is smaller at the image plane. An extremely small hole, however, can produce significant diffraction effects which will result in a less clear image due to the wave theory of light. Additionally, as the diameter of the hole approaches the thickness of the material in which it is punched, significant vignetting at the edges of the image will result, as less light will reach these areas. This is due to the shading effect of the sides of the hole for light coming in at other than a 90 degree angle. In optics, a circle of confusion, (also known as disk of confusion, circle of indistinctness, blur circle, etc. ... The intensity pattern formed on a screen by diffraction from a square aperture Diffraction refers to various phenomena associated with wave propagation, such as the bending, spreading and interference of waves passing by an object or aperture that disrupts the wave. ...

The best pinhole is perfectly round (to minimise any higher-order diffraction effects off irregularites), and in an extremely thin piece of material. Industrially produced pinholes benefit from laser etching, but a hobbyist can still produce pinholes of sufficiently high quality for photographic work. For other uses, see Laser (disambiguation). ...

A photograph taken with a pinhole camera using a exposure time of 2 seconds

Some examples of photographs taken using a pinhole camera.

One often quoted method is to start with a sheet of brass shim or metal reclaimed from an aluminium drinks can, use fine sand paper to reduce the thickness of the material in the center to the bare minimum, before carefully creating a pinhole with a suitably sized needle - sanding away the burrs on either side & rotating the pin as it glides in and out in order to produce a smooth circular hole. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (660x900, 62 KB) Summary I took these photographs myself using a pinhole camera. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (660x900, 62 KB) Summary I took these photographs myself using a pinhole camera. ... Brazen redirects here. ... In engineering, a shim is a thin and often tapered or wedged piece of material, used to fill small gaps or spaces between objects. ...

A method of calculating the optimal pinhole diameter was first attempted by Jozef Petzval. The formula was improved upon by Lord Rayleigh into the form used today: To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... See also Rayleigh fading Rayleigh scattering Rayleigh number Rayleigh waves Rayleigh-Jeans law External links Nobel website bio of Rayleigh About John William Strutt MacTutor biography of Lord Rayleigh Categories: People stubs | 1842 births | 1919 deaths | Nobel Prize in Physics winners | Peers | British physicists | Discoverer of a chemical element ...

Where d is diameter, f is focus length (distance from hole to photographic film) and λ is the wavelength of light, all given in metres. For other uses, see Wavelength (disambiguation). ...

For standard black and white film, a wavelength of light corresponding to yellow-green (550 nm) should yield optimum results. (For a pinhole to film distance of 1 inch, this works out to a pinhole .22mm in diameter[1]. For 5cm it's .32mm [2].) A nanometre (American spelling: nanometer, symbol nm) (Greek: νάνος, nanos, dwarf; μετρώ, metrό, count) is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one billionth of a metre (or one millionth of a millimetre), which is the current SI base unit of length. ...

The depth of field is basically infinite, but this does not mean that no optical blurring occurs. The infinite depth of field means that image blur does not depend on scene distance, but it does depend on other factors, such as the distance from the aperture to the film plane, the aperture size, and the wavelength(s) of the illumination. In optics, particularly film and photography, the depth of field (DOF) is the distance in front of and beyond the subject that appears to be in focus. ... Infinity is a word carrying a number of different meanings in mathematics, philosophy, theology and everyday life. ... a big (1) and a small (2) aperture For other uses, see Aperture (disambiguation). ... A film plane is the area inside any camera where the individual frame of film is positioned during exposure. ...

Just as in a conventional glass lens, the image is inverted, as shown in the diagram above.

Pinhole camera construction

A pinhole camera made from an oatmeal box. The pinhole is in the centre. The black plastic which normally surrounds this camera (see picture above) has been removed.

Pinhole cameras are usually handmade by the photographer for a particular purpose. In its simplest form, the photographic pinhole camera consists of a light-tight box with a pinhole in one end, and a piece of film or photographic paper wedged or taped into the other end. A flap of cardboard with a tape hinge can be used as a shutter. The pinhole is usually punched or drilled using a sewing needle or small diameter bit through a piece of tinfoil or thin aluminum or brass sheet. This piece is then taped to the inside of the light tight box behind a hole cut through the box. An oatmeal box can be made into an excellent pinhole camera. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1359x2366, 939 KB) A picture I took of my pinhole camera. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1359x2366, 939 KB) A picture I took of my pinhole camera. ...

Pinhole cameras are often constructed with a sliding film holder or back so that the distance between the film and the pinhole can be adjusted. This allows the angle of view of the camera to be changed and also the effective f-stop ratio of the camera. Moving the film closer to the pinhole will result in a wide angle field of view and a shorter exposure time. Moving the film farther away from the pinhole will result in a telephoto or narrow angle view and a longer exposure time. A cameras angle of view can be measured horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. ... A 35mm lens set to f/11, as indicated by the white dot above the f-stop scale on the aperture ring In photography the f-number (focal ratio) expresses the diameter of the diaphragm aperture in terms of the effective focal length of the lens. ...

Pinhole cameras can also be constructed by replacing the lens assembly in a conventional camera with a pinhole. In particular, compact 35mm cameras whose lens & focusing assembly has been damaged (smashed lens, dropped in sand etc.) can be reused as pinholes - maintaining the use of the shutter & film wind on mechanics. As a result of the enormous increase in f-stop while maintaining the same exposure time, one must use a fast film in direct sunshine. A 35mm lens set to f/11, as indicated by the white dot above the f-stop scale on the aperture ring In photography the f-number (focal ratio) expresses the diameter of the diaphragm aperture in terms of the effective focal length of the lens. ...

Calculating the f-stop & required exposure

A fire hydrant photographed by a pinhole camera made from a shoe box, exposed on photographic paper (top). The length of the exposure was 40 seconds. There is noticeable flaring in the bottom-right corner of the image, likely due to extraneous light entering the camera box.

The f-stop of the camera may be calculated by dividing the diameter of the pinhole into the focal length of the camera. The diameter of the pinhole can be determined by knowing the diameter of the needle or drill used to make the hole. The focal length is the distance from the film to the pinhole. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (3000x4332, 402 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Pinhole camera ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (3000x4332, 402 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Pinhole camera ... Fire hydrant in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA A fire hydrant (also known colloquially as a fire plug in the United States or as a johnny pump in New York City), is an active fire protection measure, and a source of water provided in most urban, suburban and rural areas with municipal... This article is about focal length related to lenses and systems of lenses. ...

For example, a camera with a 0.02 inch (0.5 mm) diameter pinhole, and a 2 inch (50 mm) focal length would have an f-stop of 2/0.02 (50/0.5), or 100.

Due to the large f-number of a pinhole camera, exposures will often encounter reciprocity failure. Once exposure time for film has exceeded 1 second, or that of paper has exceeded 30s - one must compensate for the breakdown in linear response of the film to intensity of illumination by using longer exposures. In photography, reciprocity refers to the relationship between different choices of aperture and shutter speed that result in identical exposure. ...

Other special features can be built into pinhole cameras such as the ability to take double images, by using multiple pinholes, or the ability to take pictures in cylindrical or spherical perspective by curving the film plane. Cylindrical perspective is caused by fisheye and panoramic lenses which reproduce straight horizontal lines above and below the lens axis level as curved while reproducing straight horizontal lines on lens axis level as straight. ...

These characteristics could be used for creative purposes. Once considered as an obsolete technique from the early days of photography, pinhole photography is from time to time a trend in artistic photography. Photography [fәtɑgrәfi:],[foʊtɑgrәfi:] is the process of recording pictures by means of capturing light on a light-sensitive medium, such as a film or electronic sensor. ... Photography [fәtɑgrәfi:],[foʊtɑgrәfi:] is the process of recording pictures by means of capturing light on a light-sensitive medium, such as a film or electronic sensor. ...

Related cameras, image forming devices, or developments from it include Franke's widefield pinhole camera, the pinspeck camera, and the pinhead mirror. In a Pinhead mirror, insted of using a hole, a small disc shaped mirror (diameter same as that of pinhole) is used to spot the image. ...

NASA (via the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts) has funded initial research into the New Worlds Mission project, which proposes to use a pinhole camera with a diameter of 10 m and focus length of 200,000 km to image earth sized planets in other star systems. For other uses, see NASA (disambiguation). ... NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts is apparently an organisation within NASA that funds research on advanced concepts, that is, not some boring present day concepts, but exciting future technologies. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

See also

• Pinhole glasses
• New Worlds Mission
• Spatial filter
• Zone plate
• Dirkon
• Fox Talbot
• Wolf Howard
• Billy Childish
• Jesse Richards
• Pinhole camera model

Pinhole glasses, also known as stenopeic glasses, are eyeglasses with a series of pinhole-sized perforations filling an opaque sheet of plastic in place of each lens. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A spatial filter is an optical device which uses the principles of Fourier optics to alter the structure of a beam of coherent light or other electromagnetic radiation. ... Binary zone plate: The areas of each ring, both light and dark, are equal. ... The Dirkon is a paper camera kit that was first published in 1979 in the Communist Czechoslovakian magazine ABC mladých techniků a přírodovědců [translated as An ABC of Young Technicians and Natural Scientists]. The pattern was created by Martin Pilný, Mirek Kolár, and Richard Vyškovsk... William Henry Fox Talbot (February 11, 1800 - September 17, 1877) was one of the first photographers and made major contributions to the photographic process. ... Wolf Howard (born April 7, 2006) is an artist, poet and filmmaker living in Chatham, Kent, and was a founder member of the Stuckists art group. ... Billy Childish (real name Steven John Hamper) or William Charlie Hamper (born December 1, 1959) is an English artist, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist. ... Jesse Richards as Frank in his film Franks Wild Years Jesse Richards (born July 17, 1975) is a painter, filmmaker and photographer from New Haven, Connecticut and was affiliated with the British art movement Stuckism. ... The pinhole camera model describes the mathematical relationship between the coordinates of a 3D point and its projection onto the image plane of an ideal pinhole camera. ...

Notes and references

1. ^ "Light Through the Ages".
2. ^ "How Islamic inventors changed the world", The Independent. Accessed April 6, 2007

is the 96th day of the year (97th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ...

External links

• Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day website
• Pinhole Photography and Camera Design Calculators
• Illustrated history of cinematography
• History and Pinhole Photography Resources

v • d • e Alternative photography
	Cross processing · Redscale · Lomography · Solarisation · Pinhole · Polaroid art · Bleach bypass · Double exposure · Fisheye