Pinhole Photography

Photography without lenses: this is the peculiarity of pinhole photography. Instead of a lens, there is a tiny hole through which the light passes, creating an image inside the camera. Pinhole cameras marked the beginnings of photography, and the roots go as early as the 5th century BC, in China, and the 4th century BC in Greece. At present, pinhole photography is possible with all sorts of cameras: carefully designed or improvised, small or large.

It is really interesting and entertaining to find out what materials can be used for creating cameras: shells, boxes, coke cans, cookie containers, hardwood boxes, station wagons and so many more. There is hardly any limit to the creativity of the human spirit here. With pinhole photography, you also need photographic paper or a film for the recording of the picture. For artistic or scientific purposes, such cameras are great fun: a true inspiration.

In comparison with the pictures made with a lens, pinhole images are softer. The depth of field is nearly infinite, but there is hardly any possibility of picture enlargement. The exposures can be pretty long with pinhole photography: while sometimes half a second is enough, in other cases it takes several hours. Many of the secrets of pinhole photography were lost with the 20th century cameras and photography methods. At present, digital photography pushes pinhole cameras even further back in history.

The pinhole technique knew a revival in the 60s and the 70s, when photographers made all sorts of experiments with pinhole cameras. The popularity seemed to be on the rise, and even exhibitions were organized in the mid 80s. In universities, pinhole photography is mainly studied for the sake of history, but there are colleges where students are encouraged to experiment with this 'lost' type of photography to understand the methods, the challenges, the limitations and the potential of pinhole photography.

The impact is identifiable both in arts and in science, and lots of catalogs and studies have analyzed the importance of pinhole photography for both these two domains of interest to the human mind. At present very few commercial pinhole cameras are available, but as I've mentioned before, lots of people choose to be creative and improvise. The Internet provides a plethora of materials both for DIY enthusiasts as well as for anybody interested in pinhole photos and the techniques used to capture them. It is fun, entertaining and challenging, that's for sure!