Pinhole Photos

[aldenfender]

I have recently started to dable in pinhole photography. Here are a few of my shots that I would like to share.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/7948_4106758917178_898901716_n.jpg

 

[Papercut]

Nice. Like the big swaths of vibrant colors.

what format? film?

Looks like a very large hole for the format and focal length -- lots of blurring, little detail. Did you make the hole yourself? And is that lack of detail the effect you were going for? A more "optimal" size can significantly increase the amount of detail, but not everyone wants "optimal" or detail of course. 🙂

 

[aldenfender]

I bought a holga pinhole lens for fitted for canon dslrs, mounted it on my 40d. The hole looks very minimal, I was wanting more detail, perhaps I should have made one myself?

 

[sniki]

Polaroid Pinhole 100

 

[Papercut]

I think the Holga hole is fine. If the effect pleases you, then it's all good!

But, the nice thing about pinholing is that it's so low-tech that you can experiment to your heart's content for virtually nothing except your time and cheap materials. (I made an ultra wide angle 4x5 pinhole camera with just some foam core, glue, wood, and tape -- it won't win any beauty contests, but it works and makes images I like.) There's lots of info out there on how to drill your own pinholes in materials like brass shim stock, tinfoil, etc.. You can buy laser cut holes of various diameters too, though these can get pricey when you consider that you're just getting a hole (albeit a very precise one).

The roundness of the hole will affect the results too. Some people have even used horizontal and vertical slits to turn the image into really abstract color patterns.

If you're genuinely interested in pinhole stuff, check the forums at f295.org --> http://www.f295.org/Pinholeforum/forum/Blah.pl

The people there are dedicated (even fanatical), enthusiastic, very helpful, and make some absolutely fabulous images.

I bought a holga pinhole lens for fitted for canon dslrs, mounted it on my 40d. The hole looks very minimal, I was wanting more detail, perhaps I should have made one myself?

 

[Mablo]

I replaced the default 0,3mm pinhole on my Holga PWC to a one with 0,23mm diameter. I think my shots are a little bit clearer and maybe even sharper but still retain the pinhole look.

 

[JohnTF]

Helps to have access to a microscope.

I found brass shim stock, needles, etc. can quickly produce some nice pinholes, when verified via almost any microscope at low power. It quickly tells you when you need to do some polishing, or tossing. ;-)

Old microscopes should be cost effective, if you are in the right place. The school I worked at tossed a bunch of very good early ones, and sold a bunch of B&L 60 models for $10 each. IMO, they were better than the ones that replaced them.

You may be surprised at the quality of pinholes you can make.

If you go to a camera show, you might find a Graflex body suitable for pinhole for almost nothing. I also found a bunch of surplus ortho film that was perfect for my classes as we could use safelights, and develop by inspection.

If you are good with a stage micrometer, you can also use a microscope to measure the hole size, though, a wide variety of holes will work.

Regards, John