Pinhole camera project

Friends of Castleford Library (FOCAL) are showing a set of photographs of prominent buildings in the town centre. What makes the pictures interesting is not only were they not taken with a digital camera or even one with a lens.

They were taken by amateur photographers on pinhole cameras made from baby milk cans.

The FOCAL project began with volunteers sealing the cans so the only light entering was from a pinhole made at a strategic point in the can. After photographic paper was inserted, each camera was taken outside and pointed at a building. Makeshift shutter open and after a predetermined duration was closed.

The timing is crucial. Too short and not enough light to make an image, too long and it picks up changes such as people passing by.

The results were mostly splendid and the developed photographs are on display. 

At the launch people were fascinated and Intrigued. Building like the Mechanics Institute, Queen’s Mill and even the library itself are clearly identified.

So thrilled that talk quickly began about further projects.

One consideration is a solar graph, a photograph that takes months and shows the passages of the sun during that time.

A pinhole camera has no lens. Just that tiny hole for an aperture. 

You may have come across these as “shoebox cameras” but apparently tins, being round, are the best to use for buildings as the entire building can be captured.

A few years ago a hangar was used to make the world’s largest pinhole photograph 108 feet in length.

So interesting is the subject that each year enthusiasts upload their images to a dedicated web site. The next occurrence of wold pinhole camera plots day is 27 April 2025.

Instructions for designing a pinhole camera can be found at

https://www.zeroimage.com/freeproject/oatmeal/oatmealcan.html