Photography

• Photography is the process of making pictures by means of the action of light. Light patterns reflected or emitted from objects are recorded onto a light-sensitive medium.

• The word comes from the Greek words phos ("light"), and graphis ("paintbrush"), together meaning "drawing with light"

Pinhole Tips/ Helping Hints

• Stay within view of my door.• Place camera on a solid surface when

shooting.• Make sure aperture is covered tightly when

not shooting.• Get CLOSE to your subject.• Put your initials on the back of each picture

before shooting.

Pinhole Tips/ Helping Hints Cont.

• Dry hands before touching unexposed photo paper.

• Develop prints in batches of up to 5 at a time.• Perma-Wash, Final Wash, squeegee and blow dry

(time permitting). If short on time, place on drying rack and pick up the next day.

• Carry wet pictures in a tray

Pinhole Tips/ Helping Hints Cont.

• Knock before opening darkroom doors

• Open darkroom doors 1 at a time

• Keep paper safe closed

• Agitate all trays constantly

• Be kind to the tongs

• Keep cameras away from sink

• Put away your camera at the end of class

Camera Obscura

• The name Camera is derived from camera obscura, Latin for "dark chamber”.

• The earliest ones were the size of an entire room!

• It functioned much like a modern camera, except there was no way at this time to record the image short of manually tracing it.

The Pinhole Camera

Pinhole Camera Parts

A Pinhole Camera is a camera without a lens.

Pinhole Camera: What it is & how it works…

• The light producing the image passes through a small hole (the aperture.)

• In order to produce a reasonably clear image, the aperture has to be a tiny pinhole on the order of 0.5 mm. or less.

Pinholes…Good and Bad

Aperture

In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening

through which light is admitted.

Picture made with small aperture

Picture made with large aperture

Lenses have adjustable apertures. Each aperture is assigned a number, or F-stop.

Pinhole Camera: What it is & how it works…

• The shutter of a pinhole camera usually consists of a some light-proof material (like black tape or a finger) to cover and uncover the pinhole.

• 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.

ShutterIn photography, a shutter is a device that allows light to pass for a determined period of time, for the purpose of exposing photographic film or paper. It controls Motion.

Picture made with slow shutter speed Picture made with fast shutter speed

Exposure:

• An Exposure takes place when light strikes film or sensitized paper.

• There are three variables that control exposure.

1. The size of the lens opening (aperture)

2. The duration of the exposure time (shutter speed)

3. The amount of light illuminating the subject.

Proper Exposure

When a photograph is properly exposed, like this landscape by Ansel Adams, there is detail in every area of the scene.

Proper Exposure Continued

• Because a pinhole camera is primitive, getting a proper exposure takes some trial and error.

• However, once you determine the correct exposure time you will enjoy consistent results. (As long as you use the same camera & the same amount of light!)

Overexposure

• When too much light strikes your film or sensitized paper, the result is called an overexposure.

• Notice the lack of highlights (white areas) and “blocked up” shadows.

Underexposure

• When too little light strikes your film or sensitized paper, the result is called an underexposure.

• Notice the lack of shadows and “blown out” highlights.

Correcting Exposure with a pinhole camera

1. Start with an exposure of 30 seconds.

2. If your photograph resembles the one on top (overexposed), do your next one for 15 seconds.

3. If your photograph resembles the one on the bottom (underexposed), do your next one for 60 seconds.

TIME EXPOSURES ACCURATELY WITH A WATCH!

Negative/ Positive

Positive Image Negative Image

Sample Pinhole Photographs

                                                                         

                                           

Sample Pinhole Photographs

Pinhole Assignments

1. Double Exposure

2. Panning

3. Close-up Portrait

4. The Ghost

• Shoot at least 2 images for each assignment. You will turn in your best 3.

• (10 points each)