Pinhole Camera Experimentation
I came across an interesting artist when researching my topic who produced some striking landscape images in black and white. Upon further research I realised that these photographs were taken using a pinhole camera and thought that it may be an opportunity to explore this style of photography a little more. Perhaps the most versatile of all non-camera techniques, pinhole
photography has been in existence for the longest time. In fact, it was
one of the earliest forms of photography, and modern photography finds
its origins from it.
Paul Debois is a multi award-winning photographer. He was a category
winner in Kew Gardens’ 2004 Garden Writers annual competition and in 2008 he took two prizes in the
International Garden Photographer of the Year for a portfolio of images
called Pinhole Impressions. The above image was taken by Debois shows a very distinct style. The image is almost blurred which gives it a dreamy feel. Debois states: "the style did not evolve overnight, several test rolls of film were needed". I thought that perseverance may be necessary with this technique but was willing to give it a try and hopefully my experiments would pay off.
The above image taken by Paul Debois, caught my eye and I liked the very simple composition of the image. The clouds frame the image really well and give the shot a dramatic feel. They draw the eye to a central focus point and ensure that the tree is the main subject of the photograph. I liked the soft feel that is provided by the pinhole technique and thought that the effect was very interesting.
The basic concept behind a pinhole camera is to use a light-tight box,
within which the picture will be made, even as light passes through a
pinhole. It is important that the pinhole on the camera is extremely
small and precise in order to get a perfectly sharp
image. Failing to do so can result in light leaks or blurred pictures. I think A bit of trial and error will be needed to get perfect exposures, but hopefully using such a tiny aperture will mean that the depth-of-field with the pinhole camera will be interesting and produce some different images.
My Images
Unfortunately my experimentation using pinhole photography was completely unsuccessful.
All the images which I developed were either completely black or with a small circle of light displayed and no detail could be seen on any of the photographs taken of my subjects.
Above is an example of a developed 'black' image which was a complete disappointment. I think that all my images were dark due to fact that either I had a very large light leak in the camera and I had not ensured all light was blocked from entering or when I initially loaded the film into the camera, light was present so the film was spoiled before I even began.
The above image is the only photograph which had anything displayed on it at all. This image could possibly have been either from the very beginning of the film reel or the final image of the spool. The pinpoint of light is not central to the image which I found perplexing as the shutter and pinhole was created at the very centre of my camera. Although my images were not successful, I will endeavor to learn from my first delve into the world of pinhole photography and strive to improve both technique and built quality of my equipment to hopefully obtain some more pleasing results next time.
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