How to Make a Pinhole Camera

The Royal Institution
The Royal Institution
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Published 2015-02-25
Take authentic vintage-style photos with a camera you can make yourself. In a world saturated with selfies and instant effects layered over endless phone photos, take a step back and experience the science of the spiritual home of photography.
Learn how to develop the photos using a homemade solution: bit.ly/1UpDlX5

To make this homemade DIY pinhole camera, you’ll need the following items:

• Stiff black card
• Paper templates www.rigb.org/docs/camera_template_0.pdf
• Glue and black tape
• Scissors, craft knife and metal ruler
• Aluminium can
• Needle or pin
• Cork and a pair of pliers
• Fine emery or sandpaper
• Velcro strips

Cut the template out of the black card and fold it into shape, and cut a small space for the pinhole shutter. The pinhole itself is made from a small strip from a drinks can. Poke a hole with your needle, and then slot this into a shutter made of black card. You can attach a removable lid on your box with some strips of Velcro, and fix the shutter in place with glue. With the photographic film safely in the sealed box, you’re ready to take photos.

Making pinhole cameras is an excellent educational activity to do at school or at home. It can introduce children to the art and science of analogue photography, and also help instil a deeper understanding of the digital technology so prevalent today.

This film was created as part of a workshop for the L'Oréal Young Scientist Centre at the Royal Institution in March 2015, generously supported by L'Oréal.

Full instructions: www.rigb.org/education/loreal-young-scientist-cent…

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All Comments (21)
  • @leungstone5287
    Imagine taking a normal photo with this camera and tell your friends that this photo is 100 years ago
  • @Seanlambphoto
    I made pinhole cameras like this from shoeboxes way back in the 1970s.  I also made very small boxes that attached to rolls of 110 film cartridges too.  There are so many variations that pinholes are some of my favorite experiments.
  • @MaximumJoy
    20 odd years later, I'm still amazed this works and can't really get my head around it
  • @JesusChristIsLord__
    I thought the images at the beginning of the video was taken with the pinhole camera. I was like WOW LOL. Anyway, really helpful tutorial for a very fun project. Thanks!
  • @locouk
    I did similar with my DSLR, I took off the lens and replaced it with a piece of card with a pin hole in it. Make sure no light gets in with black tape and put the camera on the B setting and play around with exposure times. Simples.
  • @jitaudio
    Best ever pinhole camera design, for 8-80 alike, if you ask this artist inventor, kudos
  • @zaprodk
    I cannot find the beforementioned recipe on the RI website on how to develop the photographs. Can anyone post a link?
  • @MsNalie12
    What is the size of the photo paper that can fit in the pinhole camera you made?
  • @nicoloretis6328
    Question question, you guys what type of fotographic paper have you used? 'cause I can't find the right one
  • @michaeldeniel8149
    I have a question. after the light through a small hole, the image will be produced on paper. I want to know, what paper you use for the resulting image?
  • @ninawhisper
    Are you using a film roll to take the image or developing paper??
  • @hulduf0lk887
    Does anyone have the .pdf template for this video? The link doesn’t seem to work
  • @WiWillemijn
    In winter I had to sit still for 10 minutes