Pinhole, or Slow Photography

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

The launch of a new Lensbaby Obscura prompted me to dive into my collection of lensbabies again and dig out the original 50mm pinhole from 2010.

A new lease of life for an old lens and a slower, purer way of taking photographs.

Pinhole photography evokes a nostalgic feeling of old cameras and speckled black and white images. In fact, it is the most basic and simplest way of taking photographs.

It is also the cheapest, because in principle you do not need a lens. A digital camera body, spare body cap and a 'pinprick' are actually all you need.

If you fancy being a little creative, and saving money, I can recommend making one yourself. You can do this very easily by using your camera without a lens.

In this article about pinhole photography on Photofacts, you will find a link to a DIY step-by-step guide. It is important to make the whole thing dustproof. You will find more interesting links at the bottom of this article.

I spent a Sunday afternoon making one from a spare body cap and aluminium foil with a minuscule pinprick in it.

Give it a try. It is simply fun to experiment with surreal images and discover what does and does not work. For example, make two holes for a double image. You can easily replace the aluminium foil.

On a full-frame camera, you create a wide-angle image with infinite depth of field. Do not expect a razor-sharp image, but the smaller the hole, the more recognisable and sharper the subject. The closer the hole is to the sensor, the wider the angle of view.

Because there is no focusing of light, as happens in our eyes or with a camera lens, but rather scattering, the image remains a little blurry. But that is precisely the charm of a pinhole. An unmanipulated and pure image.

I took my new pinhole to the beach at West-Kapelle and photographed there both with and without a tripod. Shooting handheld allows you to experiment with movement. Something I personally found great fun to do.

Incidentally, I noticed a considerable magenta colour cast in many of my photographs. You can reduce this in post-processing. When you convert the image to black and white, it disappears.

What works well and what works less well when photographing with a pinhole?

It is important to remember that everything in your image is equally "sharp" from front to back, as is the case when you use a very small aperture, with a large number. For comparison, my 50mm pinhole has an aperture of F/177.

You will also have vignetting because the light has to travel a greater distance to the corners than to the centre of the image. I see this as an advantage, because all the attention goes to the subject.

With this in mind, it is best to look for something with plenty of contrast in your image. For example, photograph on a very sunny day, with hard light. Or look for subjects that contrast with each other or with the background. Converting to black and white can also be very interesting.

+ Situations with plenty of contrast.
+ Black and white photography.
+ Architecture
+ Landscapes, sea
+ ICM, deliberately moving your camera
+ Self-portraits and trying to add dynamism through movement.
+ Using flash

The shutter speed is long, longer than with standard photography. On a sunny day, the time you need for a photograph is many times shorter than on a cloudy or dark day. But it is at least several seconds, up to 30 seconds or even longer. So a tripod with a cable release is recommended if you do not want a blurred image.

If you are less patient, you can increase the ISO on your digital camera and considerably shorten the shutter speed. Feel free to use 1600 or higher. You can play around with this depending on the amount of available light.

The little bit of noise this gives you suits pinhole photography, and otherwise you can reduce it afterwards using software.
A matter of trying things out.

And oh yes, if you see lots of spots in the image, your sensor probably needs cleaning!

More inspiration

Do have a look under the Diorama Photography heading for the most bizarrely beautiful, surreal creations!

Arianejamesfotografie.nl by Ariane James
Inspiring examples of pinhole cameras and similar photographs, as well as technical details.

Pinhole photographs by Katja Sorbino
Among other things, pinhole selfies in a rugged landscape.

Pinhole introduction by Rob Slooten.
Video of his exhibition at the Vishal in Haarlem, featuring 100 assembled pinhole images that together form a new landscape. One project involved photographing for about a year.

According to van Slooten, pinhole photography is '...a contemplative form of photography. Exposure times are long and the light entering the camera often gives the reality being photographed a mysterious glow. Taking a pinhole photograph is much more than pressing a button, it is an event...'

Taking photographs with a digital pinhole camera by Fotogroep Oisterwijk, with instructions, tips and links.

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