This month, we are assembling pinhole cameras! Pinhole cameras are cameras without any lens, only using a small pin-sized hole that reflects an inverted image of the scene in front of it. As seen in the image to the right, the sun-lit tree's image is passing through the small pinhole and reflecting onto the inside of the box. This effect is called camera obscura. This was a historic method used to capture images more than 2,500 years ago! With your very own pinhole camera, you can become a photographer just like Will Wilson and Edward Curtis!
MATERIALS1 Cardboard tube Cardstock Paper Aluminum Foil Wax Paper Tape Rubber Bands
PROJECT STEPS: If using a cardboard tube, skip this step. First, roll your cardstock paper into a tube and tape it together. Your tube can be any desired size. Make a second tube out of cardstock paper that wraps around your first tube or cardboard tube. Tape it closed. Make sure your tubes can move in and out of each other. Tape aluminum to one end of your outer tube and wax paper on your inner tube. Make sure they are not wrinkled. Poke a small hole in the middle of your aluminum foil. Use a pen for best results. Go outside and look through your tube! You can adjust the focus by moving your tubes in and out.
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