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Silicon photodiodedetector

The term Camera Obscura stands for a ‘dark chamber’ in Latin. While it is unknown when it was first discovered, its first record dates from the 5th century BC (that’s right, at least 2,500 years ago). Take a small room, like a bedroom, plunged into the dark. A small hole (also called a pinhole) is made in one of its walls, which is facing the outside world. The light comes into the room through this tiny window and is screened to the opposite wall. An image of objects appears on the opposite wall because the hole has the right size compared to the room. If the gap is too small, not enough light enters the place hence staying in the dark; the image is underexposed. On the contrary, if the hole is too big, the room is bathed in sunlight; the picture is then overexposed. And because light travels in straight lines, objects projected on the wall appear upside down.

I share my experiments with photography. I explain the photographic techniques and the science behind the created effects. Through a series of accessible articles, I hope to inspire people to innovate and challenge themselves and create something new with photography.

During my studies, I learned about the history of photography. It got me inspired to take on the challenge of making a camera on my own. Across a series of three articles, we will be traveling through time, applying the different technological transformations toward what we know today as the modern camera. In this first article, I will introduce you to a simple and ancient notion that we are still using in cameras today.