I previously shared how I converted my Afghan Box Camera into a slide projector. The principle of the slide projector involves putting a light source at the back whose light passes through some condenser lens. The light then goes through the slide, passes through the projector lens, and is projected at a larger size on the projector screen.
In this six and a half minute video from Fotodiox, photographer Sean Anderson shows how he used over a thousand mini drinking straws to create a "straw camera" that can capture mosaic type images.
In 2014, I started my project Applied Metaphysics – Ground Truth on exemplary still life. The goal was to produce very large prints (2 to 9 square meters and more) at a high resolution so that people could look at them very closely.
I've got to admit that half of the reason I bought a film camera was to post cool-looking pictures on Instagram, so when I saw these things called "wigglegrams" on Instagram, I immediately wanted to make my own.
I have made many DIY backgrounds for my photography. Honestly, too many. It gets really addictive. If you have been thinking of creating some for yourself or how you can improve your photography collection for very little money, these tips on creating your own DIY background are going to be super helpful.
After purchasing Takumar 55mm f/1.8 lens years ago, I started building my collection of vintage lenses, and because I don’t like spending a lot of money on them, I became a frequent visitor of thrift stores, flea markets, and online auction sites.
Recently I bought a film camera from the 1970s, the Canon A-1. Considering that the camera is almost three times older than me, it was no surprise that there are a few issues with it.
A film photographer has launched a crowdfunding campaign for DIY pinhole camera kits with the aim of making large-format shooting affordable, accessible, and easy.
In an effort to challenge herself, Italian photographer Ursula Ferrara has made her own lenses for her large-format film camera using plastic epoxy and silicone cake molds.
An engineer has figured out a way to bring the Game Boy Camera into the twenty-first century with a DIY wireless adapter that allows him to easily transfer all the images taken with the aged handheld gaming console camera to his smartphone.
Ensuring there is enough power for every piece of gear while on set is easy, but what if a shoot's location is moved to someplace away from the convenience of outlets? A battery is needed of course, but they can be expensive and have limitations. So can one be built?
A content creator has designed and built his very own 3D-printed camera motion control rig, which he says can create footage comparable to that of highly off-the-shelf expensive camera rigs.
An electronics engineer has created a do-it-yourself hot-swappable battery solution for photographers who want to keep their cameras going through shoots without stopping or losing any footage.
Having a portable V-Flat in your photography kit can provide a unique tool when creating images for your clients. A V-Flat can be used as a background or a tool to bounce or absorb light on your subject.
If you've ever wanted to learn how to shoot product photos like those seen in Apple advertisements, here's a short 4-minute tutorial by photographer Karl Taylor that you can do at home with just a couple of speedlights and homemade modifiers.
Keeping batteries charged for your camera and accessories is the bane of the professional photographer. With the increasing popularity of battery-hungry mirrorless cameras like the Canon EOS R5 and R6, this has become all the more challenging and important, and that’s what drove me to create this simple hack to track which batteries are charged, and which ones need to go into the AC charger when I get home from a shoot.
Adafruit Industries has created a machine learning camera built with the Raspberry Pi that can identify objects extremely quickly and audibly tell you what it sees. The group has listed all the necessary parts you need to build the device at home.
Iranian photographer and camera tinkerer Alireza Rostami wanted to shoot tilt-shift photos but found the specialized lenses too expensive, so instead he decided to make himself a selective focus lens using a cheap CV boot.
When COOPH has something new published, it's very likely going to have some cool ideas that you can execute at home. In this 6.5-minute video, that remains true as they show eight clever lighting tricks you can easily try for yourself.
A must-have tool when shooting a number of photography genres, including the night sky, is a remote release trigger for your camera. Triggers range from very simple cable releases over phone apps that connect to your camera’s Wi-Fi to very specialized intervalometers. I wanted to build something even better...
The Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Insight Investment 2020 Astrophotographer of the Year, Nicolas Lefaudeux, has revealed his technique and the simple DIY adapter that made his award-winning image of the Andromeda galaxy possible.
I wanted a device that can throw light patterns onto a wall or a model. There are some commercially available but they are quite expensive and I this was only for occasional use. I thought that this is something that can be 3D printed.
Creator Kasper from the YouTube channel MAKESOME recently set himself a challenge. After a request from his friend and photographer Mick Friis, he decided to try and create a cable cam on the cheap—basically turning an RC car into something like a Wiral LITE, or a smaller version of the Syrp slingshot.
Matt Huber over at YouTube channel The Garage Learning has put together a fun and creative walkthrough that takes a different approach to splash photography. Instead of manually throwing water onto his subject, he designed a simple 'DIY catapult' that does the job much better than he can.
Landscape photographer Lewis Carlyle was recently trying to figure out a photo project to do at home, when he came up with a totally unique, never-before-tried idea: close-up photos of flowers. Okay, fine, it's not exactly revolutionary, but he did manage to put an interesting twist on the concept and create some beautiful images in the process.
The folks over at COOPH have released a "Best of DIY Smartphone Rigs" video that covers some truly wacky ideas. From a DIY 'gimbal' to a scary looking spinning rig, there are at least a few ideas here you definitely haven't tried yet.
The filmmakers over at Threefold have created a DIY battery charging board with a very useful twist: it's portable. And in the video above, they break down exactly how you can build your own version to suit your on-the-go creative needs.
It's not just doom-and-gloom financial news out of Nikon today. The company has also unveiled a special "Creators Kit" built around the APS-C mirrorless Nikon Z50, which includes the camera, a lens, a microphone, a JOBY GorillaPod, and more.
New Zealand-based commercial photographer Chris Cameron wanted an ultra-portable solution for supporting lights in cramped indoor spaces, so he created a simple 2-legged leaning light stand.
You might have heard of the Pixelstick. “Nothing compares” is one of their tag lines. And this is true... at least price-wise. I have always wanted one to at least try out some light painting with it, but the Pixelstick retails for €400 here in Germany and $349 in the United States.