These pastel baby box cameras are perfect for any party where photography enthusiasts are present. Etsy seller girliepains is selling a PDF with templates and instructions on making them in 7 different colors for $4 through her store.
Over at Leica User Forum, member dkpeterborough wrote a series of posts detailing how he and a fellow member of the Peterborough Photographic Society named Tony Lovell created a beastly 900mm lens. The lens uses optics salvaged from a government flight simulator projector lens, and cost only hundreds of pounds in parts (comparable lenses cost thousands).
Have a busted lens that isn't worth repairing? Instead of throwing it away, you can turn it into a flower pot! Kenneth Yung has a series of photos showing how he did this with his broken Nikon 18-55mm lens (translation here). This can definitely add a fun touch to any boring workspace!
Last year, Canon celebrated its 50th anniversary in manufacturing SLR cameras and released three super detailed paper craft cameras that you can print out and build yourself. These included the Canonflex, the AE-1, and the EOS 5D Mk II. Unless you have a good amount of time you can set aside for arts and crafts, this probably isn't for you -- each camera has dozens of pages of detailed instructions and a ton of tiny pieces that come together to form the final replica camera.
Today I spent a couple of hours designing and making a simple box to fit directly onto a normal flash unit. I also made a couple of colored filters. After doing all this I thought I could share this with others and hopefully make them happy by doing so.
Fernando Ramírez Martínez (snipfer on Flickr) created this awesomely geeky medium format camera using Lego pieces.
Claire O'Neill and Mito Habe-Evans over at NPR's The Picture Show blog have just posted a fun experimental project you can try out this halloween: making a pinhole camera out of a pumpkin. What you'll need is a pumpkin, aluminum foil, a knife, tape, photo paper, dark spray paint, and access to a dark room. Along with the disturbing skull camera we shared earlier today, this would be a fun way to capture photos of trick-or-treaters this halloween.
Update on 12/9/21: This video has been taken down by the creator.
Want to print your own flash reflector? Pieroway has free PDF templates that you can use. The templates print double sided, with black printed on one side and faint gray fold lines printed on the other. Print it, cut the shape out, fold along the lines, and attach it to your flash with a rubber band.
Want more precision in your focus adjustments when shooting video with your DSLR, but don't want to shell out money for a pricey follow focus? Flickr user Adam Lisagor shot this photo showing how he created his own DIY follow focus for $6. All you need is a steel hose clamp, drawer handle, nut, and bolt. Drill a hole through the clamp, and put it together as shown above.
This neat DIY video shows how you can convert an ordinary digital camera into a night vision camera. The video uses a digital video camera, but the same concept can be applied to still cameras as well.
One of the things about macrophotography is that you either have to shoot wide open (and have a depth of field of about 1 micron or so) or stopped down to get some decent DOF (but have ridiculous shutter speeds making everything a blur). The solution: put a strobe on it! Given that you are so close to your subject, it's hard to properly light it. A ring flash is a good choice and at the tiny distance it is used from the subject, it has the effect of a large softbox creating even lighting.
Alan Morris created a DIY LCD viewfinder loupe by slicing the viewfinder off a pair of child binoculars and building the loupe using plexiglass. The total cost came out to about $10-15. It's a bit wobbly when not in use, but that just gives it character, right?
Here's a creative idea that we love - cut out giant letters, gather up some friends, and spell out words with shadows! Justin Swindle, a student at Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, created the above image by cutting the sides off the biggest cardboard moving box he could get his hands on. He then traded the letters freehand and cut them out using a razor.
You've probably seen do-it-yourself pinhole cameras or even large format cameras created with foam core, but what about a solid metal do-it-yourself 35mm camera? That's exactly what Denis Mo decided to create, posting his step-by-step documentation to French camera forum collection-appareils.fr.
When Jon Martin found an old Kodak Ektar 101mm f4.5 lens from the 1940's at work, he decided to try it on his D700 by freelensing to testing and see if it was compatible. After finding that it was, he began on building a rig to use it as a tilt-shift lens. He ended up building a rig using old camera gear and some custom wood parts.
Some battery chargers (e.g. those that come with Canon's pro and prosumer cameras) plug directly into the wall and have prongs that fold into the charger, while others (e.g. the Canon T2i charger) connect to the wall via a removable cable. Though this may be more space efficient when connecting to a socket or surge protector, the extra chord takes up space and can be a hassle. CheesyCam has a clever solution: use an Apple wall plug duck head adapter to transform the charger into a wall charger.
I have a small obsession with cameras, also, a slightly smaller obsession with film cameras. My favourite camera is Lubitel 166B. It is a medium format camera, this basically means it has a large image area to capture photos, using the larger 120mm film. The Lubitel's were twin lens reflex (TLR) cameras. They have a little pop up cover on top, you then look down through the viewfinder. The nature of holding the camera like this will getting the settings set up for the shot can sometimes be a …
This foam core 8x10 camera was created by Daire Quinlan, the same guy that attached a 90 year old lens to his camera with homemade bellows.
At times mounted photos can be a bit tricky in regards to how to display them if you do not want to use a frame. Leaning them against the wall or propping them up next to another object doesn't always work. One simple way to display your mounted photos is by creating custom photo holders using vintage wooden spools. The end product is practical, unexpected and pleasing to the eye. The process for creating these is simple.
My boys have started getting into photography, but often have trouble keeping the camera still enough for really clear shots.
Here's an easy to follow video tutorial by photographer Lucas Ridley teaching you how to create custom bokeh shapes using a construction paper cap placed over your lens. Ridley's design is flexible, allowing you to swap shapes easily by sliding them in and out of the cap.
The ratio between the focal length and the aperture (diameter) of a lens is called the f/number. The smaller the f/number, the more light is let in. Fast lenses start around f/2.0, and the light let in goes as the inverse square. Compared to f/2.0, f /1.4 lets in twice as much light, f/1.0 four times, and f/0.71 eight times. The fastest camera lenses designed for DSLRs and widely available are between f/1.4 and f/1.2, but lenses as fast as f/0.75 have been made in quantity for special …
What is a variable neutral density filter? …
Here's a terrific "Doh! Why didn't I think of that?" idea shared by Flickr user Ralph Odenwälder in his photostream: create a set of matching Polaroid photographs for an awesome do-it-yourself memory card game that you can either give someone as a present or play yourself!
Tilt-shift lenses are usually pretty pricey, so many people fake the effect during post-processing by selectively blurring sections of their photographs. There's even simple web-apps that can add such blur to give your photographs a miniature scale model effect.
This crazy self-portrait was taken using the tiny reflection in the tip of a ballpoint pen. Russian photographer Alexey Arkhipov modified a Canon PowerShot S1 IS, adding a custom (and cheap) lens setup to achieve this super-macro shot. Head on over to his blog post if you'd like to learn how it was done and how to do this yourself (you might have to use Google Translate).
Here's a really great way to turn photos from a novelty camera into something of practical use -- make the photos into mini magnetic dry erase boards! Photojojo has some nifty ideas and instructions for turning Polaroid or Instax prints into colorful refrigerator magnets, a perpetual photo calendar, reusable magnetic reminder notes, and more.
It's almost a given for new Canon DSLRs to have an HD video recording mode, but older Canons can also capture HD video with the open source software EOS Camera Movie Record. The program allows you to shoot HD 720p video with any Canon EOS camera that has LiveView capabilities. The software runs off of your computer and captures HD video from the LiveView of a tethered camera.
Jeremy Salvador assembled this strange contraption in an attempt to combine an SLR lens with the iPhone. Salvador created a prototype with an Owle Bubo iPhone camera mount, a 37mm filter with glass removed, a 37-58mm step-up ring, a Canon EF mount adapter ring, and a 35mm Canon lens. Though he's managed to fit all the pieces together, he's been unable to actually take a useable photograph.
Using a bit of drawer liner as both padding and case, Instructables Living editor scoochmaroo has created instructions for this simple DIY shock-resistant camera case. It's fairly straightforward: just cut from a template, add velcro, and sew.
Always wanted a manual Leica but couldn't afford it? This Likea pinhole camera may not reproduce Leica-quality photos, or necessarily feel like a Leica (it's made from card stock), but it looks like one! Though it may be more manual than you can handle: for $20, you just get the Likea MPH kit that you'll still need to assemble. And you'll have to make your own pinhole part out of a soda can. But after all, it's not the camera that makes the photographer.
I have been using Holgas on and off for many years, and I have always had the idea of how to make it digital. There are many current options one being strapping a medium format digital back to your Holga, but that method is very cost prohibitive for most people messing around with toy cameras. I have seen lens mods on DSLR cameras that take the body cap and glue the holga lens on, but they are upwards of 50 bucks each.
Recently I came across the Demb flash diffuser while reading a review of the best flash diffuser over at photo-tips-online.com. After seeing the Demb diffuser at the top of the list, I went to Amazon to see how much it costs and, to my surprise, found that Amazon, Adorama and B&H don't sell it. The only way to purchase it is from Joe Demb’s site. I then decided to try my hand at making this diffuser myself. The total cost of mine is $0, while the real thing costs about $40.
This is one of the most intense do-it-yourself videos I've seen, showing how to hack a Canon 18-55mm kit lens into a super macro lens for extreme closeup shots. It involves sawing, disassembling the lens, using wires from a floppy drive cable, and all sorts of advanced awesomeness. Unless you're extremely good with your hands, you probably won't be trying this, but it's very interesting to watch nonetheless.
Editor's note: The creative photographic negative business card idea that we shared recently was pretty popular with our readers. Here we've asked Steph Goralnick to share how exactly it was made in case you want to make your own.
A few years ago New Zealand-based Flickr photog fettucininz was looking for an easier way to position his flash for table top photography, when he found that his old desk lamp had just the right screw thread for mounting his flash. The resulting setup is ultra flexible and super cheap (it's free, after all). If you have an old balanced-arm desk lamp lying around, see if you can repurpose the thing as a nifty flash stand.
Self-described creative technologist Thiago Avancini hacked this Atari 2600 joystick into a shutter release cable -- complete with an autofocus control for his Canon T2i. The controller is considerably larger than the average cable release or remote control, but it's a pretty nifty.
Today, the New York Times' Lens blog posted the end result of a global photographic project. "A Moment in Time" is an interactive collection of all the images taken May 2, 2010 at 15:00 U.T.C. by the Times' readers all over the world. By May 4, the Times estimated they had 14,000 images, and were still accepting submissions until May 7.
Jonathan Berqvist needed a shoulder rig for stabilizing his Canon 7D when filming, and his father Erik is quite good with woodworking, so they built a do-it-yourself a wooden shoulder rig using a a single tree branch. What's awesome about the shoulder rig is that it has follow focus built into one of the two handles used to hold it.
Laptopograms give "taking a screenshot" a new meaning. These are images made by pressing photosensitive paper to a computer screen, exposing the paper with an image on the screen for a period of time, and then developing the paper. The process is similar to making contact prints or photograms.
If you have multiple lenses and not enough space in your camera bag, carrying an extra lens might require you to stack a lens on top of another in a single lens compartment. The problem is that the bottom of one lens might rub against and scratch the lens below.
Steven Monteau is a French photographer who creates wild do-it-yourself cameras, including "the Jaw" and "the Guillotine". His latest creation, the Battlefield pinhole camera, uses 3 rolls of 35mm film and exposes them simultaneously to capture unique looking images.
If you can't shoot right-handed, or need to shoot left-handed for some reason (i.e. demonstrating something in a photo with your right hand), you can simply flip your camera over and use your pinky finger to press the shutter. Problem is, this ergonomically unfriendly grip is hard to do, and puts your camera at risk of slipping out of your hand. Instructables member bertus52x11, the same guy behind the PVC pipe camera support, has clever hack that solves this problem.
Bhautik Joshi, the guy who made the Phone-O-Scope that we tweeted a while ago, has a new do-it-yourself project for those of you who enjoy this kind of hack-ish photography project.
When Instructables member bertus52x11 had his cast removed after breaking his arm, he found that his arm was too weak to handle his DSLR camera. Realizing that those less fortunate might have similar problems with handling heavy equipment, he created a do-it-yourself camera support using PVC pipe that transfers the weight of your camera to your chest.
Instructables member KoZuEst made his own remote for his sister's Nikon D60 with a LEGO and a bit of electrical know-how. He says the total cost of materials, not including the circuit board and his time, was around $7 -- as opposed to spending ~$40 for a Nikon remote. Not bad! …
Lens hoods are ridiculously expensive considering the fact that they're simply fancy plastic tubes. If you'd like to use a lens hood but don't feel like shelling out wads of cash, you can create your own cardboard lens hoods!
Francesco Capponi (Dippold on Flickr) has a fun printable template for creating your own nifty-looking 35mm pinhole camera.
If you're looking for a way to "upgrade" your flash unit without spending money on real gear, the Los Angeles Digital Imaging Group (LADIG) has a nice bounce card cutout you can use to create your own free bounce card. Simply download the template (here's a link to the PDF), print it out on cardstock, follow the instructions for cutting, and attach it to your flash with a rubber band (or velcro if you're feeling fancy).
