20 June 2010

How to make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera

You can make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera with a few things you probably have lying around the house.
Using a cable release on your pinhole camera makes exposure times easier to control and also reduces vibrations when opening the shutter, so your pictures will be sharper. Now I only need to test if the whole thing is light-proof. :)

You will need:
-cutter and scissors 
-electrical tape, sello tape
-metal ruler
-super glue
-a piece of balsa wood ( I used some canvas stretcher I had at home, I guess you could use two popsicle sticks glued together and cut to the right size)
-an old floppy disc (the ones with metal are better)
-a cable release (I got mine on Apliu Street in Sham Shui Po for 5 HK$)

things you need to make a cable release shutter

1. Cut the disc. Using the metal ruler cut the floppy disc. Cut through the plastic a few times on both sides then break off the lower part.

cut a floppy disc to make a cable release shutter
things you need to make a cable release shutter

2. Next glue the piece of balsa wood on to the metal part with super glue. Align the balsa wood with the end of the sliding metal part.

 how to make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera


 how to make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera
 how to make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera

3. Secure the wood with some tape.

 how to make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera


4. Add the cable release Find the right position for the cable release and secure it with tape. Make sure it cannot move to the sides.

 how to make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera

 how to make a cable release shutter for your pinhole camera


And that's it. I hope you like it!

8 comments:

  1. Pinhole cameras ... they're like simple magic.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey thanks for your visit!

    And to all the Brazilians out there! Don't be shy! Post a comment, I'd really appreciate it.
    Muito obrigada! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I loved. Very creative and handy.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Did you ever get this light proof? I tried a build this week and couldn't figure out how to seal it and keep the sliding mechanism working.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi James, yeah it's a bit tricky. I ended up using silicone, you know the stuff you can buy in those little tubes to seal your tiles. I used it to seal the gap in between the plastic parts of the floppy.
    Also some electrical tape everywhere else, where there aren't any moving bits. You have to experiment a bit. Let me know how it works out.

    ReplyDelete

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