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P6*6 120 Pinhole Camera

by schlem October 06, 2013

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Contents Tags
Summary
120, 120film, 120 film, 6x6, believeinfilm, camera,
Instructions
camera obscura, exposure, film, lomo,
lomography, medium format, photo,
photography, pinhole, schlab, schlaboratory,
schlem, shutter, tindie, toycamera

Summary

*HEY! This was a great camera, but my newer stu! is better! Please check out the terraPin It is directly
descended from the P6*6. Also, the new ACME is completely 3Dprinted and assembles without
fasteners!! All my newer camera designs are much simpler to build and better to shoot than the P6*6!

This pinhole camera shoots medium-format 120 film! Shoots a 6X6 cm frame!

NEWS FLASH - Illustrated assembly instructions in MAKE: magazine edition #41 out Sept 2014 !! Recently
republished in Best of Make Vol 2!

New P6*6W - Wide Angle version - Kodak Ektar 100, Fuji Acros 100 and Fuji Velvia 50 transparency film:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/theschlem/sets/72157645030373964/

New Butta Shutta for remote cable release

Look for addendum to user's guide, but more info here:
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:395523
Viewfinders! You asked for 'em, I designed 'em - more info here:
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:363857
An alternative set of parts has been designed to capture a wider angle of view. The original P6*6 already
shoots a fairly wide angle frame at 62 deg horizontally; the P6*6W shoots an angle of 77.5 deg horizontally.
For comparison, a 50mm lens on a 35mm film camera has a 40 deg horizontal angle of view.
The wider angle means a faster camera too: f/135 vs f/167. Details in Instructions.
-------------- P6*6 Specs --------------
50mm focal length
designed for a 0.30mm pinhole
f-stop of f/167
62 degree horiz. field of view.
-------------- P6*6W Specs --------------
35mm focal length
designed for a 0.26mm pinhole
f-stop of f/135
77.4 deg horiz. field of view.
Photos from the P6*6 are posted here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theschlem/sets/72157636632862045/
Processing by Moon Photo, Seattle http://www.moonphotolab.com/
Images on Flickr may di!er from raw scans in contrast and brightness.
The P6*6 traveled to Amsterdam for Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day 2014
On that rainy day, I spoke with one of the organizers of our AMS meetup, Alex Yates of Pinholista.com, about
3D printing and pinhole photography on the Pinhole Podcast
Visit the 3D Printed Cameras group on Flickr
The mission is to share and promote open source cameras and related parts, created with CAD applications
and 3D printing. Please join and post content!
If you download this from somewhere besides Thingiverse, and printed it, please post pics on this
thingiverse.com page! Please - I want to recognize and support you too
I understand skepticism; I hope that if you have been delaying your pinhole photographic adventures, the
onslaught of my dubiously composed and poorly-chosen subject matter will convince you that this camera
works and that you can print one and shoot photos!
As to how to build and use the P6*6 - All is revealed in the new User's Guide. Anyone can put this camera
together and create amazing photographs. Assembly is detailed and simplified in a new document:
"P66_assy_revised.pdf"
No 3D printer yet?
I have obsoleted the P6*6, but I o!er my newer cameras available assembled in full on Tindie
Hate the flat shutter plate on front of the "lens"? Dress it up a bit with the trim plate and pinhole cap!
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:219829
Worried that the friction-fit of the cap on the body could pop open and ruin your film? (IFAIK, this has never
happened) A Sliding Body Clip secures the cap securely to the body, preventing a dreaded accidental exposure
of your film.
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:228857
NEW!! Thingiversian iandoubleyou designed a clip for the knob-side for extra security! Give it a look-see and
consider printing this addition.

New, photographic filter adapter! Use neutral density filters to slow exposure times, or colored filters for
e!ects. Not just for the P66, good for any camera without a threaded lens barrel:
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:240732
And a tiny P66 keychain!
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:252857
I have shot dozens of rolls of film through this camera now. I find this camera a delight to shoot. I am very
happy with the frame indexing. Like any camera, excessive movement during exposures will blur your image.
This makes very short exposures (1-2 seconds) impractical for best results unless you can absolutely
immobilize the camera. A neutral density filter (which increases exposure duration by whole stops) or a
remote shutter release mechanism will address this limitation and is a future improvement I plan to make.
Alternately, for "quick" exposures, you can cover the pinhole with your finger, open the shutter and (literally)
manually time your exposure with your finger, then close the shutter - another old-time pinhole trick.
-schlem
Incorporating aubenc's Knurled Surface Library V2, and modeled around the handy 120 Film Spool by Jakebot,
the P66 builds on the PINHE4D and PINH5AD pinhole cameras designs.
Updates
12-6-13 After some experimentation with di!erent 120 films, I find that some spools are slightly larger than
others. This a!ects the clearance at the winder spool and rotating ba"e (small slotted disk); the cap will not
snap completely shut. I haven't su!ered any damage to negatives from this, but, just to be sure, I have
reworked the ba"e to a thinner 2mm thickness. You can download and print either the whole winder
assembly (knob, ba"e, drive) or just the ba"e. I suggest having a spare knob and drive handy if you try the
Film Clip accessory: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:197924
__New Wider angle version P66W f/135
Exposure duration table updated including:__

Fuji Neopan Acros 100 B&W neg film

Ilford Delta 100 B&W neg film
Kodak Ektar 100 Color neg film
Fuji Velvia 100 Color slide film
Fuji Velvia 50 Color slide film
Ilford FP4 B&W neg film
Kodak 400TX B&W neg film

ATTENTION
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons - Attribution - Non-Commercial license. This license applies
only to the files and documents available for download from the Thing Files section of this Thing.
All other related content (photographs, videos, and verbiage such as contained in "Description" or
"Instructions" ) are excluded from this license. with all rights reserved, unless specifically available for
download This notice constitutes a clarification, not a change, to licensing for this design.

Instructions

If you have questions, please post a comment - I try to be very responsive to Thinginauts.

Are all these parts confusing? Don't know what to print?

NEW zipped part collections of 50mm and 35mm variants.
See Thing Files

*New P66W - wide angle version*

Assembly is essentially the same as for the original P66, using the following alternate parts:

p66_35mm_extension
New_shutter_plate
which consists of the following four parts:
New_shutter_blade
New_shutter_clamp
New_pinhole_clamp
New_trim_ring

See "P66_Users_Guide_x,doc" for instructions on printing, assembly, and photography" Also

P66_assy_revised.pdf contains better diagrams and assembly instructions. These documents will
be merged in the future.
*"makevol41-P6X6.pdf" is an article I wrote for MAKE: Magazine #41 on assembling the P66. It is a
distillation of the original user's guide assembly section, with better graphics.*
NOTE When unloading the camera, and as the full spool is removed, the film might be loose on the
spool and not fully protected from light by the backing paper.
I have designed a film clip which slides in with the empty take-up spool and prevents the film from
unspooling (and subsequent light leaks) when unloading the P66, It is an easy fix, requiring no
modifications to the camera. There is a small lip inside the cavity that will prevent the clip from
rotating.
See: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:197924
Everything is designed to fit on the smallest of 3D printer beds, the largest dimension being just more
than 5 inches (128mm). If you print on something smaller, the large parts could be rotated 45 degrees.
If this is a limitation for you, let me know, and I will supply a suitably modified file. Also - only tested
with BLACK ABS - if you want/need to print this in another color/material, a couple coats of a flat black
paint on all interior surfaces will guarantee a light-proof camera.
You can see additional pics of p6*6 prototyping at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theschlem/sets/72157636258787994/
----- Printed Bits ------
Camera body
50mm or 35mm extension
Camera cap and winder assembly
Shutter plate or New Shutter plate (with pinhole disc)
(all parts are also available non-plated)
----- Non-Printed Bits ------
4 x 3mm-16mm long socket bolts, washers, and nuts
1/4 - 20 flanged nut (for tripod mount)
Pinhole 0.30mm -50mm focal length
or
Pinhole 0.26mm -35mm focal length
I highly recommended that you find some translucent red plastic film and some self-adhesive black
velvet or felt. See User's Guide for more infomation.
Recently included is an Exposure Duration document for several readily-available films with reciprocity
failure. If you can expand on this, please share.
I hope that the various Pinhead Pinhole cameras arouse an interest in this marvelous photography
genre. Also refer to PINHE4D or PINH5AD for links to technical information and tutorials.
I remain at your disposal should you have questions.
--- SOME HELPFUL LINKS ---
Here's a couple of videos that explain the basics of pinhole photogaphy (worth a watch!):
Part 1
Part 2
An encyclopedic article with cross references:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinhole_camera
A self-described comprehensive pinhole tutorial:
http://www.diyphotography.net/the-comprehensive-tech-guide-to-pinhole-photography
The basics from Kodak - a quick and dirty primer.
http://www.kodak.com/ek/US/en/Pinhole_Camera.htm
Make your own pinhole:
http://www.withoutlenses.com/articles/how-to/drill-your-own-precision-pinhole-apertures
Pinhole Designer - an excellent pinhole design and exposure calulator. The reciprocity failure function
is gold. Sadly, Windows only, but worth it.
http://www.pinhole.cz/en/pinholedesigner/
Mr. Pinhole - More calculators and more links.
http://www.mrpinhole.com/index.php
Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day:
http://www.pinholeday.org/
A paper pinhole camera, 2D printed in a Czechoslovakian magazine, in the 1970's:
http://www.pinhole.cz/en/pinholecameras/dirkon_01.html
Books, books, books; Knowledge is power:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-
keywords=pinhole+photography

Remixed from:

Knurled Surface Library v2 Oct 09, 2012 Advertisement

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P6*6 120 Pinhole Camera by schlem is

licensed under the Creative Commons -
Attribution - Non-Commercial license.

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