Prof Fielding's Amazing Travelling Camera Obscura (MOC)

[greg3]

I posted a picture of this in my Ballabreek Village topic but thought it deserved a few more pics...

The basic principle behind the Camera Obscura has been known since Ancient Egyptian times. The idea is that light entering a darkened room (Camera Obscura is Latin for dark room) through a small hole can create an image on the opposite wall. The image is inverted but in full colour and detail. As well as eventually leading to photography as we now know it, camera obscuras were used in science, art, warfare and finally as a form of entertainment. In Victorian times they were popular attractions at many seaside resorts. These camera obscuras usually had the light entering trough a hole in a turret on the roof where it was reflected off a 45º mirror onto a table below where several people at a time could watch it. Rotating the turret gave a 360º view - although near my house is a restored version with 11 separate mirrors arranged in a circle. My Lego version is a much simpler straight through version (couldn't find a Lego mirror good enough to reflect the image accurately) but still works...

The "Amazing Travelling Camera Obscura"... I based the design on a Victorian Bathing Machine (sort of a changing room on wheels) as there are several photos on the net of similar conversions.

Front view - the V pattern is a tribute to Queen Victoria (actually it covers a couple of gaps between bricks that were letting light through and spoiling the image!!) The hole/lens is visible in the centre...

The viewing platform/screen (tracing paper worked best but I wanted to only use Lego parts so I've used a white minifigure cape!!

To use the Camera Obscura a customer stands in front of the screen and if they need to, lowers a shutter behind them to block out any stray light.

Just like a real one, my version works best when the subject is brightly lit by sunlight and the screen is in shade.

The image... as you can see it's upside down but you can still make out what it is... sort of!!

Inside you can see how it works... the light enters through a technic hole then shines through a minifig magnifying glass (letting the light in through a large hole results in a fuzzier but brighter image... adding the lens sharpens the image. The image is projected onto the thin screen and can be viewed from the other side.

Finally the "Professor" is ready to move on to the next town.... (just waiting for a proper horse hitch part!)

Thanks for looking... comments are always welcome..

[eurotrash]

Ha! Excellant version of that old technology. I went to the one in Edinburgh when I was a kid and I was captivated by it - you nailed it.

You going to do anymore old timey stuff for us to enjoy?

Thanks for sharing it with us!

[jimmynick]

It looks cool, and it's great that it actually works as a camera obscura!

[tomdobs55]

Functional and fantastic looking go go go "Greg3"

[lightningtiger]

Excellent piece of designing 'greg3'......Brick On !

[King Aragorn]

Amazing MOC!

[timmyc1983]

Cool MOC, and it really works can't wait to see the horses attached for the overall look

Happy building

[Kristel]

This is really neat! It's true what they say ... LEGO can be anything you want it to be!

[Teessider]

Amazing MOC. I like how you've used the Lego elements to make a working camera obscura.

[Hey Joe]

Hey! It's funky! Thanks for sharing.

Joe

[LAKAbricks]

This is really brilliant, Greg3. I admire your small historic-inspired MOCs

[HayHay]

Amazing! I like the style. I could not imagine a working camera obscura by LEGO.

[eiker86]

What would it look like if you had two magnifying glass in there?

[Sir E Fullner]

An MOC and a Science Fair exhibit in one. Good work!