Pinhole photography at Macaulay College
William and Eoin making a portrait of Iain and Roland
Students at Macaulay College have been taking part in pinhole photography workshops using our mobile darkroom in September.
Pinhole is one of the earliest forms of photography and can use simple, home-made, cardboard cameras to capture images. The cameras we used have a pinhole instead of a lens and the image is recorded directly onto photographic paper inside, this then needs to be developed using chemicals inside a darkroom.
We use photography to record moments in our lives that we want to preserve, but, like memories, photos can be unreliable and distorted versions of what actually happened. Pinhole techniques leave plenty room for chance and can have some unexpected results.
The students created portraits of each other as well as Broccoli the dog, who did very well to stay still for the entirety of the long exposure! During the workshop we talked about our experiences of the pandemic, what we remembered, and how this could be best represented by a memorial. Ideas included a series of walks and an album of songs collected from around the Western Isles.
We’ll be exploring this medium further in future workshops, stay tuned for news of events near you during October and November.
