PINHOLE
PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP
To celebrate the Big Draw 2006 and the Centre’s 10th anniversary, the education team worked with a local Pinhole camera photography expert to deliver an exciting workshop exploring the built environment of the Bristol Harbourside
Year 10 pupils studying Art at Design at Castle School, Thornbury, worked with photographer and teacher Justin Quinnell to construct their own pinhole cameras from recycled drinks cans. The conference room at the Architecture Centre was blacked out to make a temporary dark room where the pupils developed their photographs.
Focussing on buildings, street furniture, bicycles, bridges and cranes, the pupils managed to create some unique and interesting images. Previously the pupils had only had experience of digital photography, so this new form of photography with its variable exposure times (depending on the weather and time of day!) was an exciting challenge. The images produced were in negative so the pupils could extend the session and expand their photoshop skills by converting them into positives when they returned to school.
This creative and interesting medium encouraged the pupils to focus on aspects of the built environment in new ways. The magic of turning a very ‘everyday’ object into a personalised camera, caught the imagination of the pupils and they were keen to experiment with more pinhole photography in their schools surroundings.
Justin Quinnell is available to run similar pinhole photography workshops. More details of his work can be found at: www.pinholephotography.org