Camera Obscura Captures Attention

It is not every day that you can step inside a camera. But students in the Year 11 Art class experienced just that, thanks to the ingenuity of staff in the Art Faculty.

After many years of showing his students videos of camera obscuras, Art Learning Leader, Brit Biviano, decided it was time to build one to help students learn the underlying principles of photography in a digital world.

‘The idea of experiencing a real camera obscura came from my ongoing interest in experimental photography,’ said Brit. ‘I want students to be physically involved in the image making process. This can be lost through the ease and instant nature of many digital photography processes, which allows things to be created without very much personal investment or reflection.

‘Digital photography is also underpinned by darkroom/wet photography, giving students a greater understanding and appreciation of digital processes.’

A camera obscura is a blackened room or box with a small hole or lens that projects what is outside the box onto the internal wall. These have been used extensively by artists for hundreds of years and are the predecessor to all cameras. Built by Art Technician, Kate Rohde, Fintona’s camera obscura is made from pine studs and builders’ plastic.

Brit’s aim is to challenge his students’ abilities and thinking and create learning experiences that are rewarding and exciting. ‘The scale of the camera obscura means that students need to work collaboratively if they are to be successful. They need to work through processes using design thinking.

‘Students are more invested in practical projects like this. It broadens their understanding of the world and gives them another means of visual communication,’ said Brit.

Year 11 students have so far used the camera obscura to experiment with still life and portrait photography and have plans to move the camera obscura outside to capture Fintona’s buildings.

In Term 2, Australian Photography Magazine covered the project in detail in their online news and social media channels. Read the article online at www.australian photography.com/news/an-art-class-atvictoria-s-fintona-girls-school-has-built-alife-size-camera-obscura.