Dirkon Pinhole Camera

My paper pinhole camera. It was fun to make and take pictures with, but none of them came out -- they were all grossly overexposed.

I followed the directions from the plans, which also give a brief history of the camera's eastern block origins. My modifications came in the form of the green electrical tape (for durability and to keep out light), the Crown Royal bag lining instead of black velvet -- from a "haberdasher" -- as suggested in the instructions (I've always preferred Crown Royal to Black Velevet), a piece from a beercan to make the pinhole (instead of paper), and the film-cap base which I screwed a mini-tripod into. Also, I didn't attach the fake buttons or some of the other showy parts because I didn't want them to interfere with my tape job.

Here is where I think I went wrong:
1. I probably should have pasted black construction paper to the cardstock before I cut out the camera to prevent unwanted light from entering the camera.
2. I think my pinhole could have been smaller. Next time I probably won't stick the sewing needle all the way through the beer can, I will just use the tip.
3. On my first roll (of two), something was sketchy with the advancer. You really need to make sure you feel a snug tension while the film slides out of the full roll into the empty roll.

I'll probably make another, but I might be over it. There is a cigar box on my shelf that looks like a prime candidate for medium format film...