Archive
The Art of Pinhole Photography
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[Apr 14, 2008]
“I want to feel something that has become almost invisible in modern society from the viewpoint of slow.” Some people who have a similar viewpoint came together in June 2007, and established the Pinhole Photographic Art Society (PPAS). PPAS is a society that centers on photography and art. However, it does not consist solely of photographers and artists, but also specialists with some kind of connection to pinhole photography, from a diversity of areas, including religion, geology, art history, and journalism. This is one of the most outstanding characteristics of the society. It is not just a club for the enjoyment of pinhole photography as a hobby, but a society that focuses on the definition and the artistic potential of pinhole photography. This is achieved through an interdisciplinary and cross-cultural approach from a variety of angles, such as philosophy, religion, and science, using pinhole photography to symbolize and represent the idea of “slow”. A pinhole camera uses a small hole, rather than a lens, to bring in light when taking photos. Exposure time varies depending on certain factors, such as subjects and weather, so it is difficult even for experienced photographers to envisage how photos will come out. Although it is far less convenient to use in comparison to modern digital cameras, there is a real significance to making a hole with a needle, judging the focal distance, and spending time sizing up a subject. This is also the time when you can size yourself up with true sincerity. When trusting your five senses to decide on exposure time and the amount of light to allow in from the small hole, you are creating an image that will provide you with a sensory experience, not just in your brain, but throughout your whole body. This sensation, I believe, is something rather special and unique to pinhole photography. The society is, of course, not trying to knock digital and go against the times, as I myself receive a great deal of benefit from computers and digital cameras on a daily basis. However, when we take pinhole photos, we are often able to observe both lapses of time that are impossible to see with the human eye and the invariable nature of things. This is because we can record images over the course of time, rather than in a moment, in a photo that is taken with a long exposure. For example, when we look at clouds in the sky, we often feel they are all moving in the same direction at the same speed. When we trace clouds with a pinhole photo, we can see there is sometimes a directional variation between those in the upper atmosphere and those in the atmosphere closer to the ground, or they sometimes move around freely beyond our imagination. This may be a trivial example, but it indicates that in truth we only believe we are able to look at and understand the movement of clouds. The longer I am engaged in pinhole photography, the more I realize that what we see through our eyes is only surface reality and there is always time moving far more slowly with the real nature of things in the background. Slow viewpoints like this must be considered more important because we now live in such a fast-moving society. To commemorate the establishment of PPAS in June last year, we held special exhibitions at eight galleries in Kyoto City. This may have been the first event of this scale in the world focusing on the theme of pinhole photography. The great success of the events may not have been realized in a gathering solely for those involved in the making of pinhole cameras or for those who enjoy taking photos. I believe success was possible because we are a group of people who consistently question what we can convey with pinhole photos, what is artistic potential, and if a “slow” viewpoint is the key to a new, necessary way of living in our modern society. I hope this journal will make use of the characteristics of our society and act as a medium to communicate the excellence of pinhole photography to as many people as possible. | |
| (Posted by Tsutomu OTSUKA) | |
PPAS (Pinhole Photographic Art Society of Japan) issued the first issue of the journal on April 15. Tatsuro Ebina, a famous designer in Japan, designed the cover. The following article is a preface for the Journal of the Pinhole Photographic Arts Society by Yoshiyasu Suzuka, chairperson of the PPAS.