Cub Scout. Scientist Badge. Part A. The Physical World ... How does it work? ⢠Light travels on straight lines. ⢠Be
Cub Scout Scientist Badge Part A The Physical World
Making a pinhole camera Leader’s notes Make a pinhole camera and understand the principles of operation A pinhole camera (also know as a camera obscura) is a small, light-tight box with a tiny hole in the centre of one end. Light enters the pinhole and is projected onto the screen behind the pin-hole. The Latin word for a large vaulted room is a camera and obscura means dark. So camera obscura literally means dark room.
You will need: • Shoebox with a rectangular hole cut out of either end • Drawing pin or needle • Scissors • Sticky tape • Black paper or card • Tracing paper • A jumper or shirt.
What to do: 1.
Cut some black paper or card so that it will cover one of the holes in the shoebox
2.
Cut out some tracing paper so that it will cover the other hole in the shoebox
3.
Stick the black paper and tracing paper over the two holes
4.
In the middle of the black paper make one hole with a pin
5.
Put the lid back on the shoe box
6.
If you point the pinhole towards something bright you should be able to see an image on the tracing paper
7.
To make it easier to see the image you can put a jumper over your head and the back of the camera to block out the light.
Black card / paper over hole
How does it work? • Light travels on straight lines • Because the pinhole is so small it only lets through single rays of light • The rays of light hit the screen (tracing paper) and make an image (picture) • Because the rays cross as they go through the pinhole the image is upside down.
