While in Bristol recently I had to take the opportunity to visit the Clifton Observatory. Perched on the hill beside the Clifton suspension bridge the building is a former windmill, converted into a studio by an artist, William West in 1828. The following year he installed various optical instruments including a camera obscura. For £2.50 the discerning member of the public can climb the tower and operate the camera obscura.
The lens is mounted in a rotating housing along with a 45-degree mirror on top of the tower. This means the horizontal view is projected vertically onto a 5 foot diameter table. The table is round and slightly dished to provide the sharpest image (simple lenses like this tend to have a rather curved plane of focus). There's a large handle to pull the mechanism around a track to alter the direction of view.
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Viewing the image: I'm holding the direction handle to pan the camera. (Picture: catherine Roberts) |
- and it's all utterly magical. The view of the gorge and the bridge is the most impressive of course, with every change in the weather from sunshine to cloud accorded a drama and significance out of all proportion. Watching traffic and pedestrians crossing the bridge was fun, especially as there's a sense of clandestine spying.
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The image on the viewing table. Lumps and bumps on the surface show it's hand made and has probably been repaired and repainted countless times. |
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Looking up: the lens assembly, guide rod and rotating track can all be seen inside the black wood panelled ceiling. - plus a modern smoke detector. |
Some strong gusts of wind made the lens housing shake, wobbling the image and reminding us that this was a live, real thing happening constantly, whether or not anyone was there to witness it. Other visitors remarked on how "clever" it is. I think it's beyond that: A machine which is a combination of great simplicity and inspired design. - more of a definition of a work of genius.
I
adore camerae obscurae and this one is a gem. There are quite a few errors on the information board (it states that there are only three publicly accessible camerae obscurae in the UK* for example) but it's well worth a visit.
*Others include:
Eden Cloud Chamber. Eden Project, Cornwall. Land artist Chris Drury has built a camera obscura from 120 tons of slate. The lens looks straight up to project the sky onto the floor.
http://chrisdrury.co.uk/eden-cloud-chamber/
Foredown Tower, Portslade, near Brighton/Hove. An old water tower housing a camera obscura.
http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/leisure-and-libraries/museums-and-attractions/foredown-tower-learning-and-visitor-centre
National Media Museum, Bradford (I can find very little about this on their own website bar a passing reference to it in one of their children's galleries but I have found accounts and pictures from visitors so it does seem to exist! do let me know if you have more info)
http://www.nationalmediamuseum.org.uk/planavisit/exploreourgalleries/magicfactory
Barrie Pavilion, Forfar, Scotland. Situated in a cricket pavilion and run by volunteers.
http://www.kirriemuircameraobscura.com
Constitution Hill, Aberystwyth. Allegedly the largest camera obscura in the world though I'm not sure what the measurement standard. They have a 14" diameter lens which is pretty big.
http://www.cardigan-bay.com/cliff-railway-camera-obscura-aberystwyth.php
Castle Hill, Edinburgh. The first one I remember visiting as a child. Great views and a good guided tour as I remember.
http://www.camera-obscura.co.uk/camera_obscura/camera_obscura.asp
The Water Tower, City Walls, Chester. Small and quirky by the looks of it.
http://www.grosvenorconstruction.co.uk/2013/01/23/camera-obscura/
Dumfries Observatory Similar to Clifton in design and history
http://www.dumfriesmuseum.demon.co.uk/dumfmuse.html
Great Union Camera Obscura, Douglas, Isle of Man
http://www.iomguide.com/douglas/camera-obscura.php
Lacock Abbey, Wiltshire (while technically a camera obscura it's not room-sized, but a small box set into the window at the Talbot Museum)
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lacock-abbey-fox-talbot-museum-and-village/features/learn-about-the-history-of-photography
The Photographer's Gallery (a bit of a weird one as it's in a tube sticking out of the wall. The view rotates around a horizontal axis instead of the usual vertical axis)
http://thephotographersgallery.org.uk/camera-obscura-2
Portmerion Village. Wales (NB: not advertised as open to the public but it does exist)
http://www.portmeirion-village.com
Greenwich Observatory
http://www.rmg.co.uk/see-do/we-recommend/attractions/camera-obscura
Lastly, take a look at a fictional one in one of my favourite films:
A Matter of Life and Death starring David Niven. One character has his own private camera obscura in his house. - see: