3d printed camera

3 Articles

Every 3D Printable Film Camera, In One Place

April 1, 2026 by 4 Comments

For those of us who hack old cameras, the 3D printer has undoubtedly been a boon. High precision, or at least consistent precision, lightproof enclosures can be easily made and reproduced for others. As a result there are quite a few printable cameras out there, and we’ve featured our share here. We didn’t realize just how many there are without the work of [Sebastian] though, as he’s gathered together every one he can find in a glorious catalog of homemade photographic construction.

As a snapshot of the world of home made cameras it’s refreshing to see such a wide range of designs. There are pinholes aplenty as well as cameras using lenses from scavanged point and shoots through 35mm SLR, medium format, and even one using a Micro Four Thirds compact digital camera lens. For film there’s 35mm and 120 as well as large format, but we’re pleased to see a few instant cameras in there. Some of the models in the list are paid-for designs but most of them are free, so you probably won’t need any encouragement to make yourself a camera!

Unless we missed something, we didn’t see any movie cameras in the list. With 35mm and 16mm models to be found, we hope some of them make it.

Retro Open Source Camera Straight From The ’90s

March 30, 2026 by 7 Comments

In our modern society, we have started to take the humble camera for granted. Perhaps because of this, trendy standalone cameras have started to take off. Unfortunately, most of the time these cameras are expensive and not any better than those in our everyday smartphones. If only there were some open-source solution where you could build and customize your own standalone device? [Yutani] has done just that with the SATURNIX.

Simple microcontrollers and cameras meant for Raspberry Pis are a dime a dozen these days. Because of this, it’s no surprise to hear that the SATURNIX is based on recognizable hardware, a Raspberry Pi Zero 2W and an Arducam 16MP sensor. The Pi Zero powers both the sensors’ capture abilities and the interactive LCD display.

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It’s Not A Lomo Smena 8M, But It’s Not Far Off

February 6, 2026 by 9 Comments

The joy of camera hacking lies for many at the low end of the market. Not working with many-thousand-dollar Leicas, but in cheap snapshot cameras that can be had for next to nothing at a thrift store. [Marek Sokal] has a perfect example, in a 3D printed 35mm camera body using the lens and shutter assembly from a vintage Soviet Lomo Smena 8M.

The build is a work in progress, a printed assembly that holds the 35mm film cartridge, provides the focal plane for the film, and houses the take-up reel. It fits together with M2 screws, as per the Lomo lens.

We like this build, because we can see beyond the Lomo. In a box above the desk where this is being written there is a pile of old plastic snapshot cameras from the 1960s through 1980s, none of which is worth anything much, but all of which have a similar shutter and lens assembly. In many cases it’s not a huge task to do with them what [Marek] has with the Lomo and mount them to a back like this. The LEGO film camera may not have gained approval, but this prove that making cameras of your own is still pretty easy.