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Reduce the amount of ambient light that it might create. Open the box and hold it up to a light source. Use duct tape, electrical tape, or any other kind that is opaque to block out any light creeping in through any cracks or splits. Spray-paint the box black, both inside and out. Measure the inside dimensions of one of the box’s smaller ends. Use a ruler and a pen or pencil to trace an outline of these dimensions on a piece of cardboard. Add an extra inch to two sides to create wings. Cut out this outline with a utility blade. Fold the wings back so that you can stand your film holder up inside the box. Spray-paint this cardboard cutout black as well to keep the inside of the box as dark as possible. In the center of one of the box’s smaller sides, cut a small square hole, roughly a half-inch by a half-inch (1.27 cm x 1.27 cm). Now cut a slightly larger square from a roll of tin or aluminum foil. Tape this foil square over the hole. Be sure to secure all edges so no light creeps into the box from around the foil. Use a pin, needle, or thumbtack to poke a hole in the foil. Finally, stick a small strip of electrical tape over your aperture to use as a shutter. Tape your foil to the inside of the box so the electrical tape doesn’t rip it off the box when you open your shutter. Do this is a dark room. Remove a sheet of photographic paper from its box and tape its edges along the film holder, with the paper’s glossy side facing the aperture. Insert the film holder back into the box with the paper facing the aperture. If needed, paper-clip the wings to each side of the box to keep the film holder in place. Replace the shoebox’s lid and seal the edges with electrical tape to keep light out. Double-check that the shutter is still in place before leaving the dark room. When putting the film holder back into the shoebox, use the photographic paper’s longest side to determine how far away from the aperture it should be placed. For example, a 4x6 sheet of paper should be placed 6” away from the aperture. Set your shoebox on a flat surface well away from anything that might disturb it. Aim the aperture at the object whose image you wish to capture. Lift the shutter and expose the film. Close the shutter over the aperture again after 30 seconds. When you use your camera for the first time, use it in a setting with controlled lighting so you can replicate the shot later. In a dark room, fill one plastic container with developer, fill another with water, and fill a third with fixer. Remove your photographic paper from your camera and place in the first container. Agitate it in the developer for a couple minutes. Once an image begins to emerge, transfer it to water. Once you have rinsed it, place it in the fixer. Let it sit for 5 minutes and then hold under running water for 15 minutes to rinse off the fixer. Learning how long to expose your photographic paper will require some trial and error. Plan on taking a series of test pictures of one object in a controlled setting. Once you have developed your first picture, note how light or dark it is. If the image appears too light (or doesn’t appear at all), increase your exposure the next time around. If it appears too dark (or is totally blacked out), decrease your exposure. Note that your developed image will be in negative, meaning that something that is black in real life will appear white, and vice versa.
Make your box as light-proof as possible. Create a film holder. Make an aperture. Load your camera. Take a picture. Develop your film. Assess your image.