Snap the Perfect Shot with This DIY Camera

The revolt against smartphone cameras has officially gone mainstream. You can now find dedicated digital cameras mimicking the 35mm and Polaroid cameras of yesteryear filling the shelves of retail shops. And some of these cameras even use 35mm film. Not only do these dedicated devices give us something other than the little black rectangle of a phone to hold on to, but they also move us away from the concept of cheap photos. Instead of rapidly snapping 20 photos and maybe getting one good one, you can slow down and focus on the intentionality of the shot.

With all of these cameras going mainstream, hardware hackers are now turning to their DIY skills to create something different that will stand out from the crowd. Take Jacob David C Cunningham’s camera, called JDC34, for instance. Everything from the 3D-printed body to the electronics and user interface were custom-built to perfectly tailor it to his own needs and style.

JDC34 is built around a Raspberry Pi 4 single-board computer and a Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera module. It also has seven physical buttons and an IMU for future hacking. A DSI touchscreen display on the back shows the user interface (developed with Openbox) and picture previews. An additional 0.91-inch OLED on the top can be used to display status information, or whatever else one would like. A rechargeable battery supplies the system with power.

The 3D-printed case was custom-designed, and while it may not be for everyone, it is definitely unique. The design files, as well as the software that powers JDC34, have been made available on GitHub. If you want to reproduce this project, or just get some tips for your own build, that would be a good place to start.