NPR logo NPR
The Picture ShowPhoto Stories From NPR

Daily Picture Show

Instant Street Photography, Afghanistan-Style

by Mito Habe-Evans

Austrian-born, London-schooled and now Beijing-based artist Lukas Birk has a project that needs funding: a documentary about Afghan box cameras. What's a box camera? Here's Birk to let you know:

Basically, it's a giant, light-proof, instant camera, inside of which an image is processed on the spot. By reaching through a cloth-covered hole into the box, the photographer unwraps light-sensitive photo paper and, once exposed, dips it into little tubs of developing chemicals.

  • Lukas Birk's friend Sean has his photo taken by a street photographer in Mazar i Sharif in Northern Afghanistan.
    Hide caption
    Lukas Birk's friend Sean has his photo taken by a street photographer in Mazar i Sharif in Northern Afghanistan.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • The resulthing image, produced on the spot.
    Hide caption
    The resulthing image, produced on the spot.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • Birk has his photo taken. After the first exposure, the photographer mounts the resulting negative image to be photographed again, creating the positive image.
    Hide caption
    Birk has his photo taken. After the first exposure, the photographer mounts the resulting negative image to be photographed again, creating the positive image.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • The result of the double negative exposure is this positive image of Birk, in Mazar i Sharif.
    Hide caption
    The result of the double negative exposure is this positive image of Birk, in Mazar i Sharif.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • The initial negative image and two subsequent positive images of Birk and his friend Sean, taken by a street photographer in Mazar i Sharif.
    Hide caption
    The initial negative image and two subsequent positive images of Birk and his friend Sean, taken by a street photographer in Mazar i Sharif.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • Birk and the first incarnation of his box camera, at an exhibition for some of his other work in Beijing in 2009. The black cloth hanging from the side covers a hole through which he can reach his hand to mount and develop the photo paper while preventing light from entering.
    Hide caption
    Birk and the first incarnation of his box camera, at an exhibition for some of his other work in Beijing in 2009. The black cloth hanging from the side covers a hole through which he can reach his hand to mount and develop the photo paper while preventing light from entering.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • Birk peers through the open back of his box camera. To focus the camera, he moves a translucent glass plate toward or away from the lens until the image projected on the glass is sharp. This is where he will mount the photo-sensitive paper once the light is sealed out.
    Hide caption
    Birk peers through the open back of his box camera. To focus the camera, he moves a translucent glass plate toward or away from the lens until the image projected on the glass is sharp. This is where he will mount the photo-sensitive paper once the light is sealed out.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • A picture taken with Burk's box camera at the Beijing exhibition.
    Hide caption
    A picture taken with Burk's box camera at the Beijing exhibition.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • A photo of an exhibition visitor trying on a Burqa.
    Hide caption
    A photo of an exhibition visitor trying on a Burqa.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk
  • Another image made with Birk's box camera.
    Hide caption
    Another image made with Birk's box camera.
    Previous Next
    Photos courtesy of Lukas Birk

1 of 10

View slideshow i

The first exposure is a negative; to get a positive print, it is photographed again. The whole process takes about 10-15 minutes, which is a little longer than what you'd wait for a Polaroid — and it's a heck of a lot less portable — but you can make one of these yourself. Just don't shake it.

Learn more in the Los Angeles Times article: Afghanistan's Street Photographers Fading Away

Comments

 

Please keep your community civil. All comments must follow the NPR.org Community rules and Terms of Use. NPR reserves the right to use the comments we receive, in whole or in part, and to use the commenter's name and location, in any medium. See also the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and Community FAQ.

NPR logo NPR
The Picture ShowPhoto Stories From NPR