Thingyfy

The folks at Thingyfy have released some interesting pinhole lenses over the last few years. 2017 brought us the Pinhole Pro, the world’s first multi-aperture pinhole lens and then in 2019 we got the Pinhole Pro X, an 18-36mm variable focal length pinhole lens with a fixed aperture. Now, the company has combined the two to bring us the Pinhole Pro Max, which offers both variable 18-36mm aperture and six different apertures.

The new lens just launched on Kickstarter and is designed for both DSLRs and mirrorless cameras, and is available in Canon EF, Nikon F, Sony A, Sony E, Fuji X, Pentax K and Micro Four Thirds mounts. It even has a 58mm filter thread on the front allowing you to add a polariser or even an ND if you want to shoot some super long (even longer than a 0.15mm f/233 aperture normally offers) exposure photography.

Pinhole photography has had an interesting life. It started off as the most basic fundamental way to capture an image. Despite becoming “obsolete” as lens technology developed, it’s still one of the first types of camera often taught to kids learning photography. They make their own from scratch and then go out and shoot with it. It’s photography at its most simple.

In the digital age, pinhole photography has started to make something of a comeback. Some make their own pinholes, while others buy modified DSLR body caps online. The Thingyfy Pinhole Pro, though, really takes pinhole photographer to the extreme. What makes it unique, and pretty cool, is that it features a variable aperture, with pinhole sizes ranging from 0.1 to 0.8mm in diameter.