What are keychain photo viewers made from, and how do they work?
Asked 3/25/2016
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I’m asking about the small souvenir keychain viewers often sold at beaches or tourist spots. A photo is placed inside, and when you look through the viewer you see a tiny illuminated image.
What kind of image do these usually use—film slide, print, or something else? And what kind of camera/film/process is typically involved in making them?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
10y ago
2 Answers
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Google search led me to the following expired service: http://www.domainvanhorn.com/viewer/
As written in the page information, there is a regular slide film in the contraption, which consists of a matte white screen and a single simple lens. This is a setup comparable of the most simple slide viewers which, for example, can be found here:
https://www.fotoimpex.de/shopen/loupes-and-slide-viewers/ap-slide-viewer.html
Also the image on this website explains the mechanism and placement of parts in the contraption pretty well.
In the case of the keychain, an uploaded digital image is exposedto slide film, which is then developed and permanently fixed in the contraption.
Originally by user45637. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user45637
10y ago
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These keychain viewers typically use a mounted piece of transparent film rather than a paper print. The common format is a small cut section of 35mm slide film (some versions use half-frame size, others full-frame).
The viewer itself is very simple: a tiny lens, a white/translucent backing or screen area, and the mounted transparency. It works much like a miniature slide viewer.
Traditionally, the image inside is an analog film transparency/slide. In some cases, a digital image can also be transferred or exposed onto slide film, then processed and inserted into the keychain.
So if you’re trying to make one, the key parts are:
- a small slide-viewer style keychain
- a transparency image sized to fit it
- typically 35mm slide film cut to size
Some translucent keychain versions are made for prints, but the classic beach/tourist style viewer is generally based on slide film, not instant film.
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