Photography, Digital Photography & Video Science Projects (11 results)

Photography utilizes many different technologies to produce the pictures and videos we've come to take for granted: optics, electronics, mathematics, computer science, materials science, and mechanical engineering, to name a few.

See Air Currents with Shadowgraphs and Schlieren Images

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Have you ever wondered what the air currents look like around a candle? What about cold air flowing around an ice cube, or warm air rising from your hand? What about when you sneeze? We are surrounded by air currents all the time, but these subtle movements are completely invisible to the human eye. In this science project, you will take advantage of small changes in air density to make air currents visible in regular photographs and videos, using techniques called shadowgraphy and schlieren… Read more

Picture This: Building a Cell Phone Microscope

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Imagine you are on a trip and see something interesting that you want to share with your friends. What do you do? You take a picture with your cell phone and e-mail it to them, of course. But did you realize that the same technology can be used to save lives? Using their cell phones modified as inexpensive microscopes, medical personnel can look at blood smears to help diagnose diseases like malaria and cholera. In this photography science project you will build a simple and inexpensive cell… Read more

Digital Pinhole Camera

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

If you sit under a leafy tree on a sunny day, you may notice spots of sunlight on the ground from light passing through spaces between the leaves. Try putting a piece of cardboard on the ground and examining the spots of light on the cardboard. Even though the spaces through which the light is passing are irregular in shape, the spots on the cardboard are round. What you are seeing, in fact, are projected images of the sun. Light passing through an aperture forms an image. A pinhole camera… Read more

Seeing Beyond the Visible: Photography with Near Infrared Illumination

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have an extra sense? What if you could hear above the normal range (ultrasound) like dogs or bats? What if you could see ultraviolet light, like bees or juvenile trout? What if you could see infrared light, like a rattlesnake or boa constrictor? This project shows you how you can use a phone or camera, tripod, and a special filter to take pictures using near infrared illumination. It's a whole new way of looking at the world. Read more

Measuring the Speed of Moving Objects with Stroboscopic Photography

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

A strobe light can illuminate an entire room in just tens of microseconds. Inexpensive strobe lights can flash up to 10 or 20 times per second. This project shows you how to use stroboscopic photography to analyze motion. Read more

Measuring Height Or Distances with a Camera

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

If you know or calculate the field of view for your camera, you can use it to measure distances and the height of almost anything. It's all a matter of basic trigonometry. Read more

Measuring Speed with a Video Camera

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

A video camera records 30 "frames" or distinct images per second. (That's for an NTSC camera in the U.S. PAL cameras in other areas of the world take 25 frames per second.) You can use this fact to time events and measure speed. One student has used a video camera to measure the speed of an arrow shot from a bow. The following project can help you set up your experiment: Distance and Speed of Rolling Objects Measured from Video Recordings. Read more

Camera 'Shakes'

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You can compare the picture quality for photos taken at different shutter speeds with the camera handheld vs. with the camera on a tripod. (This is best done with a camera that has manual exposure control.) Read more

Red Eye

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

How does the angle between the lens, the subject's eye, and the flash effect the appearance of red eye? How does the subject's eye color effect red eye? Read more

Focusing Your Flash for 'Freezing' Motion

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Here's an interesting flash photography project. With an inexpensive Fresnel lens, you can concentrate the light from your flash. You'll be able to shoot with a smaller aperture and a shorter flash duration. This will give you greater depth of focus and will allow you to 'freeze' motion at higher speeds. The trade-off is that the light will be concentrated toward the center of the frame. This project shows you how you can investigate that trade-off and find out how you can best use your flash… Read more

Explore Our Science Videos

Measure Acceleration with Google's Science Journal App

Slow Motion Craters - STEM Activity

Slippery Slopes - STEM activity