The Box - approx 500 BCE

In ancient times, Greek and Chinese philosophers discovered a curious optical effect, and it worked like this:


Inside a completely dark room, a tiny hole is created in one wall. Through the hole light is focused, and the outside scene is projected (upside down) on the opposite wall.

The effect came to be known as the "camera obscura" which is Latin for "dark room". This was the first camera. The hole acted like a lens, focusing and projecting light onto the wall of the dark chamber.