Pinhole cameras are really cool, and the name is pretty literal — the image is captured through a tiny hole in a light-proof box. The funny thing is, though, the picture on the inside of the box is completely inverted and reversed. You might think that because the camera is very rudimentary that when you take out the film and develop it, the picture will be sloppy and blurry. But the pinhole acts as a lens and the picture should come out nice and clear, assuming you’ve left the pinhole open long enough to get a good exposure.

This neat gadget is what some people are calling a tinnovation, and the people who create them are tinnovators. You can make one of these yourself, with an Altoids tin.  Take a look at the Great Pintoid Adventure on the Merrill Photography Web site. There, you’ll see some work done with a “Pintoids” camera. If you’re interested in creating one, the site’s author wrote a guide that’ll help you do it, step by step. She’s found ways to make Pintoid cameras from virtually every size of tin the company makes. The photos from her Altoid Sours tins are round, just like the tins themselves. Very neat.

Yet, this is just one example of tinnovation. People have been making stuff out of Altoids cases for years. In fact, Make Magazine has a whole section of its blog about projects made with Altoids tins and other, similar boxes. One I really liked is the solar-powered Theremin. Oh, and then there’s the guitar. Or the iPod charger. I could go on and on.

If you give any of these a try, be sure to let us know how you did. In the meantime, take a look at these other tinnovations on HowStuffWorks.com:

How to Make a Belt from an Altoids Tin
How to Make a Speaker from an Altoids Tin
How to Make a Shadow Box from an Altoids Tin
How to Make a Zen Garden from an Altoids Tin