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Camera Obscura in Outlook Tower

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akakd
akakd
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5 out of 5
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Editor Pick

The Camera Obscura

  • November 16, 2007
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Drever from Ayr
The Camera Obscura

The Camera Obscura on the Royal Mile near Edinburgh Castle sits high above Edinburgh in an Outlook Tower originally forming part of Short's Observatory - a 17th century building.

Paying at the ticket counter I slogged up six flights of stairs, browsing historic photographs of Edinburgh in the stairwell as I ascended. At the top an observation deck gave 360° panoramas of Edinburgh - the view took my breath away. Even better free telescopes including a high-power Navy telescope, offered close-up views of the city and beyond.

At the scheduled time my accumulated group filed into the Camera Obscura and the show began. The 150-year-old periscope-like lens threw an image of nearby streets and buildings onto a curved, white-painted table in the projection room. Luckily it was a bright, sunny day so we had a fabulously sharp 360-degree view. We could see what was happening on the Castle esplanade, in Princes Street, and the wider surrounding area. The guide helped to identify landmarks and discussed highlights of Edinburgh's history.

In explaining how the camera worked she was very entertaining. She showed how images can be magnified or people almost magically picked up off the street with just a bit of cardboard. Using the same trick traffic was made to cross cardboard bridges.

After the show we made our way down to the next floor were we found hundreds of early photos of the surrounding areas and on the floors below optical illusions, distorting mirrors, lasers and 'take a picture of your own shadow'.

There is a Magic Gallery where you can catch your shadow, shake hands with your ghost and discover a new you in the morphing machine. You can step inside a giant pinhole camera, which gives an upside down image. There are giant kaleidoscopes, the world's biggest plasma dome, and giant lenses, which let you see your friends in a whole new light! There are several exhibits in the "World of Illusions" with an optical theme that keep children occupied. An image projected onto the floor gives the impression of water ripples if you stepped on it.

The Light Fantastic is a stunning hologram display and the U.K.'s only permanent gallery dedicated to the science and art of holography. I watched entranced as eerily realistic 3D pictures changed, appeared and disappeared before my eyes! Some were huge, one of the biggest was of a tarantula - children were daring each other to touch one of its legs.

Edinburgh Vision is fascinating for those that love history. It shows Edinburgh in 3D from the 1850s to the present day. Live city viewcams also allows you to scan around the city and zoom in and out on anything that takes your fancy!

All in all a very enjoyable afternoon, highly recommended to anyone visiting Edinburgh. Many people come back to this attraction time and time again.

Admission: Adult £7.50; Senior Citizen / Student £6.00; Child (5-15yrs) £5.00; Under 5yrs Free and it is open daily.

From journal Exploring Edinburgh’s Royal Mile

Camera Obscura & Outlook Tower

  • February 17, 2001
  • Rated 4 of 5 by akakd from , Arizona
Ironically, & unfortunately for us, the Camera Obscura was obscured by heavy fog & rain the day we were there. However, it was still well worth the visit to enjoy the extensive display of incredible holography, 3 dimensional pictures created w/ the use of lasers. The objects appeared to jump right out of the pictures. Impressive. The gift shop had a nice range of unusual gifts. It is actually a "Retail Quality Award Winner".

From journal Elusive Edinburgh

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