About the photographer

Her name is Lena Källberg, she was born in 1968 and grew up in Valbo, a two hours’ drive north from Stockholm. She has been living in Stockholm since 1998. Self taught photographer who tries to stay away from the technicalities of photography.

As a teenager I built the mandatory shoebox pinhole camera, found it to be an interesting experiment, but unpractical to have to return to the darkroom between exposures, so I was not completely hooked at the time.

I re-discovered pinhole photography in 2002, when I fell in love with a Zero 2000 camera. I bought one and was delighted, but somehow I thought that the camera was too good. And from there I've been on a slippery slope, quality wise.

Now I am more and more fascinated by the haphazardness of pinhole cameras; all hand made cameras have their very specific traits and see things very differently from the way my eyes do. The simpler and more raw the image, the better. I take an interest in trying to remove as much information as possible from an image and see how much can be taken away and still have a recognisable picture, to get photos that are a few per cents' depicted reality and the rest something else – something which is also there – but is invisible to the human eye when the image is made.

To get to that extra something, or remove what is too much, I sometimes use a specific development method for the film or print, and sometimes I place the pinhole at an odd angle in relation to the light-sensitive material in order to tweak reality a little.

Chance is an important ingredient, but with some practice it is possible to control the elements of chance in life. To a certain extent.

That’s how I feel right now.

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I am part of the coordinating tem for Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day, coordinating the translations of the site and publicity work.

My pinhole images have been exhibited at the OFFO pinhole festival in Gorny Slask in Poland in 2015, 2013, 2011 and 2009, at Fotokompaniet in Gothenburg, Berea Arts Council in Berea, Kentucky, RayKo Photo Center in San Francisco, Tilt Gallery in Phoenix, PH21 Gallery in Budapest, Delight Studios, Galleri Axel and galleri ikon in Stockholm and at the Planket exhibition in Stockholm.

In print, some of my images have been seen in Seities, The HAND Magazine, Swedish magazine Kamera & Bild, FotoCult (Italy), Lightleaks (Canada), and in the books OBSCURA – 121 Blicke From Pinhole to Print (AternativePhotography.com) and Dark Chamber Vol II (Urban Fox Press).

When I don’t use my pinhole cameras I also use lens cameras from time to time. Some of these photos can be seen at lenakallberg.se and on my Flickr photostream.

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Don't hesitate to drop me a line at lena@pinhole.se if you want to comment on anything on this site or if you have any questions regarding my cameras or how to turn your old tea can into an anamorphic camera.