How to make a homemade projector for tracing? I need a technique to project my initial smaller sketch onto the larger canvas whenever I create artwork larger than 16″ x 20″. Although I’m considering purchasing a real projector, my DIY model is working for now.
Remember that it is not ideal. I can hardly see my design when I project it onto the canvas since the lumens are so low. I only need the rough outlines for my paper collages to get the proportions right, and this does the trick. Bottom line: It’s inexpensive and has a bad appearance, but it serves my purposes right now.
This is what you require when you have to make a homemade tracing projector:
A box the size of a shoebox or another box
Boxcutter, Exacto blade, or scissors
an enlarging lens
Tape
a white sheet of paper (optional)
Paperback novels, CDs, or objects of a size similar to a cell phone
Step 1:
Place your cell phone with its bottom aligned with the bottom of the box on the exterior of one end of the box. On the box, indicate the location of the phone’s center.
Step 2:
Place your magnifying glass in the center and trace the glass using the marks you established in Step 1.
Step 3:
Cut out the circle using your exact blade. This will serve as the lens’s hole.
Step 4:
Lay a blank piece of paper on the box’s base. This will serve as a reflector, enhancing the light coming from the phone. Since the phone emits such a small amount of light, any extra helps. The white cardboard depicted in the image was a piece of mine.
Tape the magnifying glass to the box while still inside the box and place it over the hole.
Step 6:
Line up your phone with the lens and place your books or CDs at the end of the box that is not the lens. Make sure to turn off auto-brightness and brighten your screen completely. Turn the phone upside down and lock the screen if you did not flip your image. The CDs (or books) are there so you can change how close your phone is to the camera lens. To focus, you’ll need to either add or eliminate CDs.
Step 7:
Wait. Wait until nighttime. Extremely dark, Best in a completely dark space. You will need to place the projector further away the larger the canvas. Because of this, the projector will produce a blurry image and emit less light. Getting an image in focus requires coordination between adding or deleting CDs and determining the ideal distance between the projector and canvas.
If you’re wondering how the phone fits this setup, I use it to draw on it. I do a paper sketch of my drawing and then photograph it. The image might be used just as is; however, darkening the lines makes it simpler. In Photoshop, I sharpen the lines and flip the picture. When projecting a picture onto a huge canvas, a high-contrast image aids in defining the image. I then send myself a jpg. I download the picture to my phone, then I wait. Wait until nighttime.
