Curiosity day at the Photo Museum: “Frankensteins” and old cameras

When we talk about analogue photography, which Germany added to UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list in 2025, we usually think of darkroom work with red light. But before developing and enlarging comes taking the photo with a mechanical camera. The Photo Museum has its own darkroom too, which you can also visit on the day, but this time we focus on old cameras and the skill of using them.

At 12:00 a curator’s hour: “Frankenstein” cameras from the museum collection, reworked by photographers, selected by Tanel Verk; how cameras were built and improved in tight conditions. From 13:00 to 16:00, a hands-on camera hall with Jaanus Muruõis: a half-frame Moon camera up to large format, a Hasselblad, and a 16-lens analogue GIF camera, which you can look through, touch, wind and shoot. Bring your old camera for a working check; Jaanus brings a tool to measure shutter speeds.

Raekoja tänav 6, Tallinn, from 12:00.