0:00:02 > 0:00:03This is Absolute Genius.
0:00:03 > 0:00:07Dive in to a world of action, adventure and explosions.
0:00:07 > 0:00:12Each show will introduce you to a different genius.
0:00:12 > 0:00:16An amazing person who had a genius idea which shaped the world.
0:00:16 > 0:00:19And they will inspire us to come
0:00:19 > 0:00:22up with our own genius idea at the end of each show.
0:00:22 > 0:00:26- But, will it be any good? - Will it be any good?!
0:00:26 > 0:00:28BOTH: It'll be Absolute Genius!
0:00:30 > 0:00:32Exploding onto your screen today...
0:00:32 > 0:00:35A genius of photography.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37Expect chemicals...
0:00:38 > 0:00:40..secret surveillance...
0:00:41 > 0:00:45..and a celebrity photo shoot with a difference.
0:00:45 > 0:00:47ALL: CHEESE!
0:01:20 > 0:01:27- Right a bit. Right a bit more. Bit more.- This way?- OK, say "bogies".
0:01:27 > 0:01:29- No.- Got it.- Get my good side?
0:01:29 > 0:01:31Absolutely.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33Today's genius didn't just change the world,
0:01:33 > 0:01:35he changed the way we see the world.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39Magazine covers, news photos, and the pics you take on your mobile phone.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42- Even those embarrassing school photos.- Like this one.- Yes.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46in the development of photography one mammoth mind was key.
0:01:46 > 0:01:49Ladies and gentlemen, we give you..
0:01:49 > 0:01:51- William...- Henry...- Fox...- Talbot!
0:01:51 > 0:01:54- Otherwise known to his friends as... - Foxy!
0:01:54 > 0:01:56- Foxy? No, Henry.- Henry.
0:01:56 > 0:01:57Say 'Cheese'.
0:01:57 > 0:02:01Cheese! Brie, stilton, cheddar red Leicester or mozzarella?
0:02:01 > 0:02:04Exactly! See? Told you he was clever.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08Inspired by Fox Talbot's genius idea,
0:02:08 > 0:02:12we'll be coming up with our own genius idea later in the show.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15When we build a giant camera to photograph a giant city!
0:02:17 > 0:02:22Photographs are everywhere. It's thought that there are over
0:02:22 > 0:02:25one billion of them taken every single day!
0:02:27 > 0:02:29But when Fox Talbot was born in Dorset
0:02:29 > 0:02:33back in 1800 the total number of photographs
0:02:33 > 0:02:37ever taken was a whopping great...zero!
0:02:37 > 0:02:40In the days before digital cameras there was camera film,
0:02:40 > 0:02:44photos had to be printed before you could see them.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47And in the days before camera film, there was Fox Talbot!
0:02:47 > 0:02:51One of a small group of people racing to invent photography.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57But how were real life images created before photography was invented?
0:03:00 > 0:03:04Ah, look! A lady enjoying her prawn sandwich. Look at the view!
0:03:04 > 0:03:05It's amazing, isn't it?
0:03:05 > 0:03:09This is the Clifton Camera Obscura in Bristol and the
0:03:09 > 0:03:11images you can see on this table
0:03:11 > 0:03:13are being beamed down from a tiny little
0:03:13 > 0:03:16hole in the roof right up there.
0:03:16 > 0:03:18It's kind of like Victorian CCTV.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22Camera Obscura means "Dark Room" and the cameras you and I use
0:03:22 > 0:03:26today got their name because they're portable camera obscuras.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28So this is a not very portable camera!
0:03:28 > 0:03:31But how does a camera obscura work?
0:03:31 > 0:03:34If only Fran, our genius scientist, was here to tell us more
0:03:34 > 0:03:35Can we spot her on here?
0:03:35 > 0:03:37There she is!
0:03:37 > 0:03:40There! Carrying a big box.
0:03:40 > 0:03:41This is Fran.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43She just loves experimenting...
0:03:45 > 0:03:48..to help explain the ideas of our geniuses.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51And she's sure to pop up just when you really need her.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55Camera obscuras are the basis of all modern cameras.
0:03:55 > 0:03:57All you need to make one is a blacked out box
0:03:57 > 0:04:00and a small hole to let in the light.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02Plus Fran to show you how it works.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04So, what we're going to try
0:04:04 > 0:04:07and do is create an image of you inside that box.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11The light coming from the sun, bouncing off your head
0:04:11 > 0:04:14and going in all different directions.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17Light is a little bit funny, it likes to travel in straight lines.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19We've got a nice straight rope there.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22- So the rope represents the light? - Exactly, yeah!
0:04:22 > 0:04:27So the light bouncing off Dick's head is going through our hole here,
0:04:27 > 0:04:29keeping on going,
0:04:29 > 0:04:32and it just so happens that it ends up at the bottom of our box
0:04:32 > 0:04:35- and that's where it forms the image of the head.- OK.
0:04:35 > 0:04:37So that's the top of him, what about the bottom?
0:04:37 > 0:04:42That's a good point, that. This is the light bouncing off your foot.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45And it's travelling in a straight line. And let's post it through.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48Light is a little bit faster than this, though.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52- There. - So my image is now in there!- Yep.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55We've got the light going from the bottom of your foot,
0:04:55 > 0:04:57through the hole and up to the top of our box.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00But he's upside down. Why?
0:05:00 > 0:05:03He is upside down, and that's because you can see,
0:05:03 > 0:05:04as the light is going through,
0:05:04 > 0:05:06the only light that can get through our hole,
0:05:06 > 0:05:11it's travelling at a certain angle, so they end up crossing at the hole.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13- Ah, and it flips the image over. - Yeah.- I see!
0:05:14 > 0:05:18So, the small hole in the front of the camera obscura lets in just
0:05:18 > 0:05:22enough light from outside to project a clear image on the inside.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26Genius! Even if it is upside down.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30And that is the very basics of a camera obscura.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33For centuries, no-one could work out how to capture the real life
0:05:33 > 0:05:36images inside camera obscuras.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39Sitting in a dark room tracing around an image was
0:05:39 > 0:05:41the closest it got to photography.
0:05:41 > 0:05:43Come and get your passport portraits.
0:05:43 > 0:05:44In you go.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47But that took patience and skill.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50There's a guy in there called Finn, and he wants a portrait doing.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53No wonder they wanted to invent the camera!
0:05:53 > 0:05:54Here it comes!
0:05:56 > 0:05:58LAUGHTER
0:05:58 > 0:06:01The race for photography started in the early-1800s
0:06:01 > 0:06:05when people began to experiment with light sensitive materials
0:06:05 > 0:06:08placed inside small camera obscuras.
0:06:08 > 0:06:12They replaced the hole with a lens and the camera was born!
0:06:12 > 0:06:17This is the first photograph ever taken, by Frenchman Nicephore Niepce.
0:06:17 > 0:06:18The blurry buildings are a big
0:06:18 > 0:06:21improvement on earlier attempts that simply faded away.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Another French pioneer, Louis Daguerre,
0:06:23 > 0:06:26had big success but his images were
0:06:26 > 0:06:29captured on metal so couldn't be reproduced.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32The world was waiting for a genius idea.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35Fox Talbot was the first person to master all three
0:06:35 > 0:06:37stages of photography.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41He captured images on light sensitive paper and fixed them
0:06:41 > 0:06:42so they didn't disappear.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46Better still, his negative images could be reproduced many times.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48So for the first time ever you could
0:06:48 > 0:06:51send snaps to all your family and friends.
0:06:51 > 0:06:52Genius.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55Oh! Another 4,000 holiday snaps!
0:06:55 > 0:06:58And when Fox Talbot finally invented photographs
0:06:58 > 0:06:59he couldn't stop taking them.
0:06:59 > 0:07:03He travelled all over Europe taking snaps with his camera.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05All over Europe? So where are we going next?
0:07:05 > 0:07:08- Don't tell me - Barcelona! - No.- Milan?- No.
0:07:08 > 0:07:10- Paris?- Wiltshire.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13Wiltshire? I love Wiltshire!
0:07:14 > 0:07:17This is Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19And here it is in one of the earliest photographs ever.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Taken by the genius William Henry Fox Talbot.
0:07:24 > 0:07:28And he actually lived here! It's absolutely stunning.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31No wonder old WHFT wanted to take pictures of it.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33His wife made some beautiful drawings of their travels.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35But our Henry was a rubbish drawer.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38There was nothing else for it, he had to invent photography.
0:07:41 > 0:07:46Meet genius photographer Betsy Reed. An expert on early cameras.
0:07:47 > 0:07:52This is actually the window where Fox Talbot made his first image.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56It's a really ideal location because it's a southward facing window
0:07:56 > 0:07:58so you get a lot of light, which is
0:07:58 > 0:08:00really important for these early photographic processes.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04So how exactly did these photographic experiments work?
0:08:04 > 0:08:05I'll tell you what.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09We need some chemicals and some flowers and then I can show you.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13- Chemicals... Right, well, we'll get the flowers!- You get the chemicals.
0:08:16 > 0:08:20Fox Talbot figured out that the key to capturing an image
0:08:20 > 0:08:22was light sensitive paper.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25Lots of his early experiments involved paper, chemicals
0:08:25 > 0:08:27and flowers.
0:08:27 > 0:08:28Not another dark room!
0:08:31 > 0:08:36Our next step will be to coat the paper with silver nitrate.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39Silver nitrate changes colour when exposed to light.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42Why does it have to be so dark in here?
0:08:42 > 0:08:45Because if we had lights on the paper would react too
0:08:45 > 0:08:47quickly before we want it to.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49Squish it down nice and tight.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53Our flower arrangements definitely aren't going to win any awards.
0:08:53 > 0:08:57The thing that got Fox Talbot so excited is what happens to the
0:08:57 > 0:09:00light sensitive paper once it's exposed to the sun.
0:09:00 > 0:09:01Hold on to your hats!
0:09:01 > 0:09:04Just set it right there.
0:09:04 > 0:09:05How long will this take then?
0:09:05 > 0:09:10Um, it will probably start to show in just a few minutes.
0:09:10 > 0:09:12It's already changing.
0:09:12 > 0:09:14What's happening there?
0:09:14 > 0:09:17Well, your silver nitrate is reacting to the sunlight.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19After five minutes' exposure to sunlight
0:09:19 > 0:09:21the image on the paper has fully developed.
0:09:21 > 0:09:25Fox Talbot knew he had discovered the genius chemical reaction
0:09:25 > 0:09:28he needed to capture the image in a camera.
0:09:28 > 0:09:31Where the flowers weren't, the sun has reacted with the silver and
0:09:31 > 0:09:35it's gone dark, but where the flowers were it's left a lovely white print.
0:09:35 > 0:09:36It's actually a negative image,
0:09:36 > 0:09:38which means that all of the light bits
0:09:38 > 0:09:41are dark and all of the dark bits are light.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44And Fox Talbot was the first person to discover the negative.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48The next stage of the process is fixing,
0:09:48 > 0:09:50another breakthrough for Fox Talbot.
0:09:50 > 0:09:54Without a chemical to fix it, the image would simply fade away.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57A quick rinse to get rid of the chemicals, and we're done.
0:09:57 > 0:09:59Or in Dick's case, overdone.
0:10:01 > 0:10:08- Ah.- Ah! And there we have it. My picture is well and truly fixed!
0:10:08 > 0:10:10Look at that. Perfect.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14- Don't do it!- No, no, no, no! - Don't let it rip!
0:10:14 > 0:10:17- All right, that.- And this will stay like this for ever?
0:10:17 > 0:10:18Yes, it should.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21Fox Talbot placed this light sensitive paper
0:10:21 > 0:10:22inside a basic camera.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25And was able to capture negative images of the real
0:10:25 > 0:10:27world for the very first time.
0:10:27 > 0:10:31It was the big breakthrough in the race to perfect photography.
0:10:31 > 0:10:33But why were negatives so important?
0:10:33 > 0:10:36Other photography pioneers could make images.
0:10:36 > 0:10:39But only Fox Talbot could easily make copies. By treating
0:10:39 > 0:10:43his negative image he could make as many positive prints as he liked.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46This really was a breakthrough for Fox Talbot.
0:10:46 > 0:10:49And everyone wanted their photo taken with this
0:10:49 > 0:10:52incredible, affordable technology.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57The problem was, because the chemical paper
0:10:57 > 0:11:01took a while to react to light, you couldn't move during the exposure
0:11:01 > 0:11:04or the picture would come out blurred.
0:11:05 > 0:11:10And because faster reacting film wasn't going to be around for another
0:11:10 > 0:11:1230 years, people had to sit still.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15- Very still.- Sorry!
0:11:18 > 0:11:21So how hard was it to take a great snap at the dawn of photography?
0:11:21 > 0:11:23To find out we've borrowed an old camera
0:11:23 > 0:11:27and are going to help Betsy take a photo 1860s-stylee.
0:11:27 > 0:11:32All we need are some subjects who are really good at staying still.
0:11:32 > 0:11:36- RUMBLING What's that noise? That noise! - What, like a rumbling noise?
0:11:36 > 0:11:38Like there's a stampede!
0:11:38 > 0:11:40SHOUTING
0:11:43 > 0:11:45No pushing and shoving!
0:11:45 > 0:11:47Don't be silly, no sticking out your tongue,
0:11:47 > 0:11:49smallest ones at the front. I sympathise.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52It's going to take 10 seconds to expose it,
0:11:52 > 0:11:54so you've got to stand still for 10 seconds, is that possible?
0:11:54 > 0:11:56No!
0:11:56 > 0:11:58Have you ever stood still for 10 seconds in your life?
0:11:58 > 0:12:00- Yes, she has.- No.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03- This is going to be quite tricky. - Well, we'll make sure you do.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06Stay, stay, stay. We'll stand at the back here.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09- OK, listen to Betsy, everyone. - OK, everyone, quiet.
0:12:09 > 0:12:10I'm going to count to three.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13At three, I need all of you to be perfectly still for me
0:12:13 > 0:12:15until I tell you you can move again.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18Does anyone not understand? Good.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20One, two...
0:12:20 > 0:12:21Who fidgeted?
0:12:24 > 0:12:25Look, kid, stop it.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29Do you understand me? Never again.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33I think I'll put you on the naughty step.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36- Freeze.- Stand still.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39Ten...nine...
0:12:39 > 0:12:42- BOTH:- ..eight...seven...six...five...
0:12:42 > 0:12:44four...three...two...one.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46CHEERING
0:12:49 > 0:12:51Not bad for a 150-year-old camera.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55So thanks to Fox Talbot, people could capture an image in a camera,
0:12:55 > 0:12:57chemically fix it so it wouldn't fade away,
0:12:57 > 0:13:01and with his invention of the negative, print lots of copies.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03Genius.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06Photography was on its way to taking over the world.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09It's the genius top five photo facts.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12Five - the most photographed city in the world is New York,
0:13:12 > 0:13:16and the most photographed thing is the Empire State Building.
0:13:17 > 0:13:19With or without a giant monkey on top.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22Four - the most reproduced photo ever is Che Guevara,
0:13:22 > 0:13:24the famous revolutionary leader.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27It was taken in 1960 and since then has been
0:13:27 > 0:13:31reproduced on everything from mugs to T-shirts to buildings.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33Three - Apollo astronauts left behind
0:13:33 > 0:13:3612 state-of-the-art cameras on the moon.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38There was hardly any room on the spaceship
0:13:38 > 0:13:41and it was more important to bring back moon rock.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44Two - ever been asked to get somebody's good side?
0:13:44 > 0:13:47Scientists reckon that the left side of your face is better looking
0:13:47 > 0:13:48than your right.
0:13:48 > 0:13:53I reckon either's fine, so long as it's not your backside.
0:13:53 > 0:13:58One - the most expensive photo ever sold was a print called Rhein II.
0:13:58 > 0:14:03For your £2.7 million you got a snap of some grass, some sky,
0:14:03 > 0:14:05a bit of river, and that's it.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09So photography was really capturing the world,
0:14:09 > 0:14:12but because of slow exposure, it meant that you could only take
0:14:12 > 0:14:16photographs outdoors in the sunshine with bright light.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18If you wanted to take a snap of something
0:14:18 > 0:14:20like your dad's dodgy dancing indoors,
0:14:20 > 0:14:22then you'd have to wait several years
0:14:22 > 0:14:25until the invention of flash photography.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27Today, almost every camera has a flash.
0:14:27 > 0:14:29But in the early days of photography,
0:14:29 > 0:14:31taking pictures indoors was very dangerous.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34And we know just the man
0:14:34 > 0:14:37to bring old-fashioned explosive flash to life.
0:14:37 > 0:14:41Our mate, chemist and genius helper, Professor Andrea Sella.
0:14:41 > 0:14:42Andrea, good to be here again.
0:14:42 > 0:14:46We need an explosive amount of light to light a photograph.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48We thought, "Who better to come to than you?"
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Well, that was the real problem in the 19th century -
0:14:51 > 0:14:55how you could get a really bright, really fast light.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Remember there was no electricity.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00The only thing that was available was chemistry.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02Some time around 1870,
0:15:02 > 0:15:06people proposed that this reaction here might be used for photography.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10I'm going to put... This is going to be a fire. I've got some fuel.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13Inside, we actually have the oxidiser, right,
0:15:13 > 0:15:14which is going to do...
0:15:14 > 0:15:18You can see this bit of colour in there. It stinks a bit.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21Do you want to hold the end on really firmly?
0:15:21 > 0:15:24Get your hands right round. It might pop off.
0:15:24 > 0:15:26Just give it a shake.
0:15:26 > 0:15:28Give it a quick shake. It stinks, doesn't it?
0:15:28 > 0:15:33This is what came to be known as the barking dog. Get a match.
0:15:33 > 0:15:34We've got to get the lights out.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36Lights out, please.
0:15:36 > 0:15:37Thank you.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40Now we're going to light it at the top. You ready?
0:15:40 > 0:15:41BARKING SOUND
0:15:41 > 0:15:43DOM SCREAMS
0:15:45 > 0:15:47This is why it's called the barking dog.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51The reason is because you have this flame that travels down.
0:15:51 > 0:15:55It makes the air inside, the gas inside the tube vibrate.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57It's like an organ pipe.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00Do you really want to be travelling around with fire?
0:16:00 > 0:16:02It doesn't seem like such a brilliant idea.
0:16:02 > 0:16:07So today, what we use inside a regular camera
0:16:07 > 0:16:10is a tiny capsule that contains a gas called xenon,
0:16:10 > 0:16:13which was actually discovered here in London.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17When you pass a spark through it, it gives this incredible flash.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20In fact, the temperature goes up to about 5,000 degrees.
0:16:20 > 0:16:235,000 degrees in the palm of your hand?
0:16:23 > 0:16:265,000 degrees in the palm of your hand.
0:16:26 > 0:16:28Who'd have thought that you were carrying something
0:16:28 > 0:16:30so hot around in your pocket?
0:16:30 > 0:16:33If you think blowing things up to take pictures isn't very sensible,
0:16:33 > 0:16:34check out this other...
0:16:37 > 0:16:42Self portraits. Taking pictures of yourself. The selfie.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44We've all done it, even Fox Talbot.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46I bet he never knew what he was starting.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48Miley. Pharell. Justin.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50What were you all thinking?
0:16:50 > 0:16:52Actually, Justin, we don't want to know what you were thinking.
0:16:52 > 0:16:54Just don't think it again.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59Photography started with the camera obscura,
0:16:59 > 0:17:02the invention of light-sensitive materials
0:17:02 > 0:17:05and Fox Talbot's genius breakthrough of the negative.
0:17:05 > 0:17:09We want to pay tribute to Fox Talbot with our own genius idea,
0:17:09 > 0:17:14so we've come to London to take photos with a difference, using...
0:17:14 > 0:17:17- this. A pin.- All right, be careful.
0:17:17 > 0:17:18Sharp. Dangerous. Ouch.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24Clearly we have no idea what we're doing, but luckily this man does -
0:17:24 > 0:17:27genius pinhole camera maker Justin Quinnell.
0:17:30 > 0:17:31- All right, Justin?- Hello there.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33- How are you doing? All right? - Hi there. Yeah.
0:17:33 > 0:17:36We've got our pin, but what exactly is a pinhole camera.
0:17:36 > 0:17:38A pinhole camera is a camera which makes an image
0:17:38 > 0:17:40using a small hole rather than a lens.
0:17:40 > 0:17:41You can make them out of anything -
0:17:41 > 0:17:45things you'd normally throw away, like your old shoe box.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48- You can make a camera out of that? - Yeah, it's a light-tight container.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51- All you need to do is make a small hole in there.- On the top.
0:17:51 > 0:17:52Yes, why not?
0:17:52 > 0:17:54Push it in, take it out again. Always handy.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57- So this is now the lens of the camera.- It is.
0:17:57 > 0:17:59There's light travelling through this hole
0:17:59 > 0:18:02and making an upside down image on the back inside the box.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04So this is similar to a camera obscura.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07To capture an image, you have to cover up the hole of the shutter
0:18:07 > 0:18:11and get some very special light-sensitive photographic paper.
0:18:11 > 0:18:13Similar to what we were using with Betsy.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17Then you'd hold the camera up, peel the shutter off.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19Light starts travelling through the pinhole.
0:18:19 > 0:18:21After a few seconds, it'll make an image.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25- So you've taken a photo, genuinely with a shoe box.- Yeah.
0:18:25 > 0:18:27You can take photographs with virtually anything.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29So long as it traps the light.
0:18:29 > 0:18:31- Crisp packets?- Yes.- Coke cans?- Yes.
0:18:31 > 0:18:33- Table?- No.- Ah, OK.
0:18:33 > 0:18:34Hold on a minute.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37- You said something hollow that you could project an image inside.- Yep.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39Aren't we looking at it right here?
0:18:39 > 0:18:41Could you get photo paper the size of this?
0:18:41 > 0:18:44- You can't use a bin as a camera. - It's empty now.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46- It's genius.- Can you, Justin?- Yes.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49- Put a hole in the front. - Yeah, we can do it.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52Not a pinhole camera, but a bin-hole camera. Genius.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56This is it, our genius idea.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59We're going to turn a bin into a giant pinhole camera
0:18:59 > 0:19:01by drilling a small hole in the front
0:19:01 > 0:19:04and putting a big roll of light-sensitive paper inside.
0:19:06 > 0:19:11Our challenge, to take some very big photos of a very big city - London.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14The problem, it's a bulky old bin with no view finder.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16I can't see a thing.
0:19:16 > 0:19:17The photos could be rubbish.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22Our genius idea will take in all stages of Fox Talbot's
0:19:22 > 0:19:26photographic process - developing, fixing...
0:19:26 > 0:19:28and printing.
0:19:28 > 0:19:30Well, that'll be up to one man.
0:19:31 > 0:19:36Alan Sparrow - genius picture editor of daily newspaper the Metro.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40No photo gets in the paper unless Mr Sparrow says so.
0:19:42 > 0:19:43OK, boys, I'm a busy fellow,
0:19:43 > 0:19:45so we're going to go out and take some pictures today.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47This is the very pointy end of the business.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50It brings back some fantastic views of London. Some monuments.
0:19:50 > 0:19:55I need a celebrity. Someone with the X factor. I need a scoop.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57Not a problem. Not a problem.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00We want to print these pictures. They're not just for fun.
0:20:00 > 0:20:01How many megapixels is your camera?
0:20:01 > 0:20:04- What sort of kit are you working with?- Well, eh...
0:20:04 > 0:20:06Just give us one minute.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15Here it is. This is the kit.
0:20:15 > 0:20:19It's a pinhole bin camera.
0:20:19 > 0:20:20Oh, my word.
0:20:20 > 0:20:21With a hole in it.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25I'm not sure this is going to work, really, boys.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27We've got our work cut out to impress Alan.
0:20:27 > 0:20:31- With just one day to get our photos in the can...- Bin.- Yeah, bin.
0:20:31 > 0:20:32..we hit the streets of London.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34Oh, we've got to get Nelson's Column in.
0:20:36 > 0:20:37Think he'll fit?
0:20:37 > 0:20:40The thing is, there's no view finder like you see on a phone
0:20:40 > 0:20:45or on any camera. How do you know what you're taking a picture of?
0:20:45 > 0:20:46You've got to guess.
0:20:46 > 0:20:47OK.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50We've got to lock the bin so it doesn't move around over
0:20:50 > 0:20:52the duration of time, and take the photo.
0:20:52 > 0:20:53Oh, so peel off the...
0:20:54 > 0:20:59As you'd expect, a pinhole doesn't let much light into the bin, so
0:20:59 > 0:21:03it's going to take eight minutes to make the light-sensitive paper react.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06And anybody moving won't show up in the photo.
0:21:06 > 0:21:08So it will look like Trafalgar Square is empty.
0:21:08 > 0:21:09Completely.
0:21:09 > 0:21:12Our pinhole camera is attracting attention and inspiring
0:21:12 > 0:21:16its own photo opportunities with cameras that are a lot smaller.
0:21:16 > 0:21:18- ALL:- Bogies!
0:21:18 > 0:21:20What time are we on?
0:21:20 > 0:21:22- That's eight minutes.- OK.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25- Oh, it's not a real bin.- It's not a real bin.- Don't put it in the bin.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27- Do not put that in there. - It's not a real bin.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30And now you're standing in front of that.
0:21:30 > 0:21:31It's all her fault.
0:21:31 > 0:21:32Where's the picture now?
0:21:32 > 0:21:35The picture right now is invisibly on a piece of photographic paper.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37So it's no good for you lot, is it?
0:21:37 > 0:21:39You're used to just going, click, and you can see the picture.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42- We have to wait. - You're pretty sure it worked?
0:21:42 > 0:21:43We'll see.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47Now we have to change the roll after every shot.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49The paper can't be exposed to light,
0:21:49 > 0:21:53so we use our hi tech mobile dark room.
0:21:53 > 0:21:54Once the exposed paper is out,
0:21:54 > 0:21:58we have to put fresh unexposed paper in, ready for the next shot.
0:22:00 > 0:22:04- We've got one London landmark in the can.- Bin.- Bin, hopefully.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08We even find a Londoner who will stand still for us for eight minutes.
0:22:08 > 0:22:10Oi, we said don't move.
0:22:10 > 0:22:12Onwards.
0:22:12 > 0:22:14But with our deadline pressing,
0:22:14 > 0:22:18we're desperate for a celeb to impress Alan back at HQ.
0:22:19 > 0:22:21Isn't that guy from X Factor?
0:22:21 > 0:22:22Jahmene.
0:22:22 > 0:22:28Jahmene. Hey, we've both got your album. We love it.
0:22:28 > 0:22:30Bring it this way, Justin. Come on.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35Yes, it really is X Factor star and chart topper Jahmene Douglas.
0:22:38 > 0:22:43We really are going to try to get him to pose in front of a giant bin.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46All you have to do is sit totally still over there for eight minutes.
0:22:46 > 0:22:47Easy as that.
0:22:47 > 0:22:49Go and sit next to those weeds.
0:22:49 > 0:22:50This is interesting.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52Thanks.
0:22:52 > 0:22:54Where do we want it, Justin?
0:22:54 > 0:22:58You've got it, yeah. Just next to the weeds. Nice and clean. All right?
0:22:58 > 0:23:00- Yes.- Good.
0:23:00 > 0:23:01All right, let's get it nice and close,
0:23:01 > 0:23:03cos we want to get a nice portrait here.
0:23:03 > 0:23:05OK. I don't trust you guys.
0:23:05 > 0:23:06Lock it off.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08Go.
0:23:08 > 0:23:09Right, Jahmene, very simple.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12What's happening right now is your image, as we see it, is being
0:23:12 > 0:23:16projected through this tiny little hole, flipped upside down.
0:23:16 > 0:23:18Stop talking at him now. He's trying to pose.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22I think he thinks something's going to squirt out the hole
0:23:22 > 0:23:23into his face.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25That's three minutes.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28You did remember to put the film in, didn't you?
0:23:28 > 0:23:31If this goes right, this picture could be in Metro.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35- An actual paparazzi.- A proper one.
0:23:35 > 0:23:36BUZZER
0:23:36 > 0:23:39- OK, time's up.- Time is up.- You can move.- Shutter.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41Put the shutter up. Put the shutter up.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45Nothing squirted out the hole, nothing came out the bin.
0:23:45 > 0:23:47A fly went into my eye.
0:23:47 > 0:23:51- Fantastic.- A fly went into my eye. I tried to maintain normal face.
0:23:53 > 0:23:55- Try not to cry. - You're a pro to the end.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Job done. A proper celebrity scoop.
0:23:59 > 0:24:02As photoshoots go, that was probably the most awkward one I've done.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05Whether or not bin-hole cameras will catch on or not...
0:24:05 > 0:24:07We'll see how the picture turns out.
0:24:07 > 0:24:08With time running out,
0:24:08 > 0:24:11we cross over the river to squeeze in one final photo.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18- MUFFLED:- Whatever you do, don't move.
0:24:18 > 0:24:20All this work and just four photos.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22They're big, but will they be any good?
0:24:22 > 0:24:24- MUFFLED:- Dom. - DOM GRUNTS
0:24:24 > 0:24:25I've got an itch.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31In the dark room the next morning, it's the moment of truth.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33Has our bin-hole camera even worked?
0:24:33 > 0:24:36We follow Fox Talbot's ground-breaking process,
0:24:36 > 0:24:39and the chemicals develop our images.
0:24:39 > 0:24:40CHEERING
0:24:40 > 0:24:41There's something here.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45We fix the images so they don't disappear, but the big question
0:24:45 > 0:24:50is will our photos be good enough to print in a national newspaper?
0:24:52 > 0:24:55It's back to the newspaper offices for Alan's verdict.
0:24:56 > 0:24:57Don't you let me down.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01- Hi again, Alan. - OK, let's have a look.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05- This is Trafalgar Square. - It's not Trafalgar Square at night.
0:25:05 > 0:25:06This is a negative at the moment.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09Everyone seems to be in motion around the picture.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12That happens because each photo takes so long to take,
0:25:12 > 0:25:14if you're moving, you're a blur.
0:25:14 > 0:25:18This next shot, the light wasn't actually as good.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20We were at the London Eye.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23The only person that's there is Rich. He looks like a ghost.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26- It's really interesting.- It's OK.
0:25:27 > 0:25:29The problem is, here, it was too sunny,
0:25:29 > 0:25:32so it's been totally overexposed.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35We need to pull something special out of the bag to save the day.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37You asked for someone with the X factor.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40I reckon we've pretty much delivered what you asked for.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44That is actually Jahmene from The X Factor.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46Really? That's very, very good.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48He was a very patient sitter then.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53Right, so, the big question is, do you think you will print
0:25:53 > 0:25:55any of these photos in your paper?
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Well, let's make sure we can find a positive, see how it goes
0:25:58 > 0:26:00and see if any of these can make it for the grade for the paper.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03- No promises yet. You have to talk to your team.- I think so.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05Thank you very much.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10So it's a maybe from Alan
0:26:10 > 0:26:13until he sees the positive versions of our photos.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16That's where the genius of the negative is revealed.
0:26:16 > 0:26:18Trafalgar Square.
0:26:20 > 0:26:22Big Ben and the London Eye.
0:26:24 > 0:26:25A human statue.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30And a pop star with the X factor.
0:26:34 > 0:26:38It's been an incredible journey. We've been inside a camera obscura.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40We've experimented with chemicals.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43And discovered the power of the negative.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47All thanks to Mr William Henry Fox Talbot.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50Well, the good news is that Alan has decided to print
0:26:50 > 0:26:53a couple of the pictures that we took using the bin-hole camera.
0:26:53 > 0:26:54Look.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56There we are. This is a dummy copy.
0:26:56 > 0:26:58This is what it's going to look like in the paper.
0:26:58 > 0:27:02It's crazy to think that we fixed, developed and printed pictures
0:27:02 > 0:27:04using Fox Talbot's original methods.
0:27:04 > 0:27:09So, William Fox Talbot, we thank you. You are an absolute genius.
0:27:09 > 0:27:10Say cheese.
0:27:10 > 0:27:11Cheese.
0:27:17 > 0:27:18THEY SCREAM
0:27:18 > 0:27:21DOM SCREAMS It smacked me in the face.
0:27:21 > 0:27:22- Dom's... - Oh, no!
0:27:24 > 0:27:25What are you doing?!
0:27:26 > 0:27:29Let me get it straight.
0:27:29 > 0:27:30DICK GROANS
0:27:30 > 0:27:33But what's all that?! What's all the black stuff?
0:27:35 > 0:27:37LAUGHTER
0:27:38 > 0:27:40THEY SCREAM