Back in the old days a couple would return from vacation and invite all of their friends over to their house for a slideshow of the amazing shots of far flung destinations that they the snapped. Drinks would be served and merriment would ensue as the guests would live vicariously through their traveling friends. And then digital photography came along and instead of getting together to see each other’s photos, we simply swipe through Instagram and Facebook feeds. Sure, it’s a little easier, but I miss the social aspect of slide shows.
I like to imagine that Delbert and Grace Meier would have hosted their friends for slideshow viewings back in the day. Perhaps when their daughter, Esther, returned from England she would have brought along slides from her travels. Grace might have called around and invited the garden club over to their house for a little show and tell. Esther would have flipped through the photos and described the scene. “Oh, that was when I saw Big Ben for the first time,” she might have said.
I want to return to those times when we hosted parties and shared collective oohs and aahs over vacation photos. What I don’t want to do, however, is shell out a bunch of money for a fancy digital photo projector. Luckily, I stumbled upon a tutorial for making a $1 DIY photo projector on Photojojo. With just a few supplies – a magnifying glass, a shoe box and few other items – you can host an old-timey slideshow party while still using the 21st century technology you’ve come to love.
I love this mix of modern technology and DIY initiative. By cutting a hole in a shoe box and inserting a magnifying glass lens, you can create a makeshift projector. You’ll have to fiddle around with the settings on your phone to get the orientation of the images right, but it all looks easy enough. I also think you could use the same method to create a movie projector. Hook your phone up to an external speaker, run a movie through the Netflix app on your phone and you should be able to screen the film like a movie star!
Now, who wants to come see photos of our recent New York trip? Now showing on a wall at our house!
Check out How to Turn Your Phone Into a DIY Photo Projector for $1 on Photojojo.
Images: Photojojo
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