Raspberry Pi Camera Project Captures Stunning Moon Photos
A Raspberry Pi camera project is pushing the limits of what the official camera module can achieve, by using a powerful lens from an old film camera, along with some custom code, 3D printing, and Msgpack. The ZoomPi project, by Reddit user DoomMonkey266, is capturing stunning close-up images of the moon with a unique and impressive camera rig, and is a great example of the kind of innovation and creativity possible with the Raspberry Pi.
The ZoomPi project uses a Raspberry Pi Zero W and a high-powered Canon lens, repurposed from an old 35mm film camera. The maker says they chose a zoom lens because the moon “frequently appears as just a tiny dot in other moon shots,” and they wanted to show it off in all its glory.
The rig uses 3D-printed components to make the lens compatible with the Pi camera, and custom code written in Python, along with Picamera2, OpenCV, Zeromq, and Msgpack, is used to operate the camera setup. This allows for more control over exposure and resolution.
The full thread of the project, along with updates and other cool projects, can be found on Reddit, with the maker saying their next goal is to capture the shadow of the moon cast on the Earth.
Check out this guide to the best Raspberry Pi accessories, and you can build your own incredible projects. You could also check out the best Pi Zero W add-ons, to boost the tiny computer’s capabilities.
