Building a Modular Monochrome Camera - Recorded Workshop

This is a recorded walkthrough of how I designed and built my modular monochrome camera, from the earliest ideas to a working tool I actually use to take photos.

The workshop isn’t about selling a finished product or showing off a perfect build. It’s about walking through the decisions, tradeoffs, and experiments that went into the camera — what worked, what didn’t, and why certain choices were made along the way.

If you’ve ever been curious about building your own camera, modifying one, or just understanding what’s actually happening inside modern digital cameras, this workshop is meant to be a practical place to start.

What I cover

• How the camera body evolved through multiple design iterations
• 3D printing choices that actually matter for camera parts
• How the Raspberry Pi, screen, battery, and sensor are integrated
• Why I chose the IMX585 monochrome sensor
• Lens mounts, focal reducers, and adapting vintage lenses
• Battery design using standard 18650 cells
• A high-level look at the camera software and UI
• How features like focus peaking, histograms, and film simulations were implemented
• How the files behave once they’re brought into Lightroom
• What I learned from building and using multiple versions of the camera

This isn’t a step-by-step kit manual, but it should give you enough context to build, modify, or rethink your own approach.

Who this is for

• Photographers who like understanding their tools
• Makers interested in camera hardware and software
• Raspberry Pi users looking for a real, applied project
• Anyone curious about monochrome digital photography
• People who enjoy learning through process, not just results

You don’t need an engineering background — just patience and curiosity.

Format

• Recorded workshop (just over an hour)
• Informal walkthrough with live explanations
• Includes Q&A and tangents that came up during the session
• Watch at your own pace