box camera

American  

noun

1. a simple, boxlike camera, without bellows, sometimes allowing for adjustment of lens opening but usually not of shutter speed.

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box camera British  

noun

1. a simple box-shaped camera having an elementary lens, shutter, and viewfinder

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Etymology

Origin of box camera

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

He likely used optical devices, including a camera obscura, a precursor to the box camera.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026

Christina Broom only began to experiment with photography in her forties, using a box camera.

From BBC • Aug. 7, 2024

Positioning his bulky box camera at Charing Cross, a conjunction of six thoroughfares just south of today’s Trafalgar Square, he exposed a silver-coated copper plate for several minutes.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 17, 2023

Fellig’s shot, made at night with his box camera, flash and shutter release cord, was funny; it showed him peering into the trunk.

From New York Times • Jun. 1, 2018

With his savings he acquired a printing press, a box camera, and a damp, low-ceilinged office in the rear of a fish-precessing warehouse.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson