camera lucida

American  

[loo-si-duh] / ˈlu sɪ də /

noun

1. an optical instrument, often attached to the eyepiece of a microscope, by which the image of an external object is projected on a sheet of paper or the like for tracing.

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camera lucida British  

/ ˈluːsɪdə /

noun

1. an instrument attached to a microscope, etc to enable an observer to view simultaneously the image and a drawing surface to facilitate the sketching of the image

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Etymology

Origin of camera lucida

1660–70; < New Latin: bright chamber; camera ¹, lucid

Example Sentences

The visual trick may have been created by the artist’s use of a common optical viewing aid called a camera lucida.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 4, 2025

Precisely ground, the mirrors were able to start fires and project images onto flat surfaces, camera lucida fashion.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

In each hut was arranged a camera lucida, so that a picture of the harbor, over a limited area, was thrown upon a whitened table.

From Stories by American Authors, Volume 5 by James, Henry

The cover glass is then removed and the wing mounted either on the same slide in balsam or floated to another slide, or at once accurately sketched with the camera lucida.

From Directions for Collecting and Preserving Insects by Riley, C. V.

In the second method the tracing-papers were discarded, and the prism of a camera lucida used.

From Finger Prints by Galton, Francis, Sir