camera lucida

[ loo-si-duh ]

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.

camera lucida

/ 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

Word History and Origins

Origin of camera lucida¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of camera lucida¹

New Latin: light chamber

Example Sentences

Some think he employed a camera lucida’s lens to render sitters as accurately as possible, which makes two details surprising.

From Los Angeles Times

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

From Literature

Nash, who has donated photos and pre-photographic "camera lucida" pictures to the Getty and 20th century photos to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, was not available for comment.

From Los Angeles Times

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 Project Gutenberg

The winged transparency may be an insect unconsciously picked up by the unemployed eye and transferred by the camera lucida principle to the field of the telescope.

From Project Gutenberg