Located on the top floor of the eclectic early 20th-century Gómez Vila Building, 115 feet off the ground, the Cámara Oscura provides a 360-degree real time panoramic view of much of Old Havana and was our final destination on our last day in Cuba. It is the only one of its kind in Latin America. Camera obscura (from the Latin “camera”: (vaulted) chamber or room, and “obscura”: darkened) is the natural optical phenomenon that occurs when the image of a scene is projected through a pinhole (the first ever “lens”) onto the opposite wall of a darkened chamber. The camera obscura concept was eventually developed into the modern photographic camera in the first half of the 19th century when camera obscura boxes were used to expose light-sensitive materials. The word camera thus originated from the word chamber.

Cuba’s Cámara Oscura uses two lenses and a mirror located on a periscope. The image that is captured by the periscope is projected on a concave platform 6 foot in diameter, located inside a dark room. On a bright day this room sized camera is able to project panoramas or zoom in on people miles away in any direction.

After the demonstration we ventured out onto the rooftop to inspect the periscope and enjoy the spectacular views of the city.  A more perfect way to cap our visit to Cuba we could not have hoped for.  Our ride to the airport in another vintage car was the frosting on the cake.,