Friedrich Risner.html



Friedrich Risner (died 1580) was a German mathematician from Hersfeld [1], Hesse. He was a student of Petrus Ramus (1515-1572) and was the first chair of mathematics at Collège Royale de France. The exact year of Risner's birth is unknown, however it is believed to be around the year 1520.

He is known for his 1572 publication of "Opticae thesaurus: Alhazeni Arabis libri septem, nuncprimum editi; Eiusdem liber De Crepusculis et nubium ascensionibus, Item Vitellonis Thuringopoloni libri X", which was an edition of the works of Ibn al-Haitham and Erazmus Ciolek Witelo, who were both early pioneers in the study of optics. This publication was a major benefit to several famous mathematicians and scientists, including Kepler, Huygens, and Descartes.

Risner was the first to propose the idea of a portable camera obscura, which purportedly was to be used to help create artistic topographical drawings. His idea consisted of a lightweight wooden hut that had small holes fitted with lenses in each wall, and a cube of paper placed in the centre for drawing.

References

• The Foundations of an Art; A "Prehistory" of Photography
• Friedrich Risner, Ed., Opticae thesaurus, Basel, 1572; with introduction by David Lindberg, NY: Johnson Reprint, 1972