Essay about History of Photography

Photography is a word derived from the Greek words photos light and to draw. A scientist called Sir John F.W. Herschel, which was in 1839, first used the word. It was a method which was all about recording images by using light or radiation on a sensitive material. The first known camera was created by Alhazen also known as who lived around 100AD he invented the first pinhole camera this camera was used to capture the movement of the sun. Photography was explained to be the science and art of documenting photographs by capturing light on a light sensitive material which included film or an electronic sensor. Light could be reflected from objects which could expose a chemical or electronic material during a timed exposure which is typically used through a camera which can store the information chemically or electronically. The first photograph was take in 1827 taken by Joseph Nicephore Niepce who made the first photograph

Before photography was invented, the only way to see what someone or something looked like from that time period was a drawing or painting. Before the invention of photography, there was no true way to know what a person looked like as Pey sketches they had could be inaccurate. Photography changed the world not by only showing accurate depictions of objects but also by introducing a new form of art. Anyone can take a photo, but a photographer uses the principles of art and design to capture a moment and astonishing images.

The purpose of my study is to give people a chance to understand what is the meaning of photography and how it was invented, plus how people was able to take photographs before the camera was invented.

Until the 19th century most artwork was created in a two or three-dimensional media. In England, William Fox discovered a technique that allowed camera images to be captured on paper. This medium has evolved since Fox’s discovery in 1839 to a serious and viable form of art today. Photography allows the artist to capture what he sees. The image produced is reality to the artists eye, it can only be manipulated with light and angles.

The lightweight camera made it easier to transport and images were taken secretly and confidently. It started the era of the “Candid shot” (Collins). Images begun to look more real and less staged. Photojournalism was much easier, the picture was able to tell the story. Some photographers did not like the loss of freedom and went out on their own. They produced a series of photos that followed the same theme and told a story. This is known as a form of photojournalism and is still used today. Some journalists took on the role of a photographer and decided to write their own story and shoot their own images. There were many forms of photojournalism and one of the most important was the magazine called

It is considered that photography only became widely available to the public when the Kodak Eastman Company introduced the box shaped Brownie Camera in 1900. (Baker, n.p.) Its features became more refined since its original placing on the market; one of the reasons why it has become considered the birth of public photography is because of the processing. Using a similar image capture system, the brownie exposed the light to a 120mm roll of film, which could be wound round, meaning six photographs could be taken before the slides needed removing. The first Brownie used a six-exposure cartridge that Kodak processed for the photographer. (Kodak.com, n.d.) Realistically, the armature photographers did not need to understand darkroom processes,

The first camera was invented by Alhazen around 1000 AD. It was called the Camera Obscura (Pinhole Camera). Since then there have been huge advances in the camera world, with over 400 cameras have been made. Pictures are a big and influential part in people’s lives. From Social Media to books, and news, cameras have truly changed America.

Through the development of multiple inventions such as the digital camera and the smartphone camera, photography has been able to become more available to general public. No longer does one have to be extremely wealthy to have a picture taken. The majority of people now carry a smartphone

Photography has been a key in history. We know a lot about the looks of famous historical individuals all because of photography. With these images, people are able to see and feel how it was many years ago. This is a very interesting concept that many people do not think about whenever they hear the word “photography”. This wonderful invention and act has played a key role in the way people are able to view history as it was.

The nineteenth century brought along great artistic styles and technology that at the time were unfathomable. We have the nineteenth century and two men to thank for bringing about photographs using two types of methods; Daguerreotypes and Calotypes. The attempts at creating convincing photos were futile and primitive at best. It was not until a Frenchman Louis Jacques Mane Daguerre and Englishman Briton William Henry Fox Talbot, pioneers of photography created Daguerreotypes and Calotypes did we have our first successful methods of photography. Daguerreotypes involved using a metal plate and chemicals in our to retrieve the image. Calotypes were created and worked similar to negatives; sensitized paper and negative images were created and exposed to light; his methods were course and not nearly as sharp as the Daguerreotypes. Photography arrived with impeccable

In 1888, George Eastman made the first light and portable camera under the company name Kodak (Graham 28). These cameras gave people the ability to take a photo almost anywhere. The cameras had to be sent back to the factory so the photographs could be printed. Twenty years after Kodak’s first camera, they produced an improved camera, called “Brownie”. The Brownie was simple to use, making the art of photography boom. Flash cameras did not appear until the 1930s, letting people take pictures in areas with dim or little lighting. In 1947, Edwin Land invented the instant camera. Land got the idea after his daughter asked to see her picture after he took her photo. The next step in improving the camera was by making it digital, which was done in 1975 by a Kodak employee. As the camera gets smaller and simpler to use, the quality of the photographs it produces gets better.

Early Landscape photography used the same principles as painters in order to create pieces of art. Before the 18th Century, artists used landscapes as backdrops and as a frame for the principal subject. Towards the later part of the century, however, artists such as Nicolas Poussin started to romanticize the environment, instead using it as a principle subject in paintings.

One reason the camera was the greatest invention was because it helps people keep a hold and learn from the past. When people take photos, they can retain them from generation to generation making sure the memories

Photography serves many purposes and since its invention people have used it for many different reasons, but mostly for

It is likely that many artists will have used a camera obscura to aid them in drawing, but because of the stories of the occult, or because they felt it was "cheating" in some way not many people would admit to using one. In 1764, the lens was being developed. The name lens comes from