Today, cameras are easily available and practically everywhere, from phones, to computers, even to small pen like devices, in addition to the traditional camera shapes. Photography has become something we can all do easily, that sometimes we take it for granted. But the history of this art and science is long and storied, going through a number of ups and downs before reaching the point we enjoy today.
The fundamentals used in photography dates back to our ancient ancestors, thousands of years ago. From the ancient Chinese, like Mo Ti, to the ancient Greeks, like Aristotle, a lot of great minds of the ancient world played around with a device which is described as a pinhole camera. But it's not just the ancient Greeks and Chinese playing around with the idea of using cameras, in fact almost all great civilizations of that time had their own versions of the camera obscura, and other primitive camera devices, used for experimentation.
Those were only the principles behind photography, however, and it wouldn't be until 1826, when the first permanent photo was made, that photography would officially be born. Joseph Nicephore Niepce, who used a polish pewter plate and some bitumen of Judea, a substance that hardens upon exposure to light, created the very first photograph. This is caused by the plate, on which the bitumen leaves behind a negative image, covered with ink, and pressed on paper to create a print.
From that point onward, many more developments in the basic process would be made over the years, like the calotype process, invented in 1840 by Fox Talbot, which used paper sheets covered in silver chloride. The paper sheet would then be used to make an intermediate negative image, which is needed, and used, to create the final positive print. It is this paper, along with the way the prints would be made, that would be one of the foundations of modern chemical film and modern film development.
With all these emerging technologies came developments in the way photographs would be taken, because at first, all photos relied on simple lighting, and were done either outside, or at the most well lit room possible. In 1849 however, a Russian photographer named Count Sergei Lvovich Levitsky, who also designed a bellows camera that improved focusing, started the idea of artificially lighting subjects in a studio. The results of his efforts yielded him numerous awards, and since then studio photography began to take off.
The history of photography is filled with milestones that allowed us to enjoy modern cameras, lenses, and more. And with digital photography slowly taking over, photography as an industry and art is ready to take even more strides in the future. With these strides, perhaps even more people will be able to enjoy photography, both as an art, and as a profession.
The fundamentals used in photography dates back to our ancient ancestors, thousands of years ago. From the ancient Chinese, like Mo Ti, to the ancient Greeks, like Aristotle, a lot of great minds of the ancient world played around with a device which is described as a pinhole camera. But it's not just the ancient Greeks and Chinese playing around with the idea of using cameras, in fact almost all great civilizations of that time had their own versions of the camera obscura, and other primitive camera devices, used for experimentation.
Those were only the principles behind photography, however, and it wouldn't be until 1826, when the first permanent photo was made, that photography would officially be born. Joseph Nicephore Niepce, who used a polish pewter plate and some bitumen of Judea, a substance that hardens upon exposure to light, created the very first photograph. This is caused by the plate, on which the bitumen leaves behind a negative image, covered with ink, and pressed on paper to create a print.
From that point onward, many more developments in the basic process would be made over the years, like the calotype process, invented in 1840 by Fox Talbot, which used paper sheets covered in silver chloride. The paper sheet would then be used to make an intermediate negative image, which is needed, and used, to create the final positive print. It is this paper, along with the way the prints would be made, that would be one of the foundations of modern chemical film and modern film development.
With all these emerging technologies came developments in the way photographs would be taken, because at first, all photos relied on simple lighting, and were done either outside, or at the most well lit room possible. In 1849 however, a Russian photographer named Count Sergei Lvovich Levitsky, who also designed a bellows camera that improved focusing, started the idea of artificially lighting subjects in a studio. The results of his efforts yielded him numerous awards, and since then studio photography began to take off.
The history of photography is filled with milestones that allowed us to enjoy modern cameras, lenses, and more. And with digital photography slowly taking over, photography as an industry and art is ready to take even more strides in the future. With these strides, perhaps even more people will be able to enjoy photography, both as an art, and as a profession.
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