Photography is something that has become more and more prevalent in our everyday lives as time has gone by. Whereas a camera was once a luxurious item and taking a photograph was a rare event – now most people with mobile phones have access to a camera, and photographs are snapped in their millions every day, around the world. Here we’ll take a look at the history of photography, who invented photography and how photography originally came about.

The important thing to note about the invention of photography, is that the process of capturing images is something that evolved over time. There are many different recordings of photography throughout history, and the camera we know today is something that has gradually changed due to different inventors, businesses, and technologies.

Where does the word ‘Photography’ come from?

To go right back to the beginning, we have to look at the origins of the language surrounding photography. The word photography actually comes from two different Greek words, that both mean “drawing with light” or “painting with light”.

The word “photography” was first used in the year of 1839, and (importantly) this is the first year the invention of the photographic process was made public. It was made public by Sir John Herschel, however, the photographic process dates back much further than this publication.

The History of Camera Obscura

Perhaps the earliest version of photography is found in the Camera Obscura process. This process can be dated loosely back to the Chinese, possibly about 2,500 years ago. There are finding of texts, where ancient Chinese wrote about reflecting images using pinholes of light. Moving on from this by about 100 years, the philosopher Aristotle also talked about a pinhole image formation in his work, and pondered about the formation and distortion of light.

Without knowing it, these early discoveries and observations were outlining the process of Camera Obscura that would be popular in many years time, and lead to the invention of photography as we now know it.

It was in the 1500’s when artists such as Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci used Camera Obscura to see images and communicate visually. They would place their chosen model or object outside the dark room, and consequently their image was reflected onto the surface of their choice through the small pinhole, and they would then trace it. Many artists perfected this technique and it was used in many of the classic art we know and love today.

Slowly, the Camera Obscura process was made portable, and this opened it up to improvement and refinement from the different artists who used it. The process was confined to a smaller box shape, with a pinhole on one side. The light coming into the box would reflect the topic or object onto the opposite side, where the artist could then trace it by hand and refine with colours and detail. It wasn’t long before artists experimented with lenses, and it was soon discovered that a sharper image could be achieved, if the pinhole was replaced by a lens.

This then became common practise in the art world and this process is an early (less technological) version of photography, using the same scientific principles.

The Beginning of Photography as we Know it

The birth of photography as we know it, happened with Joseph Nicéphore Niépce (1765–1833) – although there were many amendments and improvements to his process over time, which have to be credited to other scientists and inventors.

Although Joseph Nicéphore Niépce took the first photograph (1827) his process was long and complicated. It look eight hours of light exposure, and the image lacked the clarity and sharpness we’re used to now. Ten years later in 1837 his friend Louis Daguerre (1787–1851) was credited for creating a sharper image, and one that could be gathered in only a few minutes.

What was the difference? Well he discovered that the chemical compound ‘silver iodide’ was much more light-sensitive than the original method that used bitumen.

The important invention in technology was in 1839, when William Henry Fox Talbot (1800–1877) used the addition of negative film and prints. Something we still used in photography up to the digital photography revolution in the late 1990s.

Bringing Photography to the Masses

Up until the 1800’s, photography remained something quite out of reach for the ordinary citizen. Photography was a rare occasion, and something many people went through life never experiencing. Perhaps the biggest figure in bringing photography to the masses, was George Eastman.

You may recognise George Eastman’s company more than his name, as he was the man behind Kodak Cameras – still a brand many people associate with the photography industry. Eastman was only 24 when he founded his Eastman Dry Plate Company in New York in 1880.

It was big news when in 1888 George Eastman introduced the first Kodak Camera to the public. The device retailed for $25.00 at the time, which was a lot of money back then. However – it was the first step to making cameras and photography more widely available, and it encouraged people all over the world to aspire to try photography themselves.

It was at this point that more people had access to photography and it started to become more and more popular.