"Photography" is derived from
the Greek words photos ("light") and graphein ("to draw")
The word was first used by the scientist Sir John F.W. Herschel in 1839. It is
a method of recording images by the action of light, or related radiation, on a
sensitive material.
Louis Daguerre and Joseph Nicéphore Niépce (who was Daguerre's partner,
but died before their invention was completed) invented the first practical
photographic method, which was named the daguerreotype, in 1836.
Daguerre coated a copper plate with silver, then treated it with iodine
vapor to make it sensitive to light. The image was developed by mercury vapor
and fixed with a strong solution of ordinary salt (sodium chloride).
Henry Fox Talbot perfected a different process, the calotype, in 1840.
Both used cameras that were little different from Zahn's model, with a
sensitized plate or sheet of paper placed in front of the viewing screen to
record the image. Focusing was generally via sliding boxes.
Collodion dry plates had been available since 1855, thanks to the work
of Désiré van Monckhoven, but it was not until the invention of the gelatin dry
plate in 1871 by Richard Leach Maddox that they rivaled wet plates in speed and
quality.
The use of photographic film was pioneered by George Eastman, who
started manufacturing paper film in 1885 before switching to celluloid in 1889.
His first camera, which he called the "Kodak," was first offered for
sale in 1888. It was a very simple box camera with a fixed-focus lens and
single shutter speed, which along with its relatively low price appealed to the
average consumer. The Kodak came pre-loaded with enough film for 100 exposures
and needed to be sent back to the factory for processing and reloading when the
roll was finished. By the end of the 19th century Eastman had expanded his
lineup to several models including both box and folding cameras.
Nice to know how cameras were made. Now it’s evolved so much everything
is so handy!
