History Of Photography

 

Haven't you ever wondered where modern photography came from or what is the history of photography? While we're currently progressing into the digital age and moving away from film, the lighting techniques and other photography techniques started in the 1820’s. The first inventors of modern photography were Niepce and Daguerre. They used a chemical component from chalk and silver, which dims when they're exposed to light. This type of method used a glass negative to cement the picture.


From the initial cameras we're used to seeing in western movies, we progressed on to manual cameras with film. This film (or negative) captured the picture on a roll to be developed in a dark room to avoid overexposure. The manual cameras utilized a theory of setting up shots. You had to have a knowledge of aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and metering to achieve the best photograph possible. This meant you had to spend a good amount of time setting up the shot and in order to capture wildlife in their natural habitats, you had to be a professional. However, It becomes easier as we move through the history of photography.


Aperture is calculated by F-stops, or the amount of light the lens will allow in. Focusing and depth of field are also significant when setting the your camera's aperture. You need to know what numbers will let more light in the lens and the converse to prevent overexposure and blurriness.  Shutter speed is the amount of time a lens is open for the photograph. You may have realized that in a dim room without using flash, your camera takes longer than usual to imprint the image on the negative. The reason is because the there is less light and the shutter must make corrections for the lack of light. During lack of light, exposing the film longer to obtain the picture is required where as extra light will have the shutter moving at a faster rate.


From the manual cameras we progressed into the automatic cameras. The camera became less weighty and easier to carry as we move through the history of photography. The shutter speed and aperture was preprogrammed into the camera by the settings. ISO became powerful. ISO is the film speed. Instead of wasting time to set up a shot you just had to choose the right settings and hold down the button to focus. Many cameras were automatic with manual options for people who still enjoyed treating photography as an artistic vocation.


Digital cameras are now the new era in the history of photography.  Now we can instantly view the picture we take without the need of film and negatives. We can easily send pictures to all of our friends and family and use our own home printers to create prints. Photography has shifted from the concentration of shooting the perfect picture with a skill born to a few to everyone snapping photos.


This not saying photography and photographers will extinct. There is still the necessity for quality in taking professional grade photos. Light sensitivity is still significant when working with a digital camera and unless you spend a lot of money, you will still find quality of photos missing. Photograph techniques lay within the lighting provided whether natural or artificial for the subject being captured. You might be wondering how to create a photo in a dark room like a museum to share with family and friends. Understanding past photography techniques will aid you in obtaining that perfect photo with your digital camera. Photography may have come from few people, but we can obviously see the advancements their inventions have led us to in modern times.

And that...is the history of photography.