Question: what is the history and development of photography?

[Stella Richards]

Hello,

relating to the history and development of photographic materials and systems, and photography as an art form and means of communication.

can anyone help me with this, i am a little unsure how to begin? as well as does anyone know any good websites that could help me with this? i would gladly appreciate any help..

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I might be able to help. I enjoy perusing used book stores for old photography books, you can find all kinds of great stuff there. I picked up a book called Eyewitness, 150 Years of Photojournalism by Richard Lacayo and George Russell and published by Time.

They list the beginning period of photography as 1839-1880 and publish a fascinating photograph taken in Paris in 1839. Exposure time took several minutes, so the picture, taken by Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre, showed a tree lined street mid-day, but no people or horse and buggys came out because they were all presumably moving. However one person did come out, that was a man that was getting his shoes shined, ie standing still! They say that this is the first known photograph of a human being (he was the only person visible in the picture, bottom left).

They also say that "photography was not the invention of a single person or moment. It arrived at the end of a long serioes of discoveries, summoned by a lifetime of chemists, artisans and tinkerers. All of them shared the intuition that light could leave a permanent imprint on a flat surface that had been spread with some combination of chemical substances. Their discoveries culminated in the work of two men. One was [the aforementioned] Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre, a Paris stage designer and enterpreneur. The other was William Henry Fox Talbot, and English squire".

Hopefully that helps as a start. I'm sure there's lots more information out there. Please share what you find, it's a really great subject!

 

[MICKEY88]

Hello,

relating to the history and development of photographic materials and systems, and photography as an art form and means of communication.

can anyone help me with this, i am a little unsure how to begin? as well as does anyone know any good websites that could help me with this? i would gladly appreciate any help..

simply google this...what is the history and development of photography?

 

[boBQuincy]

http://www.eastmanhouse.org/