TheHistoryOf.net

When you consider the history of cameras you can envision it in various ways. One way is to think about the different forms of technology that cameras utilize. Camera history can be divided into film and digital formats and visual light and infrared light cameras.

Looking at cameras along these lines, the history of these amazing devices becomes more than just dates. It’s about how cameras have developed and advanced over the years. When it comes to a basic timeline, the film camera came first. This camera used visual light, meaning light that we could see. The infrared camera followed next, which utilized light that the naked eye could not see, and finally the last part of this equation, the digital camera, was invented last.

Film

Before film, cameras first used various types of plates. Pewter and bitumen, copper and silver and gelatine were all utilized. Then in 1885 the Eastman Kodak Company created the first photographic film. Initially, paper was used but that was soon replaced by celluloid. These days photographic film is made from a type of plastic.

Visual Light

The first cameras used light that could be seen, that is visual light. Initially sunlight lit the way and eventually various types of flashes were used with the first being a combination of chemicals that were combusted and with later ones being either flash bulbs, that were good for one use, or electronic flashes that could be used again and again.

Infrared

The problem with using sunlight and even artificial light was that it was often impossible to capture objects at night. The development of infrared technology, which was able to capture and use light waves that were not visible to the human eye, would allow photographers to take pictures in total darkness.

Although Sir William Herschel discovered infrared light in 1800, it was not until 1910 that pictures were first taken using this technology. By the 1940s, infrared photography had become widespread being used in scientific areas, police work and military settings. At first, infrared cameras used film.

Digital

Digital cameras were used to send back images from space in the 1960s. Unlike film, which recorded an actual image, digital technology broke an image down into a coded signal that could then be decoded as an image.

Digital cameras did not become available to consumers until the 1990s. Over the past 20 years, these cameras have been perfected to the point where they take crisp, clean photographs quickly and efficiently.

Digital Infrared Cameras

Digital infrared photography uses the latest technology to take pictures at night or during the day. When used in daylight an infrared filter (IR filter) is incorporated. This filter blocks all visual light, creating an image that is often stunning and otherworldly.

This combination of technologies has created a whole new dimension of artistry and expression for photographers. The effect is often evocative, refreshing and unique. The richness of the digital image and the contrasts created by the IR filter have redefined picture quality, resonance and composition.

From those first beginnings, when images were captured on heavy photographic plates in bright sunlight to the days of film and the initial infrared images, the world of photography has become instantaneous and the environments in which pictures are taken has become tightly controlled.

About the Author

When it comes to having fun Melissa Cameron has found that spending the day surfing with her three children and husband is all that she needs. When not at the beach enjoying the waves, Melissa works as a bookkeeper for a very busy medical practice. When she goes off on her own and does her own thing, she loves to engage in infrared photography, using the latest infrared technology. Melissa and her husband have two young boys that keep them very busy.