The History of Cameras - Our History and Those Before Us

One way to look at the history of cameras is to consider the types of photographs that have been taken over the years. Although we now take photography for granted, in the mid-19th through to the mid-20th centuries having a photo taken was often reserved for special occasions.

Here’s a consideration of a few specific time periods when photography was an involved process and people had to wait to see what their pictures would look like. These were often times when only professionals owned cameras and the studio was the primary setting for photographs.

Civil War

The Civil War in America was the bloodiest conflict ever fought on North American soil. It was also the first war to be recorded through photography. Matthew Brady was the most famous photographer of the era.

Brady took pictures of soldiers and generals in camp, the battlefield littered with corpses and of fortifications. He also snapped a famous photograph of Abraham Lincoln. It was taken after the president had been assassinated and he lay in state. The chilling portrait is the first of a slain American President and the only known one in existence of Lincoln after he was killed.

He also photographed 18 of 19 presidents from John Quincy Adams to William McKinley. The only one he did not capture in a photograph was William Henry Harrison, the ninth president, who died three years before Brady started photographing US Presidents.

The Wild West

Horace Greeley, the great American newspaper owner, said “Go West, young man, go West!” And young men did just that while Greeley stayed in the East. The American West was extensively photographed during this time of expansion, which occurred after the Civil War through to the latter part of the 19th century.

Photographs from this era include:

Native Americans such a Geronimo and Sitting Bull
Farmers
Cowboys
Gunslingers
Outlaws hanged
Town officials
Celebrities such as Buffalo Bill and Wild Bill Hickcok
Soldiers and officers
Mining camps
Indian camps
Towns and Cities
Railroads
Stage coaches

Just about anyone or anybody who would sit or stand still was photographed. At this time moving objects could not be successfully photographed since the camera’s aperture had to be open too long in order to capture enough light.

At this time, you’ll find photographs being taken in studios and outside in natural settings. However, natural settings still created various problems for the photographer due to the fact that environmental elements could make it difficult for a photo to be taken.

Turn of the Century

As the 19th century turned into the 20th century, there was a huge influx of immigrants in the US and cities grew enormously. Many of these immigrants had their photographs taken. It might be when they married or after they had established their family or when they opened a new business.

In these photographs, you can see images of families looking to preserve a special occasion. There are advancements in cameras and picture taking, but much of what’s taken is still done in a studio setting.

The Roaring 20s

If you’ve seen classic images from this era, you know that a lot of what was captured has a wild energy to it. Jazz bands, flappers, showgirls, the rich and the famous are all a part of this period’s photographic archive. In the history of cameras, this is a time when photographic devices have become more portable and are producing higher quality images.

This is also a time when the movie star first appears and fan magazines print photos and stories about the film actors that people want to know. Additionally, musical recordings are also becoming a common form of entertainment as people play the latest hits on their Victrolas and every night gather around the radio to hear live performances.

This is a lush, rich time in America and also for photography as professional photographers capture the hustle, bustle and hype of the age. Once people heard a famous singer on the radio or saw that star on the silver screen and became a fan, they wanted a still image of them for their very own.

Rediscovering the Past

The times mentioned in this article are all a part of the history of cameras. If you are lucky enough to collect photos from these early years, you may have found that due to damage some require a professional photo retouching service. These days with the advent of Photoshop this is fairly simple to do.

One thing that was not common in any of the time periods discussed is infrared technology. If it were, we might be left with some very different kinds of photos. Those photos from the Civil War through to the Roaring 20s are primarily realistic.

Infrared photography allows for the manipulation of reality by filtering our visual light and only using infrared rays. In the history of cameras this doesn’t become commonplace until the 1960s or later. With photographs before this time pretty much what you see is what other people saw too. These photos are true historical documents.

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.

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