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From a complicated, time-consuming and expensive process to the simple press of a button, photography has come a very long way since the first cameras came along in the early 1800’s.
The vast majority of this fascinating evolution can be seen in this video where Chris Marquardt went on a private tour of Kodak’s technology vault.
Think you’ve got an impressive camera collection? Wait until you see this 8,500-strong collection of almost every significant camera invented in the last 200 years.
Covering the use of photography in military police work and criminal investigations, the 25-minute long video introduces the types of cameras used, explains when each camera should be used and provides important guidelines for ensuring the photographs will be admissible as evidence in court.
Watching it today, the video offers an educational glimpse into photography practices from 50 years ago, provides some laughs and shares a few eternal truths about photography.
There’s no doubt many of us (myself included) take for granted just how easy we have it when it comes to making a photograph, much less making available to the world to see. Thanks to the digital revolution, we can go from exposing an image to posting it online in a matter of seconds. Obviously, it hasn’t always been so simple. Just ask any photojournalist that was working back in the 1970’s and 1980’s.
To be a photojournalist in the 80’s meant lugging around a “portable” darkroom everywhere you went so you could process and print your photos, which was a necessary step to get them sent off your boss. Before there was email (as we’ve come to know it in modern times), press photos had to be “wired” from the field to the photo desk using a special photo transmitter such as the United Press International’s UPI 16-S…
For those just now crawling out from under a rock, the United States has been an open battleground since last week’s Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide. The Right is attacking the left and saying our doom is upon us; the Left is rubbing it in the faces of the Right.
Ten years ago, Los Angeles photographer Ed Freeman took a photo symbolizing gay pride. The photo recreated the pose of the iconic Raising of the Flag on Iwo Jima taken by Joe Rosenthal during the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945, replacing embattled Marines with shirtless men and swapping the American flag for a rainbow flag.
After the Supreme Court decision, Freeman shared the image on his Facebook page, a move which sparked great controversy, including death threats.
The history of the digital camera is much older than most would expect. With roots going way back into the dark days of the Cold War, a fascinating series of innovations have led to the creation of technology we take for granted in our everyday lives.
For instance, did you know that the first cell phone photo was shared in 1997 or that the first digital camera prototype was developed as far back at 1975 or that the basic plans that launched the CCD sensor were developed in under one hour in 1969?
Davorin Dinic, an amateur photographer from Serbia, merged old photos of his hometown with new photos he took from the exact same spot. The result is a wonderful series that emphasizes the city’s history and feels like a magical port to the past has been opened.
Touched by his work, people have offered Davorin access to their private collections of never before seen photos of the city.
Despite this being his first project since he bought his first camera just a few months ago, Davorin’s photos will be exhibited at an event organized by the local museum.
The story of Roger Steffens life is undoubtedly spellbinding. The kind of guy that could entertain a crowd for days on end simply talking about all his past adventures. In his memoirs you might encounter the telling of the part of his life he spent working in an army psychological operations unit after being drafted into the Vietnam war, an era that marked the beginning of his love affair with photography. Digging a little deeper, you’d be treated to the tales of the times spent in LA interviewing Keith Richards about an album Richard’s recorded in Jamaica. Or, perhaps, you’d most connect with the time Steffens turned the great Paul Simon onto African music, which inspired the recording of Simon’s album, Graceland.
History, while being something we often repeat, is a precious treasure that, with time, often passes from recollection. With a passion to ensure that doesn’t happen, the Rescued Film Project makes it their mission preserve forgotten treasures and share them with the world. They take old, rescued film from the 1930s to the 1990s, develop it, and digitally preserve it before it degrades beyond any usability. As RFP explains,
Every image in The Rescued Film Project at some point, was special for someone. Each frame captured, reflects a moment that was intended to be remembered. The picture was taken, the roll was finished, wound up, and for reasons we can only speculate, was never developed. These moments never made it into photo albums, or framed neatly on walls. We believe that these images deserve to be seen, so that the photographer’s personal experiences can be shared. Forever marking their existence in history.
In what was essentially a gold mine find, they came into possession of 31 rolls of undeveloped film from an unnamed soldier in World War II, a man whose only known legacy is the images he left behind. Though time and the elements had taken their toll on the film, many of the photos, most having laid dormant for nearly 70 years, were still recoverable.
Udi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.
Alex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe
Dave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.
John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
Dunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.
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