history of photography

Table of Contents

Introduction
General considerations
Inventing the medium
- Antecedents
- Early experiments
  - Heliography
  - Daguerreotype
  - Photogenic drawing
- Early views of the medium’s potential
Photography’s early evolution, c. 1840–c. 1900
- The revolution of technique
  - Development of the daguerreotype
  - Development of the calotype
  - Development of stereoscopic photography
  - Development of the wet collodion process
  - Development of the dry plate
  - Photography of movement
  - Early attempts at colour
- Establishing genres
  - Portraiture
  - Photojournalism
  - Documentary photography
    - Landscape and architectural documentation
    - Social documentation
- Photography as art
  - Early developments
  - Naturalistic photography
  - Pictorialism and the Linked Ring
Perfecting the medium, c. 1900–c. 1945
- The Photo-Secession
- The New Objectivity
- Experimental approaches
- Documentary photography
- Photojournalism
- Colour photography
Photography c. 1945 to the 21st century
- Postwar developments
- Developments from the 1970s to the 1990s
- Into the 21st century: the digital age

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images & Videos

Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre: View of the Boulevard du Temple, Paris

Frank Sadorus: Photographing life on the Illinois plains

principle of the camera obscura

Henri Frédéric Amiel

How were photos made in the early days of photography?

Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre: Still Life

facsimiles of photogenic drawings

Southworth & Hawes: Chief Justice Lemuel Shaw

Kusakabe Kimbei: Samurai in Armour

David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson: Portrait of Two Men (John Henning and Alexander Handyside Ritchie)

Read Next

vintage Leica photo camera at KPI Museum, July 24, 2015, in Kiev, Ukraine

Street Photography: How a Single Camera Brought About a Genre

Screen with https for internet security. (encryption, privacy, websites)

Inventions that Helped Shape How We Interact with Knowledge and Information

Discover

Four year old boy with grandfather and father lighting Hanukkah menorah. Photo taken on: December 21st, 2009

Which Is Correct: Hanukkah or Chanukah?

Scottish fold cat. A genetic mutation caused (in the original cat-1961) the ears to bend forward and down.

Shorthair Cat Breeds

Stylish light blue jeans on wooden background, closeup of inset pocket

Why Do Jeans Have That Tiny Pocket?

Saint Lucia Day. Young girl wears Lucia crown (tinsel halo) with candles. Holds Saint Lucia Day currant laced saffron buns (lussekatter or Lucia's cats). Observed December 13 honor virgin martyr Santa Lucia (St. Lucy). Luciadagen, Christmas, Sweden

7 Winter Solstice Celebrations From Around the World

Ahura Mazda - relief of the Zoroastrian god Ahura Mazda at the ancient ruins of Persepolis in Iran. Also known as Ormazd Zoroastrianism,

Which Religion Is the Oldest?

Ice Sledge Hockey, Hockey Canada Cup, USA (left) vs Canada, 2009. UBC Thunderbird Arena, Vancouver, BC, competition site for Olympic ice hockey and Paralympic ice sledge hockey. Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, Vancouver Olympics

10 Best Hockey Players of All Time

Coriander leaves, fresh green cilantro on wooden background, herbs

Why Does Cilantro Taste Like Soap to Some People?

history of photography: Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Photos and Videos

Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre: View of the Boulevard du Temple, Paris

principle of the camera obscura

Henri Frédéric Amiel

Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre: Still Life

facsimiles of photogenic drawings

Southworth & Hawes: Chief Justice Lemuel Shaw

Kusakabe Kimbei: Samurai in Armour

David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson: Portrait of Two Men (John Henning and Alexander Handyside Ritchie)

uncut print from a carte-de-visite negative

Frank Sadorus: Photographing life on the Illinois plains

How were photos made in the early days of photography?

Explore the life and inventions of George Eastman through a tour of the museum on his estate

See the equipment used by photographer Joe Capra to shoot photos of penguins at Neko Harbor, Antarctica

A wildlife filmmaker's close encounters with black bears

See All Videos and Images →

Topics

technology of photography holography street photography cinematography camera aerial photography densitometer electrophotography photomicrography daguerreotype printing architecture film dance printmaking sculpture painting drawing garden and landscape design literature

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Key People

Dawoud Bey

Dawoud Bey

American photographer, writer, and educator

Zanele Muholi

Zanele Muholi

South African visual activist

Aïda Muluneh

Ethiopian photographer, educator, and entrepreneur

Shirin Neshat

Shirin Neshat

Iranian-born American artist

John Margolies: Indian Rock Shop

John Margolies

American architectural critic, author, and photographer

Curtis, Edward S.

Edward S. Curtis

American photographer

Imogen Cunningham: photograph of Alfred Stieglitz

Alfred Stieglitz

American photographer

Edward Weston at Point Lobos, 1945, photograph by Imogen Cunningham.

Edward Weston

American photographer

Walker Evans

Walker Evans

American photographer

Ansel Adams: Mount Williamson—Clearing Storm

Ansel Adams

American photographer

Claude Cahun

Claude Cahun

French writer, photographer, Surrealist, and performance artist

Dada exhibit

Hannah Höch

German artist

Eugène Atget

French photographer

Edward Steichen, 1960.

Edward Steichen

American photographer

Lee Miller and Frederick Laws

Lee Miller

American photographer, artist, and model

John Heartfield

German artist

Henri Cartier-Bresson

Henri Cartier-Bresson

French photographer

Andreas Gursky

German photographer

Garry Winogrand

American photographer

Thomas Struth

German photographer

Quiz

Original caption: Close-up of leaves, from directly above, "In Glacier National Park," Montana. Photograph shot in 1942 by Ansel Adams (1902-1984) Black and white photograph. Photography. Landscape photographer.

Know Your Photographers