From the humble beginnings of photography to the technology of today seems has been a huge transition. We can now capture images with a digital camera and manipulate the colours, lighting and a seemingly limitless list of other features. The sharpness and quality of the images produced by digital cameras are a miracle.

It wasn't always this way, of course. Photography evolved as a bi-product of physics and chemistry. This stared with the dark room or camera obscura over 400 years ago. Rudimentary cameras which projected light onto surfaces were in use from the 11th century but it took until the 1830s before photography was publicly in use.

Vintage Photography with Niepce and Daguerre

Digital cameras are now standard kit and the art form has moved away from film. We have come a long way away from the origins of modern photography. Black and white vintage photography started in the 1820s with the pioneering Frenchmen Niepce and Daguerre. These trailblazers of photography used chemicals derived from silver and chalk which, when exposed to light, darkens. A glass negative was used in this early photographic technology technique to capture the image,

Manual Film Cameras

From these humble beginnings, we moved onto film cameras. This was a huge leap forward in the technological development of photography. The image was captured on a roll of film in negative format which was then developed in a darkroom. The darkroom treatment was used to prevent over exposure. Early manual cameras required much preparation and time to set up the shot. It was a requirement to understand shutter speed, aperture, white balance and metering to capture the best quality image possible. As so much time was spent setting up the shot, a degree of professionalism was required for subjects like wildlife in natural habitats.

Automatic Film Cameras

Automatic cameras where the next step up from the early manual cameras. Shutter speed and aperture can be programmed into the camera using its settings and the camera weight was reduced considerably. ISO settings are important in automatic cameras. This is the speed of the film. In the old manual cameras, the shot could take several minutes. With newer, automatic cameras, the shot could be taken in seconds using the correct settings and holding the button to focus. Some cameras were a hybrid of automatic and manual who wished to achieve artistic effects in their photography.

Digital Cameras

The latest line in photography are digital cameras. It is now possible to view the image and to dispense with the use of film and negatives. Pictures can be shared to multiple recipients in an instant by email and social media such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. We can use our home printers to create high-quality prints. Nowadays everyone can take great photographs. A considerable move away from the days when the perfect image was only possible to those with a talent and finances to afford a camera.

Conclusion

In spite of and in some cases because of improvements in photography technology, there is a bright future for photographers. Digital cameras are still subject to variations in quality and the skill of the photographer makes the difference between a good photograph and a great photograph. An appreciation of vintage photography techniques helps the photographer to take the perfect photograph.