History
Q1. Who is Louis Daguerre and why
is he so special? How did he become independently wealthy?
A1.
Louis Daguerre was a painter and photographer that lived during the 18th
and 19th century (1787-1851). Daguerre was famous for inventing the
daguerreotype, which was a process of photography. He became wealthy because
his photography process that he invented was the first photographic process for
the widespread public.
Q2. What types of photos did
people take when photography was first invented? What were some of the
difficulties they had to endure?
A2.
When photography
was first invented, many scenes of landscapes were captured. Pictures of cities
and fields were common. Also, a common subject in early photos were people.
Self portraits and still photos were common. To complete a photograph, it would take
many days to create exposure as well as the images were crude and hard to see
details.
Q3. Name three different types of
early photographs. What did they look like? Why were they called what
they were called?
A3.
One
of the first photography types was the daguerreotype. In this process, you
would only need a few minutes of exposure to get a clear and detailed photo.
These pictures were usually self portraits and in black and white. The
daguerreotype process was named this because it was the last name of the
inventor of the process, Louis Daguerre. Another process, made by William Henry
Fox Talbot, was called the calotype or talbotype. This type of photography would use paper coated with silver iodide. These pictures in general, were brown were the
darker hues were and the lighter parts of the photograph were a lighter shade
of brown. Calotype was named this because the word comes from the Greek word
Kalos, which means beautiful, and Tupos, which means impression. They got the
word talbotype from the inventor’s last name. Another early photography process
was the tintype process, also called melainotype or ferrotype. These photographs were made by
creating a direct positive on a sheet of iron that was covered in a dark
lacquer of enamel. These photographs usually would portray people in black and
white details. It was names tintype because of the material use to create these
photographs.
Q4. What is a Kodak Brownie.
How did it work? What made it so popular? Can you buy one
today?
A4.
The
Brownie was a simple and cheap series of cameras that was invented by Eastman
Kodak. This camera worked by using a simple meniscus lens in a cardboard
box. It was so popular because it was
cheap and easy to use. Anyone could afford and use it. You can buy them today as vintage and for a
much higher price than it was.
Q5. Who were the Dadaists?
What was their photographic work like? Why are they considered
"important" in the history of photography?
A5.
The Dadaist was a series of people who would create poetry, visual
arts, literature, art manifestos, art theories, theatre and graphic design that
would show anti-war works. The photography would include abstract pieces and
cultural topics. These photographs were important in the history of photography
because influenced later styles of photography.
