Prior to the invention of photography, painters and other artists had to paint and draw events by hand in order to document them. People would pose for hours to get their portrait done. Artists would even have to paint events such as acts of war by only the description given by someone who was there. Even though painting was able to capture these important aspects of life and history, it just was not efficient. It took entirely way too long and an incredible amount of work to capture only one moment. This inspired the creation of photography. The first ever photograph was taken in 1826 by a frenchman by the name of Joseph Nicephore Niepce (Harry Ransom Center). The image was captured by what is known as a “heliograph”, which is a device where light is deflected off of mirrors in order to create the image (Harry Ransom Center). The first photograph showed the view from Joseph Nicephore Niepce’s upstairs window (Harry Ransom Center). Since 1826, photography has changed the world, and the camera itself has evolved greatly. From digital cameras to camera phones, people are able to now have photography at the tips of their fingertips. Photography has become a huge part of what culture is today, especially in America. Not only is it extremely convenient, it serves many purposes every day. Photography is used for social uses (such as posting on facebook or instagram), for historical purposes (such as documenting the inauguration of the next president), jobs (such as modeling or an actual photography job), or even advertisement (such as using a billboard). Photography plays a huge role in society and has greatly influenced the everyday life.
Photography and film, as stated above, has had a huge impact on our society, especially in our personal lives. Photographs allow people to capture the fondest and most precious of memories. No one really notices, or appreciates how important those photographs are until they are gone. This incidence is brought to life in the “American Photography Art” video as a few people discuss about the loss of their photographs. The man states that everything else (furniture, house) can be replaced, but the pictures cannot be, and therefore it makes photographs more important than everything else that can be lost. When you lose the photographs, you lose proof of the memory. Leonard Nimoy, actor and photographer, states that he keeps photographs for many different reasons, such as to remember precious memories, or to remember and “have proof” of some of his greatest accomplishments. Photography not only keeps memories alive, but it also keeps family members or other loved ones in people’s hearts. Even if someone is lost and is taken away from the world, photography helps people cope with their loss and keep their soul alive. A great analogy to describe what our life and society would be like without photography is when historian Daniel Czitrom states that “[a life without photography] would be like a person who was blind from birth, trying to imagine the world”.
Later in the video, David Friend of Vanity Fair makes the important point that photography can also literally save lives, such as through an “x-ray or a sonogram”. Surprisingly, according to the history of x-rays, the x-ray machine was also invented in the 1800’s, 1895 to be exact, only 69 years after the first photograph was taken (NDT Resource Center). The x-ray machine was invented by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen of Germany. The original x-ray machine, called a cathode tube, involved both positive and negative electrodes. When the electrodes mixed with a high amount of voltage, it was able to see through the skin and get a picture of the bones themselves (NDT Resource Center). Since Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen’s revolutionary invention, other machines such as the sonogram and ct scan were able to be created. Because of the x-ray, doctors are able to see broken bones, signs of arthritis, cancer, and other medical diagnoses. Apart from being able to create medical discoveries, in 1949, x-rays were used in a rocket and was able to discover that the stars and sun had their own x-rays. This discovery allowed for the research and discovery of other galaxies (Joseph Cunnins). When the x-ray was first invented, the images were quite blurry and it took hours to take. A patient would have to be under the machine for hours while the x-ray was being taken (Courtney Hutchinson). Granted, when the x-ray was first invented, there were many health concerns that made the procedure dangerous. The levels of radiation while the x-ray was being taken were ridiculously high. All parties involved (patient and whoever was conducting the x-ray) were a great risk for health concerns. Some of these health concerns include high risk of cancer, mutation of DNA, and killing of cells (Effects of Radiation). Since the original invention of the x-ray, images are much clearer, and with many different tweaks to the invention, the health risks are significantly less. The x-ray would have never been able to be invented without the invention and evolution of photography itself, which further proves how important and influential photography is on our society.
In the video “You Press the Button, We do the Rest”, the evolution of the camera is broken down. The original personal camera, which was invented in the 1900’s, allowed people to have the ability to take their own pictures (You Press the Button, We do the Rest). The camera was called the “Brownie camera” and it stayed in stores for 80 years (You Press the Button, We do the Rest). According the Vicki Goldberg, with the invention of the brownie camera, people were able to take their own pictures pretty inexpensively, which made documenting their lives a whole lot easier. People loved the idea of their own personal camera so much that over 245,000 cameras were made and sold (Kodak Brownie Camera Information). The camera sold for $1.00 (which now is about $26.89 according to the inflation calculator), which made it affordable for everyone to buy (Kodak Brownie Camera Information).
Apart from photography itself, those who took the photographs themselves are also very influential to the world and society today. One photographer in particular, Ansel Adams, who was born in San Francisco California. From an early age, Ansel Adams had a tough life. He badly broke his nose because of an earthquake when he was only four years old ( William Turnage). Adams and his family were also hit rather hard financially during the panic of 1907 (William Turnage). The crisis was a result of the same earthquake that had broken Ansel Adam’s nose (The Panic of 1907). It left the family very poor, and caused a great struggle for Ansel Adam’s parents. As a young boy, Ansel Adams was dyslexic, hyperactive, did not fit in at his school, and was said to have only completed up to the eighth grade (William Turnage). It was clear that he had struggled greatly throughout his young childhood life. Ansel Adams, when he grew up, decided that he wanted to capture life’s moments through photography. He himself owned his own “Brownie Camera”, in which his parents had given him. He also had joined a club called the “Sierra Club”, in which was said to be a great step into his photography career and succession (William Turnage). The Sierra club, an environmental organization, was established in San Francisco in 1892, in order to protect and preserve the nature (The Sierra Club). Ansel Adams gained his succession after his photograph called the “Monolith, the Face of the Half Down”. His work dealt a lot with nature and the different details of nature itself, which made him so famous. Another aspect of Ansel Adams career that led to his fame, was the fact that before the attack on Pearl harbor, he had taken a picture of it, which had later sold over thousand copies (Ansel Adams Biography). Without Ansel Adams and his interest in nature and photography, the world would not have had such documentation of Pearl Harbor right before it was bombed. His skillfulness in his field had inspired so many, and had taught others about the beauty of nature and the importance of preserving it.
Photography, and its photographers, have developed and have become a vital part of everyday life. Photography has been used to develop science, nature, and the ease of the everyday life. It has developed over the years so much, that it has actually become vital to we need in our daily life. Without photography, memories would be lost everyday, the nature and other surroundings would not be truly appreciated, nature that has disappeared would not be remembered , and photos for personal needs would not be available.