Genius of photography 1 - Fixing the shadows

1. What is photography’s “true genius”?

Photography raised different emotions throughout the whole 170 years of its being. It showed us strangeness and intrigued the way we viewed conventional situations or locations. Photography always describes something and the whole art of it is to control the transformation of that description.

2.     Name a proto – photographer?

William Henry Fox- Talbot

3.     In 19^th century, what term was associated with Daguerreotype?

Daguerreotypes were fixed images on a mirrored metal plate. Created as one of image, similar to Polaroid, this produced a visual experience that is unique. I

n 19^th century Daguerreotypes were referred to as “Mirror with a memory”.

4.     What is vernacular?

Vernacular photography, back in 19^th century was what we would contemporarily call an amateur photography. It included journalism, forensic, passport, tourists, photo cards etc., technically all uses of photography were included in vernacular category apart from art. Vernacular photography started when first KODAK cameras were more available to public mass. 

5.     How do you “fix the shadows”?

Fixing a shadows was Talbot’s invention of the negative-positive process of photography. 1835 Talbot brought together the camera obscura fitted with a convex lens and silver chloride. He was the first to invent a photo negative and also to print it on the paper.

6.     What is the “Carte De Visite”?

It was a type of a small, visiting card sized photograph, which became hugely popular. They were shipped all over the world, from Europe to America. People liked them, as they were created by a camera with 8 lenses, so it allowed to have 8 different poses in short period of time. Carte De Visite was what took photography to “manufacturing/marketing” level.

7.     Who was Nadar and why was he so successful?

Gaspard Felix Tournachon also known as Nadar, which was his photographic name/nickname. It allowed him to be marketed easier. He became really popular and successful following photographs representing people looking naturally.  Getting natural expression from the object was really hard in 19^th century and Nadar mastered the art of doing so.  He also represented artists as equal and authentic. By his studio shots we could judge that he tried to isolate his subject, which made the audience look at the force of personality rather than using props to express someone’s profession and identity.

8.     What is pictorialism ?

Photography at it’s most po-faced; moody, mean and occasionally magnificent photographs. Photographers practicing pictorialism tried to make it look like fine art, imitating print making or drawing. During the same time vernacular was around which made pictorialism become an “artistic dead end”.