History of Photojournalism Essay Example For Students

History of Photojournalism Essay Photography has been around since 1800s and stories have been around forever, so putting them together Photojournalism becomes possible. Putting stories and pictures together have shaped magazines, newspapers even lives. Action is captured by camera lens and told by writers that share stories needing to be heard. With the increasing technology process Photography has become known to all and becoming more common. The digital world is taking over Photography and will keep getting better as the future and technology progress. The word Photography is derived from the Greek language, photo   meaning light   and Graphein   that means, to draw  (Bellis 1). Photography is a method of recording images by the action of light or related radiation on a sensitive material  (Bellis 1). The photograph was the ultimate response to a social and cultural appetite for a more accurate and real looking representation of reality, a need that had its origins in the renaissance   (Langton 11,1). The first goal of photography was reportage, which were the most potential. Context is important to photographers; photographers have to show images in a larger social event, whose significance goes beyond the individual act (Westbrook 3). In 1000 A. D a man named Alhazen created a Pin Hole camera, which explained why images were upside down   (Bellis 2). In the summer of 1827 Joseph Nicephore Niepice took the first image with the Pin Hole camera. Prior to Josephs image he was using the camera for heliographs or sun prints. In 1829 Joseph partnered up with Louis Daguerre. Louis invented the first practical process of photography  (Bellis 5). In their partnership they improved Niepices original process. When Niepice died in 1839, Louis developed a more convenient and effective method of photography  (Bellis 4). In this process Louis would have a fixed image on a sheet of silver plated copper polished with silver coated with iodine creating a surface sensitive to light   (Bellis 5). Then putting that plate in the camera and exposing it for a few minutes, the image is painted by light   (Bellis 5). Lastly bathed in silver chloride, this creating a lasting image the wouldnt change when exposed to light  (Bellis 5). Later in 1839 Louis and Josephs son sold the rights to the Daguerreotype   to the French government and published a book about the process (Bellis 5). Henry Fox Talbot a botanist, mathematician and contemporary of Daguerre invented the first negative process. By putting sensitized paper to light with silver salt solution until the background became black and the subject was rendered in gradations of gray   (Bellis 6). This was later known as the negative image  (Bellis 6). Then from the negative image Talbot made contact prints reversing light and shadows to create a detailed picture  (Bellis 6). In 1841 Talbot perfected the paper negative process and called it a Calotype   which in Greek means beautiful picture  ( Bellis 6). Next came Hamilton Smith who invented the Tinitype   in 1856, another medium that herald the birth of photography  ( Bellis 7). TiniType was a thin sheet of iron used to provide a base for light sensitive material, yielding a positive image   (Bellis 7). In 1851 Fredrick Scoff Archer an English sculptor created the wet plate negative. (Bellis 8). The wet plate process included using a viscous solution of collation, Archer coated glass with light sensitive silver salts. Because it was glass and not paper, this wet plate created a more stable, detailed negative   ( Bellis 8). The downside of the wet plate process is that Photographers had to carry around a portable darkroom. Later in 1879 the dry plate was invented with a glass negative plate with a dried gelatin emulsion   (Bellis 9). This process made it easier for Photographers because it was not necessary to carry around a portable darkroom. Now hand held cameras are possible with the invention of the dry negative process  (Bellis 9). A Brief History Of The Blues EssayPhotojournalism is not a glam job   it is a hard job, news never stops meaning photos are always being taken and stories always being written (Hancock 11). Between the years of 1990 to the year 2012 technology has changed profusely, and so has photojournalism. Over the years, the assignments that a photojournalist shoots remains pretty constant, but the technology has changed and a photo that took five hours on wired service now takes a mere five seconds  (Lent 3). The photos quality have gotten remarkably better as the years go on as well  (Lent 3). Within this modern society digital and wireless have become key words in photojournalists words now. Having the ability to take a million photos on one camera and send then thousands of miles away in a click of a button. Digital photography has opened up new doors for photojournalists. It increases the market and an accelerated pace for the transmission of news through photographic images.  (Westbrook 7) Also with digital photographers are not limited to film, the can have a thousand plus images on one camera. Now with wireless internet photojournalists can send images from the field to the editor within seconds of their capture.  (Westbrook 7) With all this new technology meant more money being spent, with new equipment such as DSLRs and computers that can keep up in software and with being in the field you are looking at 6,000 bucks (Lent 6). But what that 6,000 bucks can get you is images that are magnificent and having the ability to sent it to the editor in a blink of an eye. The future of Photojournalism looks bright; with technology always processing it will become even more advanced as time goes on. The past is what has shaped our present and photography has evolved into so much more than just pictures; its stories and these photos represent so much more now with Photojournalism. All those men that created the little things that have brought this career and past time so famous and enjoyable. It is amazing how far it has come since this all started in 1000 A. D and now in 2012 photos are everywhere and have captured moments no one will ever want to remember, and sometime moments are captured that we just want to forget. Bibliography: Bellis, Mary. History OfÃÆ'‚ Photography. About.com Inventors. About.com. Web. 30 Apr. 2012.  . Collins, Ross. History of Photography and Photojournalism. A Brief History of Photography and Photojournalism. NDSU. Web. 30 Apr. 2012.  . Hancock, Mark. PhotoJournalism. : What Is a Photojournalist? Web. 30 Apr. 2012.  . Langton, Loup. Brief History of Photojournalism in the United States. Photojournalism and Todays News: Creating Visual Reality. Chichester, U.K.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. 13-45. Print. Lent, Mark. How Digital Technology Has Changed Photojournalism. From Adorama Learning Center. Adorama Learning Center, 9 Mar. 2010. Web. 30 Apr. 2012.  . Westbrook, Dillon. ÃÆ'‚ Photography Schools. A Brief History of Photojournalism. Web. 30 Apr. 2012.