| Daguerreotype:
1839 - ca. 1860
Ambrotype:
1851 - 1880s
Tintype:
1858 - 1910s
Glass
Negatives: 1851 - the 1920s
Salt
Prints: 1839 - ca. 1860
Crayon
Portraits: 1840 - 1915
Cyanotypes:
1840 - 1915
Albumen
Prints: 1850 - ca. 1890
Stereoview:
1851 - 1940
Lantern
Slides: 1860s -- 1930s
Nitrocellulose
Film: 1889 - 1939
Safety
Film: 1934 - present
Polyester:
1965 to present
Digital:
1991 to present
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Photography
was one of the most important inventions of the nineteenth century. The
daguerreotype was the earliest practical photographic process, and
was especially suited to portraiture. The images created were so lifelike
that some referred to the daguerreotype as a "mirror with a memory."
The men and
women who worked with photographic materials faced many challenges. Solving
one problem often created another. The daguerreotype was expensive, relied
on toxic material such as mercury, and could not be reproduced. The cyanotype
was inexpensive, could be developed in rain water, and allowed for multiple
copies. The problem? All the pictures were blue!
One process
replaced another as photography became cheaper, easier, safer and more
durable. However, several processes were often popular at the same time,
much like film and digital pictures are both popular today.
The examples
of each type of photographic process have been chosen from the Florida
Photographic Collection and provide a view of the history of Florida as
well as the history of the photographic process.
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