Cameras have come a long way since their inception in the early 1800s.
Today, they’re an essential part of our lives, used for everything from capturing memories to taking pictures of our food.
Here are ten fun facts about cameras:
1. The word “camera” comes from the Latin word for “room,” which is fitting since early cameras were large and bulky devices that had to be set up in a special room.
2. The first camera was invented in 1816 by French inventor Joseph Nicéphore Niépce. The first photograph ever taken was of Niépce’s backyard in France.
3. Early cameras used something called “wet plate collodion” to capture images, which involved coating a glass plate with chemicals and then exposing it to light. This process was very messy and time-consuming!
4. The first colour photograph was taken in 1861 by Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell, but it wasn’t until 1907 that commercially viable colour film was available.
5. The first commercial camera was introduced in 1888 by George Eastman. George Eastman introduced the first roll of film in 1884, which made taking pictures much easier and more convenient. His company, Kodak, would go on to become one of the most well-known names in photography.
6. The first 35mm camera was introduced in 1913 by Oskar Barnack.
7. The first digital camera was invented in 1975 by American engineer Steven Sasson.
8. The first mass-produced digital camera was the Sony Cyber-shot, introduced in 1996.
9. The world’s largest camera is actually located at Mount Wilson Observatory in California; it has a 1 meter aperture and weighs over 200 tons!
10. The smallest camera in the world is the LEGO camera, measuring just 1.5cm x 1.5cm x 2cm.
