DAY 32

HISTORY OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre

BRINGING PHOTOGRAPHY TO THE PEOPLE

Frenchman Louis Jacque Mande Daguerre first unveiled the end result of more than a decade’s worth of experiments in 1939 at the Académie des Sciences. The daguerreotypes, as he called them, were unique images on highly polished, silver-coated copper plates. He has since been referred to as the inventor of photography.

Daguerre, an acclaimed painter and theatrical designer, began to experiment with and explore the possibilities of photography. He formed a partnership with Joseph Niepce in 1827 and, over a period of years, they worked together to expand upon Niepce’s heliography and develop the ideas both of them had been working on individually.

Daguerreotype of two unidentified women full-length portraits, seated at table with tablecloth and bouquet. Created between 1851–1860. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Daguerreotype Collection.

After Niepce’s death in 1833, he continued to experiment with a variety of approaches, using different combinations of materials and chemicals—silver-copper plates, iodine, silver chloride, and even mercury vapors from a broken thermometer—until he finally created a fixed image in 1837. He showed his work to the curator of the Louvre and offered the rights to the process for sale but found no takers. French politician Dominique François Argo, a physicist and astronomer, made the case that Daguerre should receive an annuity and that the government should publish the results of his work. In 1839, his work was publicized, and he was awarded a pension of 6,000 francs a year, as well as 4,000 francs for Niepce’s son and heir, Isadore.

Daguerre’s instruction manual was translated into every major language, and the daguerreotype was an instant success, spreading throughout Europe and into the United States. —DJG