Daguerre first published a description of his process in 1839. The process was soon improved by other inventors. By 1841, for example, the exposure time for the photographs had been reduced to less than a minute. Daguerreotype portraits were tremendously popular during the 1840's and 1850's, especially in the United States. The daguerreotype was eventually replaced by other processes.
People now collect daguerreotypes of particular beauty or unusual subject matter.
Grant B. Romer, M.F.A., Chief Conservator and Curator, International Museum of Photography. How to cite this article.