Then And Now — Photographs Through The Ages
By: Vincent Tabora
Tags: Photos, History, Cameras, Photography, Smartphones

Some of the most compelling stories in the world can be told through photographs. They tell the story visually, which opens it up to interpretation for those who can see it in the future. Over the years, the techniques in photography have changed. The medium has evolved, as the world changes. It reflects to show what it was like during that moment, allowing the viewer to see how similar or different it was.

The camera was the tool that served the purpose of visually recording time. Historians use them to document events for archives and libraries of information. Man’s quest for immortalizing events began with cave paintings that depicted scenes of hunting and daily life activities. Imaging was rudimentary during ancient times, but scholars had knowledge about the camera obscura.

Photos didn’t begin until the first known photograph was taken around 1816 and the oldest surviving still was from 1826–27. Both were taken by Nicéphore Niépce in France. The first image was captured on paper coated with Silver Chloride. The latter image was captured on a metallic sheet coated with light sensitive materials. The camera would later evolve to capture images on film, and then digital media (e.g. SD cards, CF cards).

The oldest known photograph “View from the Window at Le Gras” from circa 1826–27. (Source: Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

Photo taken with a smartphone camera circa 2016 (Laguna Beach, CA) (Samsung SM-G530T ƒ/2.2, 1/134, 73.3mm, ISO 50)

If we compare the quality of the two images (the first surviving still with the smartphone image), things have come a long way. These improvements are driven by technology which is also influential to the development of the camera.

Technology And Photography

As the technology evolved, so did the camera and media for capturing and storing images. Gone are the days when photographers need to develop rolls of film to prints. You can still do that, but it has become a niche market (expensive too). Today users can instantly upload their images captured from smartphone cameras. Professional photographers have the cloud to store and distribute their images. The Digital Age has transformed the camera from a specialized device that required expert use, to an every day device for creating and sharing images.

What would be fascinating to the viewer of today is more about how things were like in the past, and not so much the technology itself. For example, it has become much faster to share images around the world due to the computer and the Internet. Back then (e.g. 1980’s) it would take days since you had to first develop the film and then either scan it or publish it in order for others to see. Let’s look at some interesting photographs from the past and compare it to more recent times.

A Leica IIIf chrom film camera from 1951–52 (Source: © Kameraprojekt Graz 2015 / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0) and a Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G Smartphone digital camera from 2020 (Source Samsung). You can take instant stills and video with a smartphone camera.

The Evolution Of Computing

We can clearly see how computers have evolved from photographs. Consider the time computer hard drive storage had to be moved by truck to an office (circa 1956). The amount of storage was only 5 MB of data. In 2021, 5 MB of data is not that much at all. In fact, a single file created today in applications like FinalCut or Premiere Pro can be 1,000,000x larger.

A document written in a word processing program today can be the only file saved in that hard drive from the past. Hard drives today are also much, much smaller. They can be 4 TB in capacity and are portable and fit in your pocket. No more need for truck delivery using forklifts. It just requires an online order or trip to the computer electronics store.

It takes a crew of workers to move a 5 MB hard drive computer storage in 1956 (Source Imgur). In 2019, a small SDXC card that can fit in the palm of your hand can store 64 GB of data (Photo Credit by Bogdan Glisik). That is about 128,000 5 MB hard drives in a compact storage format.

Sign Of The Times

We can also see from photos how our lives have changed. Most of the time it is due to technological advancement. If we go back to your typical girl’s college dormitory in the 1970’s, it would look totally different. While you still have young coeds gathered around, socializing and having a good time, notice what they are using to communicate? Those are landline telephones, and the coeds have to wait in line to take their turn to make a phone call.

In the 2020’s, many coeds have their own smartphone, which is also a wireless telephone. The girl’s dormitory is now more of a place to hang out, minus the row of landline telephones. There is no more need to take your turn to make a phone call back home. With smartphones, anyone can call home anytime they like and news travels much faster using various means (e.g. SMS text, e-mail, chat) of communications that doesn’t have to be direct. Gossip back then was through the grapevine. Today it is coming from the cloud of social media.

Coeds in a 1970’s dorm (Left) (Source Pinterest) compared to coeds in the 2020’s (Right) (Photo Credit by Andrea Piacquadio). Notice that in the 70’s telephones were landline (wired) while in the 21st Century phones can be wireless.

Another noticeable difference from the sign of the times is the fashion. What people were wearing in the past is far different from what people are wearing in the present.

A girl in a bathing suit (Left) 1909 (Source: TIME — Getty Images). A girl in a bikini (Right) from 2020 (Photo Credit by ROMAN ODINTSOV).

Bathing suits have changed in style since the 1900’s. It reflects cultural changes, as certain things became more acceptable in modern western society. Styles are now more liberated and based on the designer’s creative direction. While these may be the norm in some countries, it is not deemed acceptable in other cultures.

Nostalgia

Sometimes photos make us sentimental, perhaps from emotions about a place that was very memorable. Photos of places like historic monuments, landmarks and architecture usually come to mind. Manila (Philippines) was once a city of old colonial Spanish architecture prior to World War II. Unfortunately, much of the city was destroyed at the end of the war. The once glorious structures in the old Spanish quarter called Intramuros would be reduced to rubble. Some structures were recently restored, but many of the architecture was not exactly like the original and the restorations don’t always offer the same charm.

The Puerta de Santa Lucia at its glory days in the late 19th Century Manila, Philippines (Left) (Credit: John Tewell, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons). The restored gate (Right) from more recent times circa 2016–2020 (Source Wikimapia).

Back in colonial times the Puerta de Santa Lucia was one of the entrances to the city. It was also the original gate of the old city, so it had significance during its time. It was totally destroyed in World War II but restored later in 1982. We can see that it still resembles the original gate, but not in its full glory from the past. It is barely noticeable now, because it no longer holds significance other than a tourist attraction from the past. Photographs show just how much things have changed from grand to nearly mediocre. It is not always like that though as some cities have transformed in appearance, if you take Dubai in the Middle East as an example.

The Deira Clocktower (Left) circa 1964, when Dubai was still largely undeveloped (Source: Reckon Talk, Sheikh Mohammed Centre For Cultural Understanding). Compare to the clocktower photo taken at night in 2015 (Credit: Iwona Rege, CC BY-SA 4.0 License via Wikimedia Commons). There are more buildings and bustling traffic than in the past.

Images from the distant past give us a feeling of longing for bygone days in some cases. Yet, the reality is we were never around during the time most of those photos were taken. It just elicits an emotion of what it would have been like if we were there.

Environmental Changes

This next image will show how the Arctic looked like over 100 years ago compared to a more recent photograph. At the top, you can see that in the older photograph there is more ice cover. In the 2000’s the landscape has changed dramatically.

Top photo of an Arctic scene from the past. At bottom is how the same location looks like more recently (Source: deMilked)

Whether this can be attributed to climate change appears to have scientific backing. This is based on studies that it has been a factor to ice melting in the North and South Pole (e.g. melting glaciers and permafrost) due to rise in the mean global temperature. What is clear is that the photographs show the changes that took place in the environment. If no photograph were ever taken, we probably would have no way of knowing how the Arctic looked in those times. There would be nothing to compare it with the present.

Physical Appearance

We can also track how public figures have changed in physical appearance from photos taken by the press. Another reason people like to take photos is to preserve how they look at their prime or young age. Portraits are important to actors for casting in movies and commercials. It also shows how one looked like during their graduation, first piano recital, wedding and award acceptance. You can see how age plays a significant part in a person’s appearance in photos.

They are wonderful to look at once we have reached our golden years. President Barak Obama of the United States shows a gradual transformation from the beginning to the end of his two terms. There is a stark change in appearance toward the end of his presidency.

President Obama, from the start of his term (Left) to the end of his presidency (Right) (Source The Telegraph UK)

One thing is for sure. We cannot look young forever and it shows in the photos we take.

Now You See It, Now You Don’t

Sometimes what we want to capture is something that doesn’t get caught that often. Capturing rare natural phenomenon is truly something to behold. They happen in the blink of an eye. If you missed it, you may never get a chance to see it again unless you have a camera. That is the advantage of having video features or multiple frame captures.

One of the hardest to capture are lightning strikes. They are unpredictable and difficult to capture since they occur very quickly and randomly. Photographers who can capture amazing lightning strikes have the skill and patience. Being able to capture a lightning strike that is timed almost perfectly (if not perfectly) is something worthy to share.

A flash of lightning captured on camera (Photo Credit by Alexandre Bringer)

Last Impressions

Whether you take photos for fun as a hobby or you are a serious lenser in the photographic industry, the images you create record a certain moment in time. When I look back at old photographs, I still look at some of them with awe because of the way it looks. It also proves I was at some location or event.

There are quirky photos of the time we were in high school to the more serious look taken when we got our first job out of college. Photography is the best device we have for documenting what is happening around us. It is also easier to edit, store and share the photos we capture. What was then and now cannot be replaced, and capturing it in a photograph is your testimony.