Capturing the Light: The Birth of Photography, a True Story of Genius and Rivalry
January 7, 2014, will be the 175th anniversary of French illusionist Louis Daguerre’s 1839 unveiling of the daguerreotype, considered by some historians to be the first true photograph. Others argue that British polymath Henry Fox Talbot’s 1835 calotype should be listed as the first preservation of a camera image. Had the shy and cautious Talbot revealed his invention to the public immediately, he might not now be a forgotten man, according to Watson and Rappaport. Ironically, after a couple of contentious decades during which early photographers fought over patents and the merits of metal, glass, and paper media for saving images, Talbot’s use of negatives became the standard process for both landscape and portrait photography, and Daguerre remained photography’s legendary figure. A small collection of historic photographs is included in this well-timed and welcome history of the invention and spread of photography in the nineteenth century. --Rick Roche