History of the camera
Imagine you have a fancy box that you can open and inside there is a tiny little world that you can look at, almost like a magic window. The camera is like that fancy box, but it takes pictures of the world that you can look at later.
A long, long time ago, before cameras existed, people used to draw things by hand to remember what they saw. But then, a man named Aristotle discovered that light that comes from objects can be projected through a small hole and create an image on a wall. This was called a camera obscura.
In 1816, a man named Nicéphore Niépce discovered how to capture these images using a chemical called bitumen. But the image would take hours to appear, and it wouldn’t last long if it was exposed to light.
Then, in 1839, another man named Louis Daguerre came along and invented a way to make the image appear very quickly and stay for a long time. He used a metal plate coated in silver and used chemicals to develop the image.
Over time, cameras got smaller and easier to use. People started using film rolls instead of metal plates. Then, in 1948, the first instant camera was made by Polaroid. You could take a picture and see it come out of the camera right away!
Finally, in the year 2000, people started using digital cameras. Instead of film, they could store the pictures on a computer and see them right away. Nowadays, we all have cameras in our phones and can take pictures anytime we want!
A long, long time ago, before cameras existed, people used to draw things by hand to remember what they saw. But then, a man named Aristotle discovered that light that comes from objects can be projected through a small hole and create an image on a wall. This was called a camera obscura.
In 1816, a man named Nicéphore Niépce discovered how to capture these images using a chemical called bitumen. But the image would take hours to appear, and it wouldn’t last long if it was exposed to light.
Then, in 1839, another man named Louis Daguerre came along and invented a way to make the image appear very quickly and stay for a long time. He used a metal plate coated in silver and used chemicals to develop the image.
Over time, cameras got smaller and easier to use. People started using film rolls instead of metal plates. Then, in 1948, the first instant camera was made by Polaroid. You could take a picture and see it come out of the camera right away!
Finally, in the year 2000, people started using digital cameras. Instead of film, they could store the pictures on a computer and see them right away. Nowadays, we all have cameras in our phones and can take pictures anytime we want!
Related topics others have asked about: