The 1830s and 40s were interesting years for photography. Two men in two different and competing countries were attempting the same goal - finding a way to easily and cheaply replicate a 3D scene on a 2D medium.

Daguerre and Fox Talbot experimented with chemicals, materials, and exposure times. They improved their ideas over many years with the help of others. Little did they know they would become the forebearers of photography.

Cover photo by Anna Zakharova

Jisun Han

Daguerreotype

The Daguerreotype was a photography method invented by Frenchman Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre. He announced his findings finally in 1839. Originally, this technique was best used for architecture as long exposure times couldn’t capture movement. Developments in chemicals and lenses allowed for shorter times. This allowed for portraits, where this modus operandi took off.

Daguerre announced his findings to the French Academy of Sciences and the Académie des Beaux-Arts on 7 January. In August of the same year, the former announced to the world its patent-free use. It was a ‘gift from France to the World’ – yet the UK had no such luck and had to pay. Because of this legal relaxation, studios popped up all over – NY in 1850 saw over 70 studios in operation.

A silver-plated copper square captured the scenes. They fit in an engineered box, allowing a controlled environment for precise exposure times.  The process was a laborious one, first starting with a hand-polished plate, resembling a mirror. Iodine sensitized it for use in the camera, and heated mercury fumes revealed the image. Afterward, salt fixed the scene and gold chloride toned it.

Due to the fragility of the plate, they were either framed or placed in ornate glass folding cases. This was due to long exposure to air would tarnish the processed plates. The polished appearance gave a special and unique view. Depending on the lighting, reflections, and angle, the image would appear to be a positive or a negative.

For over 11 years, this was the preferred way to capture and fix a scene for future viewing. Due to the relaxed patent, studios were widespread. It was an expensive method of sourcing materials, and chemicals, then creating the images and investing in the frames/cases.

The first authenticated image ofAbraham Lincoln, a daguerreotype of him as U.S.Congressman-elect in 1846, attributed to Nicholas H. Shepard.

Calotype

The Calotype was a photography method, invented by Englishman William Henry Fox Talbot. He experimented in the same timeframe as Daguerre, only in a different country. The biggest hindrance to Talbot was he didn't possess the same affluent and rich background as L-J-M. Unlike the Frenchman, Talbot also received no help from the English Government.

The Calotype technique used light-sensitive silver nitrate on paper instead of a plate. The dry paper was then submerged in potassium iodide, creating silver iodide. This created a negative when placed in the camera and exposed. When processed, the paper negative turns grey or dark brown in appearance.

Positives came by exposing the negative onto paper coated with a mixture of gallic acid and silver nitrate. This was the first use of contact printing technology and is still used in analog photography processes. The issue with this method is the resulting soft focus and graininess due to the fibers in the paper. Fixing the image came with help from Sir John Herschel and his experiments with silver salts. A form is still used today to fix film negatives.

 Unfortunately for Talbot, Daguerre announced his method while he was still experimenting. Talbot was nearing the chemical balance to help fix his images from further exposure. A collaborator of Daguerre’s also had the same issue. Niepce, famed for creating the first photograph gave the Frenchman many of his ideas.

 Daguerre had access to funding from the French government, which Talbot did not. having to fund his experimentations and marketing himself. There is no doubt that both processes opened the floodgates to photography. Many other people and ideas appeared from the invention of the Daguerreotype and the Calotype.

A salted paper calotype photograph of Scottish amateur golfer, golf administrator, and aristocrat James Ogilvie Fairlie, c. 1846–49