Picture it…France…1839. Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre knows he’s on to something with an invention he had started working on in 1929 with Joseph Nicéphore Niépce (an inventor who had produced the world’s first heliograph in 1822). After Niépce died in 1833, Daguerre continued with his experiments and evolved the process that would subsequently be called the daguerreotype…the first publicly available photographic process.
Daguerre tried to bring on private investors to help fund his research, but nobody bit. So, he went public with his invention in early 1839. At a joint meeting of the French Academy of Sciences and the Académie des Beaux-Arts on January 7, 1839, the invention was announced and described only in general terms. Select members of the Academy were told about the process and were allowed to examine specimens. They praised the specimens and process as “nearly miraculous” and news of the daguerreotype quickly spread.
The French Government was quite interested in this invention, so arrangements were made for Daguerre’s rights to the invention be “sold” to the government in exchange for lifetime pensions for himself and Niépce’s son, Isidore. On August 19, 1839, the French Government presented the invention as a gift from France “free to the world” (except for the British*) and complete working instructions were published.
*Daguerre’s patent agent applied for a British patent just days before France declared the invention free to the world. The UK was thereby denied the “free gift” and became the only country where the payment of license fees was required.
How Did the Process Work?
To make the image, a daguerreotypist polished a sheet of silver-plated copper to a mirror finish, treating it with fumes that made its surface light sensitive. It was then exposed in a camera for as long as was deemed to be necessary (sometimes as little as a few seconds for brightly sunlit subjects or much longer with less lighting). The latent image became visible by fuming it with mercury vapor and treated with a liquid chemical to remove its sensitivity to light. The daguerreotypist rinsed and dried it, then sealed it behind glass to protect it.
The image is on a mirror-like silver surface and will appear either positive or negative, depending on the angle at which it’s being viewed, how it’s lit, and whether a dark or light background it being reflected in the metal. The darkest areas of the image are bare silver, while lighter areas have a very fine light-scattering texture. The surface is extremely delicate, and even the lightest wiping can permanently scuff the image, which is why it is enclosed in a protective case.
World Photography Day is a day to celebrate photography and its impact on art, culture, and communication. It encourages photographers to showcase their creativity, share their perspectives, and promote the universal language of images. So, take some time to go shoot today!
