How did portrait photography rise?

1839, photography officially came out. At that time, the exposure speed of film was slow, and it sometimes took dozens of minutes to take a portrait photo. Therefore, portrait photography started slightly later than still life, architecture and landscape photography.

Nevertheless, photography is better than painting in realistic performance and its cost is lower than painting. As a result, portrait photography gradually replaced portrait painting and became a new industry. In the 1940s of 19, portrait studios of all sizes appeared like mushrooms after rain in major cities in Europe and America.

I. Daguerre Photography Studio

After the publication of Daguerre Photography Law, many cities in the United States and Europe have established portrait studios, which are called "Daguerre Photography Studio".

The earliest portrait studio in Europe was opened by British businessman Viad and a scientist named Goddard on March 23rd, 184 1 (Daguerre just had a beard after publishing photography).

This striking portrait studio was built on the roof of the Royal Institute of Technology in London. On the opening day, the reception room was crowded with British gentlemen and ladies, waiting for magical photography. After opening, the average daily turnover exceeded 150. At that time, the camera could only take pictures of one size. Exposure time varies greatly, from 3 seconds to 2 minutes in summer to 3 to 5 minutes in winter, which is generally related to rain or shine. But even so, it is still very attractive to people who want to take pictures.

At that time, photographing Daguerre's portrait was a severe test. First of all, you have to wear the right color clothes, because Daguerre photography is only sensitive to blue and white, and all other colors are black. Therefore, wear blue or white clothes when taking pictures.

At the appointed shooting time (it must be sunny and cloudy with insufficient light), you have to climb several stairs to reach the studio. This is a glass house, usually built on a flat roof. When you come in, you should sit in a chair on the high platform with your head fixed with an iron clip and your eyes fixed on the camera. You can't blink.

Then, the assistant put the photosensitive metal plate into the camera and exposed it for 30 seconds to 1 minute. If you want two photos, you can take them twice in the same way, or you can take them side by side with two cameras. At that time, there was a "Photography Song" that described the scene when shooting: You should sit still and hold fixed instruments with both hands, and the incarnation of Apollo will give you beautiful light. When shooting, shout three times: "Attention, go!"

"Then take it!"

"Well, it's over!"

In this way, your face will appear on the silver plate, and a small photo can be developed for you as long as it is processed by screen and so on. Although everyone exclaimed that this is not me, it is actually very similar to you. Reality is really interesting, if you are a prince or a poor ordinary person.

The photos taken are embedded in small photo frames and packed in velvet boxes. Almost all Daguerre-style photos were treated with gold chloride once to make the silver version look a little darker, thus highlighting the white image on the screen. If you want to color, you have to pay extra. In London, a professional portrait of Daguerre costs one pound, which is more than the average person's monthly salary. But Daguerre-style photos are cheaper than hand-painted oil paintings. So portrait photography was very popular at that time. People think that giving a portrait photo to relatives and friends is more economical, more realistic and more fashionable than a small portrait.