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NATIONAL CAMERA DAY

NATIONAL CAMERA DAY

Stop & Take a Photo – It’s National Camera Day!


Children at the FSA Camelback Farms inspect the photographer’s camera. Phoenix, Arizona, 1942 – Russell Lee

Not many things have changed history in quite the way that the camera has. Walking around with one in our pocket thanks to those handy smart phones, they may be easy to take for granted in 2015. Every year, on June 29th, however, we’re all encouraged to stop and appreciate what it means to be able to “capture” all those moments that until 1839, quickly slipped away.

We have Louis Jacques Daguerre to thank for starting it. He took the first fixed image that didn’t fade all the way back in 1839. We have George Eastman to thank for creating flexible film that could be rolled, leading to the sale of the first Kodak in 1888. In the years that followed, we’ve seen the introduction of the first “affordable” 35mm cameras, and then in the middle of the 20th century, the introduction of what could be one of the most fondly remembered cameras of all… the Polaroid. In 1948, the world’s first instant-picture camera was born with no development needed, and the well-recognized act of impatiently shaking the photo while waiting for it to process began! Who would have ever guessed back then that by the late 1980’s our cameras would be digital and just over 20 years later, every phone we carry would allow us to instantly grab a shot of all the little moments of lives, much less instantly publish them online for the world to see!

It’s national camera day TODAY so take a few moments to give a thought or two to just how far we’ve come… and then take a few photos to share!