The Blue: The 10 cameras that made camera phones possible

[Toby]

Hi guys,

The team have created a great article on The Blue (find it HERE) about the invention of the camera and it's early stages to celebrate some of the amazing camera phones we have today, such as the Nokia Lumia 1020.

I've included a snippet below for you to peruse, but what I'd really love to know from all of you is: What is the best camera you've ever had?

The Polaroid will always have a sweet place in my heart

Enjoy!

"1. The first photographic image: Camera obscura

The story begins in Ancient Greece, with the principle of the camera obscura. It wasn’t until the 1500s that an actual device was developed, though – and it was more of a projector that was most often used by artists to paint and draw extremely accurate pictures. But in 1827, Joseph Nicephore Niepce used a camera obscura’s pinhole and aperture to create the first photographic image using a metal plate coated in bitumen. But it was hardly an efficient process – it required eight hours of exposure and the image disappeared quickly after it was formed. 

2. The first ‘camera’: Daguerreotype

The first true camera was the Daguerreotype, invented in 1839. It was quickly followed by the Calotype, which allowed negatives to be used to create multiple positive prints. The invention of emulsion plates in the 1850s reduced exposure times from fifteen minutes to just two or three seconds, but images had to be made instantly so photographers had to transport portable darkrooms.

3. The first affordable cameras: The Kodak and the Kodak Brownie

1888 saw the release of the Kodak, the first camera to employ a fixed focus lens and single shutter speed. It was reasonably well priced compared to what had gone before, but had to be returned to the factory to be reloaded once the roll had ended. The Kodak Brownie, introduced in 1900 priced at just $1, was an important step in making photography accessible for a mass audience."

[Toby]

As there are so many cool pictures, I thought I should add my favourite as mentioned in my OP.

I used to love the noise it made.

[jonsie]

We had endless fun with the Polaroid cameras back in the days before the first digital cameras gave us instant photos.

[Cleoriff]

Agree about the Polaroid camera @jonsie . I remember thinking it was 'just like magic' the way the pictures appeared instantly.

Only downside? If you got those pictures out years after they had been taken, they had faded really badly.

Indeed I have some to this day   that are sepia tinted.:smileywink:

Talking of pictures..... I like the new one in your avatar

[jonsie]

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@Cleoriff wrote:

Talking of pictures..... I like the new one in your avatar

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A new one she just sent me

[Anonymous]

My favourite is my current camera, a Panasonic TZ30. It's a couple of years old now and has been superseded by the TZ40 and TZ60 but I think the picture quality is much better. I upgraded to a TZ40 last year and ended up selling it on Ebay.

[aldaweb]

One thing I like on the TZ60 over my previous TZ20 is the Electronic Viewfinder. I haven't had it long enough to properly assess picture quality but it does shoot in RAW mode too so compression wouldn't be a problem.

I had a TZ5 previously which went on ebay

[Anonymous]

That's the one thing that could convince me to upgrade. I've had the TZ1, 5, 10, 30 and briefly the 40 - I'm a bit of a Panasonic geek!