World Photography Day is among the top ten trends on Google today (Sunday). Why, you may ask? Yesterday, August 19, was celebrated globally as a day for photography.
This annual event gives professional photographers and leisure photographers the opportunity to express their passion, creativity, and undiluted love for the lens.
Saturday and even today being Sunday weren’t enough days for people to show the world how much photography has grown.
However, the growth of social media has provided a global platform for this year’s celebration, with hashtags like #WorldPhotographyDay trending, giving art lovers an opportunity to share their work, connect with others, and gain recognition.
Join BusinessDay as we take you through a captivating journey to let you know all you need to know about World Photography Day.
The Origins of World Photography Day
World Photography Day has its roots in the invention of the Daguerreotype, a photographic process developed by Louis Daguerre in 1837. This revolutionary creation marked the birth of photography as we know it today.
However, August 19th was chosen for World Photography Day because it’s the date when the French government officially presented the Daguerreotype process to the world in 1839.
A closer examination of the Daguerreotype, invented by painter Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre, will provide a comfortable platform to appreciate photography as not only an art but a profession with economic and financial potential.
According to Lumas, in 1839, Daguerreotype became a means of using photography commercially for portraits.
It added that this became a critical juncture in the history of photography, greatly contributing to the popular acceptance of cameras and the success of the medium.
Just a few years later, William Henry Fox Talbot came up with the calotype process. This was the first process that let photographers create a negative from which multiple prints could be made.
In 1851, Frederick Scott Archer introduced the collodion wet plate process, which produced a negative image on a transparent glass plate. Although it was surpassed by the gelatin dry plate process in the late 1800s, the collodion process was used for tintype portraits and in the printing industry well into the 1900s.
However, photography as an art has transitioned from film cameras to digital devices—a transformation that has helped democratise photography, making it accessible to almost everyone.
Smart phone technology helped photography evolve, transforming it into a more mobile motorcade, easy to access, and with much flexibility, giving even the most amateur photographer an opportunity to share the limelight with the works of celebrated photographers.
It has turned even the most amateur photographer into a potential great photographer. Mobile photography apps and advancements in smartphone camera technology have fueled the popularity of photography.
In documenting social events, photography has played a crucial role in documenting historical events, social issues, and cultural changes. Iconic photographs have become symbols of important moments in history.
Photographers often use their art to raise awareness about environmental issues, social injustices, and humanitarian crises. Photography will always be a powerful tool for change.
Photography won’t get the attention it has today without some notable mention. The work of iconic photographers like Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange, Steve McCurry, Bayo Omoboriowo, Tolani Alli, Steven Tayo, and many others continues to thrill photography lovers.
Ansel Easton Adams, who died in 1984, was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his black-and-white images of the American West. Adams was named the most influential photographer of all time by Picture Frame Express, a reputable global photography media outfit.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Finder named Bayo Omoboriowo as the number one photographer in Nigeria. Omoboriowo has had some of his best works published by the international media giant CNN. He has worked for some of the biggest organisations in Nigeria, such as Sahara Energy and the US Department for International Development (DFID).
So as the world celebrates World Photography Day this weekend, why don’t you grab your mobile phone and take that picture you have always wanted to take?
Happy World Photographer Day, Nigeria!