• The image shows the Susse Frères Daguerreotype camera from 1839, in exhibition in the Westlicht Photography Museum in Vienna, Austria. Two months before the public announce at the French Academy of Arts and Science of the process of Daguerreotype, Jacques Louis Mandé Daguerre signed a contract with his relative Alphonse Giroux and with the Maison Susse Frères to produce the cameras according to his instructions. Both cameras used the same lens produce by the Maison Charles Chevalier a lens f15 380 mm.
    The image shows the Susse Frères Daguerreotype camera from 1839, in exhibition in the Westlicht Photography Museum in Vienna, Austria. Two months before the public announce at the French Academy of Arts and Science of the process of Daguerreotype, Jacques Louis Mandé Daguerre signed a contract with his relative Alphonse Giroux and with the Maison Susse Frères to produce the cameras according to his instructions. Both cameras used the same lens produce by the Maison Charles Chevalier a lens f15 380 mm.
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Happy World Photography Day!

By Tim Levy | 18 August 2023

Happy World Photography Day!

Before you read this and cynically think ‘oh another marketing ploy / what an odd thing to celebrate’ – it really is a day to reflect on how incredibly important photography is to the world. It is a tribute to the power of human invention and perception, the mastery of light, and the remarkable ability to tell stories through the lens. 

A photo can be as important as fine art worth millions of dollars, or be an image that changes our opinion through news or commercial propaganda, or just something that we use as a supplemental ‘memory’ to help us recall where we parked the car.

So yes – photography is something that most people take for granted. But for us in the photography industry, it is not just ‘a bunch of pictures’ – it is the thing that literally affords us a roof over our heads, food in our bellies and all the other good things in life (that we also probably take for granted).

So why the 19th of August?

On the 19th of August 1838, the French government purchased the patent for the daguerreotype camera thus allowing other manufacturers throughout the world to build cameras for free. Of course, this didn’t mean the average person could just pop down to the store and purchase one – it was a luxury product for the privileged few up until George Eastman perfected the roll film camera and launched the Kodak Brownie Camera at the turn of the 20th century.

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So what is it that compels us to capture moments? Is it the desire to hold onto fleeting joy, immortalize a loved one's smile, or document the intricate beauty of the world? Is it that photography transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary? Are our personal photos a way to reconnect to our past experiences and build our own self-narratives? Does photography appeal to our biological hunter gatherer instincts in that we enjoy hunting for things to photograph, and then we collect the images? 

Whatever the personal reasons, as we celebrate this day, let us take a moment to appreciate our industry and the photographers who dedicate their lives to capturing moments that shape our collective memory. Let us recognize the immense power of the photograph to inspire, provoke, and transform, and let us continue to explore the world through the lens of wonder and empathy.

Warm regards,
The Capture Team