Reveal the secret of all old photographs. That’s why people don’t smile at them

Have you ever noticed that in old photographs people almost never smile? They always look.

If you’re thinking of finding a photo from the early 20th century with a smiling person, you’re unlikely to succeed.

People really didn’t smile in the photographs, and there were objective considerations that are no longer relevant today.

Briefly:

• Problems of the first cameras
  Painting here
  Even the dead were photographed
  A smile was a sign of a clown
  Price for one photo
  When people started smiling
  Brief summary

Problems of the first cameras

“View from the Window at Le Gras” is the world’s first photograph. Made in 1826

One of the reasons for the appearance of smiles in the first photographs was purely technical. The first cameras had very long shutter speeds, which caused people to hold still for a long time. In the face of such smiles it was impossible to speak.

The first in world photography is called “View from the Window at Le Gras”. It was made in 1826 by the French inventor Nicéphore Niepce. The exposure lasted 8 hours (that is, the camera shutter was open the entire time), which is simply impossible to imagine in modern times.

In 1839, inventor Louis Daguerre improved the photography process by significantly reducing exposure time. However, people still remained motionless for about 20 minutes. By 1851 this time had been reduced to 3–5 minutes.

Daguerreotype camera created by Louis Daguerre in 1839.

But standing or sitting still for even three minutes is very difficult. And maintaining a natural smile for a certain period of time is almost impossible.

In 1878, cameras with exposure times of up to 1/25 of a second appeared. Thus, the shooting process has become much faster for everyone, and photographers have the opportunity to shoot moving objects. Nevertheless, the tradition of taking pictures with the main links has been preserved.

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Painting here

Today it’s hard to imagine kids being so strong in front of cameras, but in 1900 it was the norm.

In the 19th century, photography was just emerging, and the first photographers, like their models, focused on portraiture, where smiling was extremely rare.

Photography at that time was perceived as a static image of a person, rather than capturing a moment. Today everything is different.

The technological limitations of front-facing cameras made them only suitable for portraits, as they could not produce images quickly.

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Even the dead were photographed

Post-mortem photograph taken around 1860.

Until the 20th century, there was mass post-mortem photography. It looked like this: the deceased person was dressed up, put in order and photographed. For “naturalness,” you could even sit behind a chair.

Why did you do this? To preserve the memory of a person.

Interestingly, due to the long exposure of the first cameras, it was easier to work with the dead, because they were guaranteed not to move and not spoil the frame.

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A smile was a sign of a clown

Mark Twain

Nicholas Jeeves, researching smiles in portraits for the Public Domain Review, concluded that for many centuries smiling was associated with frivolity and was acceptable for buffoons.

However, this thesis is complex. For example, on Flickr there is a collection of 2,300 Victorian-era photographs of people smiling.

At that time, society really leaned towards seriousness. This idea is well illustrated by a quote from Mark Twain, a famous writer and humorist:

I believe that a photograph is the most important document, and there is nothing more terrible for posterity than a stupid, stupid smile, caught and recorded forever.

Mark Twain

Sam Mark Twain always posed in front of the light switch with a strong expression on his face.

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Price for one photo

To use photography, the method of preserving an image for posterity was a painted portrait. It was an expensive and difficult pleasure.

Photography was worse, but not always easier. Firstly, there were few photographers. The first photographers usually worked in studios in large cities or traveled with equipment throughout the regions.

Secondly, for an ordinary person, the cost of photographs was 3-4 monthly salaries. I photographed people only a few times in my entire life.

All these factors create a special atmosphere. Photography was the basis and an important event during which there was clearly no time for smiling.

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When people started smiling

The photo was taken in the 1920s on a beach in Yorkshire, UK.

By the 1920s and 1930s, smiling in photographs had become commonplace. Of course, many continued to take photos with key leaders even if the situation did not require it, but over time people became more free in front of the switch.

Photography as an art changed significantly in 1888 with the introduction of the first Kodak camera, which used interchangeable film. From now on, almost anyone can photograph; special knowledge is no longer required.

In 1900, the Kodak Brownie camera appeared, costing only $1. It was a hugely successful model, made with photographs accessible to the masses. The manufacturer positioned it as a children’s camera, but it was also used among adults.

Later, film cameras appeared in Russia. Significant models suggested Search with Neuro.

Neuro
Based on sources there may be inaccuracies

Some film cameras that were popular in Russia during Soviet times:

▪ “Change”. Novice photographers took pictures there. (1)

▪ “FED”. The camera became a function in which the out-of-focus image was doubled, and when it was combined into one, it was clearly sharp in the photo. This was convenient for people with not very good eyesight. (1)

▪ “Zenith”. The camera was already used by quite experienced photographers, and it took high-quality pictures. (1)

▪ “Smena-8M”. The most popular camera produced in the USSR. It was possible to make a double exposure on it – shoot on the same section of film at once. (2)(5)

▪ “Leningrad”. The device uses a spring mechanism that allows for continuous shooting at speeds of up to 3 fps, and the factory productivity is 12 frames. (3)

▪ “Zenit-E”. A small-format single-lens reflex camera developed at the KMZ named after. Zvereva. During the period from 1965 to 1988, the total production of this model amounted to more than seven million units, and taking into account the related models “EM” and “ET”, the total circulation was 12 million. (3)

Link to answer in Yandex Search with Neuro

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Brief summary

The people in the first photographs indeed almost never smiled, but this does not mean that they were enhanced by structures or unhappy.

The first photographs required a lot of progress, and the shooting process itself was new to most. And although initially photographers and their models focused on painting, over time they began to introduce their own ideas. The advent of the existing camera has greatly accelerated the change in photo adapter, and it has made it much freer.

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