Interactive timeline reveals the story of the photo

A picture is worth a thousand words and for almost 200 years people have endeavoured to tell their story through still images captured by diverse photographic devices. This rich history of social snapshots has led the folk at the distance learning university iDesigni (opens in new tab) to create this timeline (opens in new tab) to document the development of photography from 1000AD to the present day.

Amongst others, the timeline features the first permanent photograph ever taken, 'View from the Window at Le Gras', as well as the first colour photograph - an image of a tartan ribbon produced by the Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell - which is a real revelation for those who are unfamiliar with the history of the art.

iDesigni hopes the timeline will motivate a new generation of snappers to shoot their way to the top of their profession, and that those stirred by the timeline will sign up for a long-distance learning BA (Hons) course in Photography, which can be done by clicking here, wherever you are in the world.

See the timeline in full here (opens in new tab).

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