Color Photographs From 1907 :: Autochrome and Pictorialism

[@FougarouBe]

Don't forget that this autochrome process was pattented by the Lumière brothers in 1903 in Lyon and was then first commercialy released in 1907 in France, Europe and then US later ...

[@187onaPigeon]

I would do anything to reproduce those colors and overall aesthetics from the first pics.

[@caleblatreille8224]

would you learn chemistry and do your own film processing? seems simple enough 😂😂

[@beverleystone8735]

He is wrong to say that colour photography only became popular again until the 1960s/1970s. Kodachrome film, which was hugely popular, was launched in 1934.

[@jaygill5582]

Here for Christina!

[@MrEjidorie]

0:48 I cannot believe a girl in this picture used to live more than 100 years ago. She looks as if she still lives today.

[@alecjuho9436]

MrEjidorie I think it's because it's in color. When you think about it, over a 100 year old photograph would logically be black and white, right? But it's amazing how you can see a 100 year old photograph in color, it makes it that much more interesting.

[@MrEjidorie]

+Alec Valentin Yes, color makes this 100 year old picture more vivid and realistic. So the beauty in this picture looks as if she is still alive and will live forever. Beauty of this girl transcends the time.

[@farmuzshaikh2446]

+Alec Valentin xxx

[@christianeder8043]

Agreed, especially this photo amazes me too!

[@teleaddict23]

People will think that in 100 years when they look at pictures from today

[@saldina2871]

Ted,I work hard all day in retail and always look forward to your videos when I come home at night. I find it hard to follow your creativity, jumping form the latest digital camera review to the early 1900 chorme work. After purchsing a 4x5, developing my own negative in monobath, I'm scared to see what you are up to in the next video (that I enjoy so much!). Keep inspiring us, you are really great Sal

[@thethirdman225]

The Art of Photography Good work Ted. It's so important these days for people to appreciate photography through the people who pioneered it and importantly, gave these new techniques relevance. I would have liked to see a bit more about the pictorialism movement but - and I completely understand this - this is only a 16 minute video. These topics are especially important today when there is so much focus on gear and buying stuff. Most sites and channels are really about, you know, "What you need to get great pictures" or "What's the sharpest lens for your camera?". It's interesting that you call your site The Art of Photography because, in making videos like this one, you actually introduce people to the concept of the art form. I was instantly reminded of Steichen's famous pond by moonlight (although I understand that was not Autochrome).

[@theartofphotography]

TheThirdMan Thanks for the kind words - I know its a little buried, but I put links to 3 other shows I've done on pictorialism in the show notes under the video…

[@thethirdman225]

The Art of Photography Ah ha! Thank you!

[@JorgeLetria]

As always, great video. The complementary articles are a great idea.

[@elessar60]

I have been working my way through your videos and I have to say, these are some of the best photography videos by far. Your knowledge and your passion are amazing and I really appreciate your willingness to share both. And this subject is amazing. I'm really loving the way that those early artists used color and composition. Thank you for sharing this.

[@iancarroll3786]

Always happy to see the beautiful work of Robert Demachy popping up....early "mixed media"! Like the ideas for the website, maybe a good place for interaction/expansion of themes/links to other articles of interest? I am a relatively new photographer (3 years almost), new subscriber here, and first time commenter here, but just wanted to thankyou for helping to catch me up on what I have been missing for the last 30 - odd years of photographic history education, and appreciating my place in this heritage, and the inspiration.

[@theartofphotography]

Thanks Ian!

[@mwales2112]

Thanks Ted for all these learning video's you are posting...

[@WhiteSpaceToronto]

Hi Ted, I agree with you, the colors seem so surreal, but that's what creates such a wonderful mood to the images. Love this look. Thanks for sharing, I really enjoy your lessons in photography.

[@mariocisneros911]

What's so incredible is that there are real color images before Technicolor (1937) . Some from approx. 1907 - 1917. Just as incredible as looking at the earliest photos of 1830's -1850's .

[@mohamedriffihaddad2727]

before 1907 were existed journels with colours photos of all european galeries.which is very valueable

[@ericthemauve]

Technicolor 1937? I think you need to do a little more research on that one Mario.

[@feibenbrook3410]

You are so awesome! Watching your video feels like back in photo school , but better!

[@RedStarRogue]

The beginning intro to the film Joyeux Noel shows some early Autochrome images from just before WWI. Very surreal to see.

[@DarkAngelEU]

I never understood why the pictorialists didn't accept this process as something artistic, it's a step forward in the technology and it gives a new challenge to your creativity. It's a bit like people don't accept digital photography as an artistic medium either just because they're stuck with their film and are overwhelmed by the possibilities in Photoshop. It's a very conservative standpoint and even today people are mocking digital yet you can make amazing photographs with it WITHOUT losing any romanticism for the art. It's even more interesting in my opinion to use something commercial because no one would ever expect something "cheap", "vernacular" or "amateur" to be artistic yet that's what we've been all about since Pop Art. Thank you for this episode, I love the process and didn't know Kuhn was friends with Stieglitz and Steichen :)

[@theartofphotography]

Google made me do it yeah thats how history has always been. New things are always "suspect" ;-)

[@thethirdman225]

Google made me do it I am going though the same thing at the moment but in a different developmental hemisphere. Although I intend to stay with digital, I am moving back to film, not for the "look" but because there are so many things you can do with tactile media which are impossible with a digital file. In the end, my work will probably be a combination of both. As far as art is concerned, it goes a long way beyond the process. These guys were exploiting new media to capture things which had not been captured before for reasons of impracticality. They were also applying these new techniques to make their pictures more expressive, not just so they looked different or new (although I completely understand that this was a major factor). But for something to be art, it needs to have artistic merit which goes way beyond a mere "arty" process. A lot of people say "Of course photography is art" but fall at the first hurdle of analysis. Some say this is "pseudo-intellectual" and "pretentious" but the simple fact is that to be considered art, the same interpretations, challenges and referencing must be applied to photography. It can't be both ways. Either it stands up to scrutiny or it is not art.

[@DarkAngelEU]

TheThirdMan I don't really care what you use man, as long as it produces something of value. But the fact that alot of people drop the ball at hearing it's a "digital photo" also makes me feel like they don't appreciate photography for an art while on the other hand I can see why they would because of alot of photography today is just shit. Probably because of the digital revolution, but even people who use film can have beautiful images but just not an interesting subject. At least you seem to know what it's about, but even some of my fellow students are pretentious about similar issues and some of us don't even believe photography is an art form. Just think it's a pity people regard something as a lesser art form just because it's less exclusive, which is what I meant with my first comment

[@thethirdman225]

Google made me do it Yeah, the point I was making actually parallels yours; that it doesn't matter what you use as long as it stands up to scrutiny. People like Andreas Gursky and Idris Kahn both use digital for at least part of their process. I am looking at doing the same thing - a combined process - not because it's more artistic but because it's more flexible.

[@DarkAngelEU]

terry breedlove If I remember correctly Gursky is an amazing photographer and he uses Photoshop ever since it existed.

[@DavidMeyerPhoto]

I love this process. And in general processes, which in a way capture colour being relatively true, but not being 100% true to reality. Yeah, I know, this doesn't sound like it makes much sense, but I can't really put my finger on what precisely makes autochrome or kodachrome so appealing and interesting.

[@theartofphotography]

David Meyer Agreed

[@DavidMeyerPhoto]

The Art of Photography I commented before I finished watching just to hear you say basically the same thing just seconds after hitting the "Post"button :) Anyhow, thanks for all the videos on "alternative" processes, they are really interesting.

[@dabble778]

For Christmas I bought myself a book on Autochrome called COLOUR MANIA. Beautiful Autochrome colour plate reproduction and a history of Autochrome photographers. $90 aud but wonderful large pages. Recommended 😃 😎

[@MaxLamdin]

I have actually seen these autochromes framed in a light box and they are absolutely BEAUTIFUL!

[@theartofphotography]

Max Lamdin I bet that was amazing! It was a gorgeous process…

[@MaxLamdin]

The Art of Photography it was the "drawn by light" exhibition at the national science museum in London, also saw "moon rise over Hernandez" which I knew all about thanks to you

[@michaelmcgee8543]

Auto chrome continued into the 1930's as flexible film version until Kodachrome A.G.f.A. color took over,but, in France photographers were still in love with autochrome so it was manufactured under a different name,Alticolor until 1955 in that country .

[@WitchKing-Of-Angmar]

These were not guesses at the color, it was a system that exacted the base spectrum and matched up into the reds, blues, and greens. You can't give an illusion of color, I've seen a lady in a bright green dress in a New York 6 blocks away from where the photo is shown, you can't enhance that from a black and white film.

[@shivamangaira]

Thank you for uploading this and showing us those pictures. Really looking forward... and keep sharing.

[@psynchro]

Your videos and philosophy impress me. Thanks so much for your efforts.

[@artsandcraftscreations3492]

So, well, here, I have to say THANK YOU for this one. Absolutely cued me into someone ( Heinrich Kuhn ) and something (autochrome) that I was just not familiar with at all. Truly added to my life and world. Autochrome is incredible!! Kuhn is just incredible. Alas... well, Ektar is fun.

[@manoftheroad55]

May I add, much in photography has been forgotten found again and not fully understood. Boken, soft focus vignette, was not achieved with open stops, it was created with a Petzval design lens. It gave depth of field to the central image, the depth still be controlled by the stop selected, with image softening and diminishing outwards away from centre, all elements controllable. It was specific for portraiture and made as an art lens fitted to plate cameras. The result is very different from using a wide open stop, losing depth of field. The cheaper option was soft focus produced by introducing a thin silk, broad woven "screen" with a piercing, through trial size of hole and distance it was hung from lens an effect was produced with a normal lens, it was hit miss and time consuming. Lens design, anti reflective coatings, chemical composition of glass from 150 years ago laid the foundation of optical design, much is still used now. In late 60s I attended from work a day release photographic course. My lecturer was a practical commercial photographer active from the 1930s I see him now explaining with his figures and hands the alignment of potato starch photographs. My Kodak pocket manual briefs a 3 separation gel membrane system for bulk colour prints, very similar to Technicolor 3 gel separate colour membrane system used in the Technicolor camera of late 20s effectively an ink printing technique. Early colour photographs used light stable anillin dyes, (exhibited great exhibition 1860s until then only natural and vegetable dyes existed) Kodak C10 used colour couplers hence the fading, to overcome this Cibachrome was introduced by Ilford a superior method, using anillin but time and cost saw very limited adoption.

[@allenfadely3298]

Really enjoyed watching this. I didn't even know it existed. Thank you

[@steveg8322]

It reminds me of Ektachrome, which was sometimes shot with nylon hose stretched over the lens,white,black or 'nude' depending on the desired effect.

[@christopherbarber9351]

Thanks very much -- again you have introduced me to something I was completely ignorant of. Very stimulating to the creative juices, sir!

[@AakashSingh-cl5sc]

Thank you Sir for producing so much informational content. You are like my go to Photography Encyclopedia. Thank you Sir for spreading this knowledge.

[@rejeannantel1185]

There always has been two main currents in art- Old school and new trend(s). And what is trendy now will become things of the past, i.e. become old school. And anything new challenges the acquired conceptions. When people feel challenged they often overreact thinking that the new trend will discredit their life's achievement, thus the impulsive and unworthy debates. The debate on how art should be judged should not relied on any process (autochrome, black and white or whatever) but on the results, notwithstanding they be more demanding manually or not. The process that one chooses should not have any consequence on how we praise his work (although we know that each existing process has its limitations). It seems that there is always that hypothetical debate where the number of hours spent on pre-processing or post-processing is highly valued and based on a referential chart so as to credit the quality of an artwork (a quote with a meaning not unlike the one you find in the film "Dead Poets Society" when referring to how a poem should be written). Creativity cannot be formalized with any decree because there are no standards to define it. So we must acclaim all who exceeds in their path for what they bring forth with whatever technique they use. Nice episode on "autochromes" and the brief history of color. Nice way to bring the "Pictorialist" along their conceptions and misconceptions (the debate). I am looking forward to the future references articles you wish to share on your updated website. I will continue to follow you there as well.

[@billhoulton6702]

Anyone who is interested in Autochrome photographs should check the photos commissioned by Albert Kahn, "In 1909 a French banker and philanthropist Albert Kahn launched a monumentally ambitious project: to produce a color photographic record of human life on Earth. Over the next 20 years Kahn sent professional photographers all over the world to take photos of life using the autochrome process." These pictures are spectacular. The book "The Dawn of the Color Photograph: Albert Kahn's Archives of the Planet" by David Okuefuna is available at Amazon and public libraries. Even better is the DVD series called "Wonderful World of Albert Kahn, The (Archives of the Planet)". DVD series is also available at Amazon. I was able to check the series out through my local public library. Again anyone interested in beautifully made photos using the autochrome process made 1909 and 1929 owes it to yourself to see this book and DVD set.

[@AManWhoWasntThere]

I saw an exhibition called The World c. 1914. Colour Photography Before The Great War in Berlin last year. It included a lot of Kahn's series. It was absolutely stunning and I bought buy the book of the exhibition. The cruel irony of his project was that he was trying to document the world in order to bring humanity closer together with the hope of furthering world peace and all that just a few years before the outbreak of WW1.

[@frostyone1967]

Fabulous content, I am a mature photography stundent from the UK, and I really love your channel, so inspiring!

[@JamesAndrewMacGlashanTaylor]

Great episode. Great topic. Kuhn really was a master of classical composition. I would love to see an episode on Dumeche (spelling?) ... half photograph half painting.

[@_H_2023]

Wow, I've just looked up this book and it's for sale 400 UK Pounds Ebay. The cheapest is 300 Pounds Amazon.

[@vinayseth1114]

0:49 - There were hoodies as early as those days!?! Wow! And she resembled Taylor Swift in that pic for some reason ( not getting into whether you like Taylor Swift or not! :P)

[@woutdezeeuw1604]

That photo is totally fabulous, my favorite as well.

[@thephotovideoshow]

Art is such a subjective topic in general. Almost as much as political theory and religion. It's interesting to see that even back then the industry eating it's own as much as it does today. Both sad and inspiring at the same time. As far as the autochrome images of the day, I love and crave and long for the days of imperfection in both color and technique.

[@patio87]

Fantastic idea with the new website.

[@guypool7524]

The first picture is Durdle Door on the south coast of England, in the county of Dorset. It is a reversed image.

[@OmarcosM1492]

Does anyone know the title of the Demachy image at 8:30? It's stunning!

[@douggottlieb]

I miss this style of Ted Forbes video. This is wonderful. Please do more alternative process stuff. And Photo Lit.

[@oldschoolcollodion]

Can you please spell the name of the French photographer you mentioned towards the end?

[@nicolastidiane4871]

Hey ! You should check out Sergeii Prokudin Gorsky's work on photographing 1900's Russia in color, it's fantastic !

[@adamnblackman]

Hey Ted! Great show. Could you tell me the spelling the french photographer's name Robert.... Thanks for all you do!

[@Risky_Boots999]

Demachey

[@vernonsza]

Ted, any chance of doing a video on Kodachrome?

[@ladefreakndah]

I'd say the impracticality of longer exposures and possibly cost largely killed it. It's not like every shop could develop it or reprint it.

[@elevateyourmoodx100]

Why is that first image look like a modern embodiment of portrait trends now?

[@dangerpowers123]

Fascinating stuff

[@TrueDestinyOnly1]

Very informative video.

[@jonnypanteloni]

Ted, I'd really appreciate the website idea, where there is a supplement for new material. Liked. :)

[@DanZukowski]

Nicely done. Great, overlooked subject. Thanks!

[@artemsapegin]

I really like this idea about articles.

[@gilgillis2445]

Thanks for your videos. Great learning experience!

[@iamdesertpaul]

I know this might be a crazy question, but is it possible to recreate the Autochrome process today?

[@theartofphotography]

Well anything is certainly possible. It's not likely something you could do at home though.

[@davidrothschild8913]

Beautiful video Ted. Would love to find a museum exhibit that is all about Autochrome. Thanks again!

[@AprendizAdulto]

I love the grey background and lighting set up! I would love to see how this was setup :)

[@sbnmklcc]

Great video, thank you so much! Quite informing

[@michaelangeloh.5383]

How people will be talking about 3D in another century. - "It wasn't perfect, but then it fell out of fashion and came back later."

[@brentdrafts2290]

Do you think the rise of Kodak b/w films into the public, though early, played into things. Could Eastman Kodak have embraced this process and changed the perception of film and quicken its advance?

[@theartofphotography]

Brent Drafts Probably - film was more portable and convenient than glass plates. Autochrome came in glass plates and was an additive process owned by the Lumière so there was a patent issue. Kodak and AGFA were working on sheet and film color which was the next technological advancement. Kodachrome was a multilayer subtractive process - this just means it was a "next generation" in terms of technology. I think we see Autochrome as beautiful and nostalgic in ways, but I think historically it was a search for "better technology".

[@davidwarren7279]

How would someone get this look today with a modern dSLR?

[@charlesmascari8197]

I never pass-up any of your videos. That photo of the young woman looks like it could have been taken yesterday.

[@kori228]

here from 9gag. Interesting stuff.

[@nikolaus2688]

Still, autochromes have their particular magic...

[@byronamador5558]

very interesting photographs

[@jaimeduncan6167]

Great!!!

[@schoenstattpuertorico9519]

Watching the video of the museum it looks like one of may fuji film. It stay in the heat of the car and after develop look like this photos.

[@macbookdieter]

I have some 3D glass slides shot from an unknown French photographer that are Autochrome. I would love to share them.

[@b.griffin317]

You say color died because "serious" photographers viewed it as a mechanical process you bought over the counter and and less an art form. In what way were previous processes more of an art form?

[@bicycleninja1685]

That is one expensive book!

[@alwinbenjamin]

👑

[@filmic1]

Nice!!

[@brianjrichman]

Woah!!! Give a plug for a $135 book!!! Unreachable for most. :-( Even with the library system, the wait list is huge!

[@woutdezeeuw1604]

Ted, more of this please, stop the gear reviews!

[@Alpha_blossom]

This is the smallest view-to-comment ratio I’ve ever seen

[@brianminkc]

chromy auto's ... so dreamy.

[@luisboaventura22]

👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@Kitsaplorax]

Digital is pictorial. Images photoshopped to death then displayed on a monitor without calibration or high luminous contrast range is pictorialist. Fox Talbot was a failed painter. Photography became his artistic medium, even if he had to invent the negative.

[@adamnblackman]

Never mind... I found him.

[@bxwx7824]

I think autochrome has a kind of dingy color, as if there was a lot of air pollution.

[@robin9339]

They are romantic

[@helmet212]

I WAS THE 1400TH LIKE! Lol.

[@sunnyta619]

Autochrome>kodachrome