View from a window at Le Gras – 1826

We’ve come a long way in the world of photography. The photo above is the first known permanent photograph.

The photo was captured by a camera obscura focused onto a sheet of 20 × 25 cm oil-treated bitumen. Due to the 8-hour exposure, the buildings are illuminated by the sun from both right and left.

An 8-hour exposure! Now we take photos with an exposure time of under 1/60th of a second or faster and we can see the results immediately.

My friend Ryan shared an excellent website about photos that changed the world.  I’d say the first ever permanent photograph qualifies.