Joseph Nicéphore NIÉPCE (“Nips”, 1765-1833)

CONSTRAINT : exposure time of 8 hours.

INVENTION : “panoramasolograph”, or heliography (1827). The camera is fixed on a high vantage point and the shutter is left open as the sun moves through 180°. The “umbragraph” reveals all the shadows cast during the day.

WORKS : “Point de vue pris de la fenêtre de Gras, Saint-Loup de Varennes” (1827). Direct positive, bitumen on pewter. (Gernsheim collection, University of Texas, Austin.)