7 Photography Facts for Inquiring Minds

"It is the photographer, not the camera that is the instrument." Eve Arnold

All art carries interesting tales. Photography is no different. Over its time of growth and development, photography has seen various trends, appreciation, and oddities. From starting portraits by accidents to becoming a social media obsession, photography has transformed into a marvelous art form that carries interesting facts for inquiring minds. Below, varying photography facts are shared.

Luois Daguerre

The first photo of a person was taken by accident! In 1828, Louis Daguerre intended to capture the Boulevard du Temple in Paris, but instead caught an image of a man getting his shoes polished.

It is estimated that more than 1 trillion photos are taken in a year! Can you imagine?!

Rhain II by Andreas G.

Photography can be expensive. Would you pay millions for it? The world's most expensive photograph sold for 4.3 million dollars. The piece is Rhain II by Andreas Gursky.

Who doesn't love cats? They used to be home protectors and also make great models. Cat photography has its origins in the nineteenth century. When Harry Pointer took a photo of his cat in a suit, a trend got kickstarted for the 1870s.

Photo by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce

Photos can be memory tokens. They last for a long time. The oldest surviving photo is almost 200 years old and took eight hours to capture.

Speaking of taking a long time to capture. Many people did not smile in old photos because it took hours to capture. Additionally, the most popular subjects for photos in the 1800s were dead people.

Most people tend to identify a "good side" when taking photos. In truth, they just might be right. The left side of the face tends to look better in photos according to a study by Blackburn and Schrilla at Wake Forest University.