Nicéphore Niépce

Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, also Nièpce or Niepce (French [ njɛps ]; born March 7, 1765 in Chalon -sur -Saône, France, † July 5, 1833 in Saint -Loup- de -Varennes near Chalon -sur -Saône ), was the inventor of the heliography, the world's first photographic technique. From him the first photograph is preserved to this day.

Life

Niépce, who had a sister and two brothers, was from 1789 to 1811 an officer in the French army; he managed 1795-1801 District Nice, then devoted himself with his brother Claude Niepce in his hometown mechanical and chemical work and in 1815 the lithography. His photographic efforts began in 1816, in which it first succeeded briefly hold on silver chloride paper images of the camera obscura, but he could not fix it.

1824 succeeded Niépce then for the first time to copy an engraving of Cardinal Georges d' Amboise, not only, but also to fix. However, this picture is not the first photo, because it was not taken with a camera obscura. After further extensive studies he then took in the early autumn of 1826 in his native town of Chalon- sur -Saône probably the first fade-resistant photograph of the world: a view from the window of his study in Le Gras with an exposure time of eight hours in the format 16.5 × 21 cm. Therefore, he used the camera obscura and as a chemical substance is a coating of photosensitive asphalt. This hardens when exposed to light and developed with lavender oil. However, Roland Barthes shows in the Spanish edition of his book La chambre claire (La cámara lucida, paidos, Barcelona 1989) a dated forward to the 1822 image, table ready, which should come from Niépce and leaves somewhat unclear recognize a freshly set table. Even on the large monument on the outskirts of Saint -Loup- de -Varennes (pictured at right ) is given as 1822 year of the invention. Niépce called his process heliography ( from AltGr. Ἥλιος, transkr. Helios = sun and γράφειν, transkr. Graphein = drawing, map ) and started in 1829 a correspondence with Louis Daguerre, to discuss the commercial feasibility of the invention and of new chemical processes.

Niépce died in 1833 in Saint- Loup -de- Varennes, about 7 km south of Chalon -sur -Saône, without suffering the economic exploitation of his invention would have succeeded. Niépce and Daguerre of work was - continued by his cousin Claude Félix Abel Niépce de Saint- Victor - of this independently. Niépce approach finally led to the development of the daguerreotype in 1839 and thus for the market of photography. However enforced sustainability has only the negative-positive process by William Henry Fox Talbot. The " Niepçotypie " ( heliography ) shall remain applicable as precious printing process.

In honor of Niépce the municipality of Saint -Loup- de -Varennes has renamed the street with his house in Rue Nicephore Niépce. Close to this, outside the city limits, one has National on Route 6 erected a monument to Niépce ( see photos). The town of Chalon- sur -Saône named after him, the scientific Lycée technique Nicephore Niepce -. In Chalon -sur -Saône is located on the banks of the Saône on the Quai des Ries Message No. 28, the Musée de la photographie Nicéphore Niépce.

Photo Gallery

Street sign Rue Nicephore Niépce in Saint -Loup- de -Varennes

Price

The Prix Niépce is in honor of Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in 1955 introduced, founded by Albert plecy Prize for Photography of the Association Gens d' Images, which annually to a " for at least three years, the France-based professional photographer at the age of less than 45 years " will be given. 2005, the price for example Elina Brotherus and 2008 Jürgen Nefzger was granted.