This Video Gives An Extremely Brief History of Photography

Photographic history is a real rabbit hole, especially here in the internet age when you can find piles of information about pretty much anything without having to remember how the Dewey Decimal System works. This video, however, is like taking a very shallow dip into that rabbit hole, giving you a well-done and easily digested top-level overview of the history of photography.

The video is actually made by COOPH, who also make some excellent photographer-specific clothing , and it starts way back at the beginning with the Camera Obscura, eventually making its way up to the modern smartphone camera.

It won’t make you an expert in five minutes, but it might give you a jumping off point for looking into a segment of photography you never even knew existed. Or, hey, maybe it’ll provide you with a valuable name or date you can use later if you’re ever on Jeopardy or at a party full of real photography nerds.

What a long, strange journey it has been.

H/T: Laughing Squid