A Timeline of the Development of Digital Cameras and Photography

By dina.tukhvatulina

  • The CCD (charge-coupled device) is invented.

    George Smith and Willard Boyle invent the CCD (charge-coupled device) at Bell Labs in Murray Hill, New Jersey. It was a tool that allowed engineers to store a visual image in digital form for the first time.
  • The first digital camera is invented.

    The first digital camera is invented.

    Steve Sasson invents the digital camera for Eastman Kodak Co. in Rochester, New York. It was not intended for production.
  • Quantel Paintbox launched.

    Quantel Paintbox launched.

    The Quantel Paintbox was a computer graphics workstation for the production of broadcast TV video and graphics. It was created by Quantel, a British production equipment manufacturer, and made studio workflow that much more efficient!
  • The first electronic still video camera appears.

    The first electronic still video camera appears.

    Sony unveils a Sony Mavica prototype, becoming the world's first electronic still video camera.
  • The first commercially available portable digital camera is shipped to the U.S.

    The first commercially available portable digital camera is shipped to the U.S.

    The Dycam Model 1 is shipped to the United States.

  • The first version of Photoshop is released.

    the first version of Adobe Photoshop, Photoshop 1.0 is released for Macintosh exclusively. This tool was meant for changing images that were digitized by a scanner.

  • First Photoshop version available for Windows.

    Photoshop 2.5 is released and is the first version available for Windows.
  • First commercial colour camera phone released.

    First commercial colour camera phone released.

    The first commercial phone with a colour camera is released in Japan, called the Kyocera Visual Phone VP-210. Coloured camera phones were a big success.

  • First Photoshop CS commercially released.

    Photoshop CS, the eighth major Photoshop version, is released.

  • Instagram released.

    Instagram, one of the first photo-sharing platforms was released by founders Mike Krieger and Kevin Systrom.

  • Latest Photoshop version released.

    Version 25.0 released in September 2023, making it the latest. Generative Fill and Generative Expand was added for commercial use.