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William George Horner
Another illusion toy the Zoetrope was introduced by William George Horner. The Zoetrope used the same principle as Plateau's Phenakistoscope but instead of discs the pictures and slots are combined in a rotating drum. Zoetrope's were widely sold after 1867. -
Henry Fox Talbot
He makes an important advancement in photograph production with the introduction of negatives on paper - as opposed to glass. Also around this time it became possible to print photographic images on glass slides which could be projected using magic lanterns. -
Joseph Plateau
Joseph Plateau and sons introduce the Phenakistoscope. Like other toys of its kind, the Phenakistoscope was one of the more successful illusion toys. Pictures on one disc viewed through slots in the other, appeared to move when the two were spun and viewed in a mirror. -
Etienne Jules Marey
inspired by Muybridge's animal locomotion studies, begins his own experiments to study the flight of birds and other rapid animal movements . The result was a photographic gun which exposed 12 images on the edge of a circular plate. -
Eadweard Muybridge
achieves success after five years of trying to capture movement. Muybridge was asked, in 1873, by the ex-governor of California - Leland Stanford to settle a bet as to whether horses hooves left the ground when they galloped. He did this by setting up a bank of twelve cameras with trip-wires connected to their shutters, each camera took a picture when the horse tripped its wire. -
Emile Reynaud
introduces the Praxinoscope. Similar in design to Horner's Zoetrope, the illusion of movement produced by the Praxinoscope was viewed on mirrors in the centre of the drum rather than through slots on the outside. -
George Eastman
George Eastman devises a still camera which produces photographs on sensitised paper which he sells using the name KodaK. -
Georges Méliès
produces his magnificent "Voyage to the Moon", a fifteen minute epic fantasy parodying the writings of Jules Verne and HG Wells. The film used innovative special effect techniques and introduced colour to the screen through hand-painting and tinting. -
Herman Casler
Another peepshow device, similar to the kinetoscope arrived in the Autumn of 1894. The Mutoscope was patented by Herman Casler, and worked using a flip-card device to provide the motion picture. Needing a camera he turned to his friend W.K.L Dickson who, unhappy at the Edison Company cooperates and with several others they form the American Mutoscope Company. -
R. W. Paul
continued to improve his camera and invented a projector which began by showing copies of Acres' films from the previous year. He sold his machines rather than leasing them and as a result speeded up the spread of the film industry in Britain as well as abroad supplying filmmakers and exhibitors which included George Méliès. -
Cecil Hepworth
produced, with Lewin Fitzhamon "Rescued by Rover". A charming film in which Hepworth, his wife, child and dog, star. -
Edwin S. Porter
working for Edison makes "The Life of an American Fireman" which displayed new visual storytelling techniques and incorporated stock footage with Porter's own photography. It acted as a major precursor to Porter's most famous film "The Great Train Robbery" also made in 1903 which displayed effective use of editing and photography technique.
