When Light Became a Language
Assistant Professor,
19 August — World Photography Day — A little story about a very big thing:
Today is World Photography Day and most of us know that. Many of us also know why 19 August is celebrated as World Photography Day.
Since morning, we have been wishing each other, sharing photographs, posting memories and talking about photography.
The usual story goes back to 1839, when the French government made the Daguerreotype process, developed by Louis Daguerre, freely available to the world on 19 August. It was a remarkable moment—the beginning of a new way of capturing and preserving a moment.
But somehow, I feel 1839 deserves to be remembered for a little more than that.
There were two other interesting things that happened around photography that year.
First — the word “Photography” itself.
The word comes from two Greek words: phōs, meaning light, and graphé, meaning drawing or representation. So, photography literally means: “Drawing with light.”
The word is widely credited to Sir John Frederick William Herschel, who used it in a lecture at the Royal Society of London on 14 March 1839.
There are other claims too. Hercules Florence, for instance, is believed to have used the term as early as 1834. History, as usual, has more than one version. But isn't it wonderful to think that the word we casually use every day—photography—was finding its place in history in the very same year?
"Drawing with light."- Perhaps no other description could have been more beautiful.
And then comes the second one.
"The Selfie!"
Yes, the selfie!
If someone asks what the most popular form of photography in the world today is, we might think of nature, street photography, portraits or landscapes.
But let's be honest—the selfie probably wins.
The word “selfie” became part of the Oxford Dictionaries only in 2013. But the idea is much, much older. In 1839, a man named Robert Cornelius made what is widely regarded as the oldest surviving photographic "Self-Portrait".
So, in a strange way, the selfie was already there at the very beginning of photography. We have simply become much better at making them! And perhaps that is what makes photography so fascinating.
In 1839, taking a photograph was a difficult, expensive and time-consuming process. Today, almost every one of us carries a camera in our pocket.
We photograph our food.
-Our journeys.
-Our families.
-Our friends.
-Strangers.
-Protests.
-Celebrations.
-Disasters.
-Ordinary mornings.
-Extraordinary moments.
And sometimes, just a cup of tea.
But somewhere along the way, photography became much more than simply capturing a picture.
It became a way of remembering.
-A way of communicating.
-A way of telling stories.
-A way of seeing people and places we may never otherwise see.
-A single photograph can sometimes say what a thousand words struggle to say.
-A photograph of a protest can make us stop and think.
-A photograph of a disaster can make us feel the pain of people we have never met.
-A family photograph can suddenly take us years back.
And sometimes, a photograph of a complete stranger can remind us how similar we all are. That, perhaps, is the real strength of photography.
It connects. It crosses language, geography, culture and sometimes even ideology. But that power also comes with responsibility.
Today, when photographs are everywhere—and when images can be edited, manipulated and even created artificially—we need to think a little more carefully about what we photograph and what we share.
Consent matters - Context matters - Truth matters. And the dignity of the person in front of the camera matters.
Every photograph tells a story. But we should sometimes pause and ask:
-Whose story am I telling?
-What am I leaving outside the frame?
And what might this photograph make someone believe or feel?
From the Daguerreotype to the smartphone, from the darkroom to AI, photography has travelled an unbelievable distance in 187 years.
The cameras have changed - The technology has changed - The way we make and share photographs has changed. But the basic human desire has remained the same:
We see something. We feel something. We want to remember it. So, we photograph it.
Maybe that is why photography never really becomes old. Because photography is not ultimately about the camera. It is about how we see. So, today, let us celebrate not only the photographer, the camera, the lens or the technique.
Let us celebrate the moment. The memory. The story. The people behind the picture.
And the extraordinary ability of one little frame to make us see the world—an d sometimes each other—a little differently.
After all...
"In a world full of noise, photography sometimes speaks the loudest."
...........................................................
Happy World Photography Day.📷
And to everyone who continues to look, observe, feel, question and capture—
"Keep drawing your imagination with light."
© 2026 Prithwiraj Pal
The apt tribute for the day...
ReplyDeleteThank you Sir. 🙏
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