Curated OER
The History of Photography
By discussing the history of photography, students can learn about this art and its importance in recording major events.
Curated OER
Making a Pinhole Camera
Students participate in a number of activities in order to study the history of photography and to examine the workings of a pinhole camera.
Curated OER
4-H Photography Advanced Activity Pages
Three pages of photography activities will help your 4-H members work on the advanced life skill of "Communicating." Activities include a checklist of projects, a timeline of the history of the camera, a graphic organizer for reflection,...
Curated OER
Intermediate Critical Reading - Photography
Inform your class about the origins of photography with this short passage and accompanying questions. After reading a short informational text, leaners answer 3 questions about the content of the text. This resource could be used in a...
National Gallery of Canada
Make a Pinhole Camera
Introduce your class to photography by asking them to construct their own pinhole cameras. After putting together their own devices, pupils take and develop pictures and analyze the results. The plan provides step-by-step instructions...
National Gallery of Canada
Who Are You?
What can a self-portrait reveal about an artist? Discuss various self-portraits before tasking your pupils with creating their own. Learners research artists, develop an idea of their own individuality, and create photo collages with...
Curated OER
Civil War Photography Lesson Plan
Young scholars explore photographs from the Civil War Era. In this Civil War instructional activity, students consider how photography impacted public opinion of the war as they analyze the provided photographs and discuss the evolution...
Curated OER
Make a Pinhole Camera
Students explore the ability of light to project images by making and using a pinhole camera.
Curated OER
Photographic Links
Students in any grade level review photographs taken by Canadian artists. They complete different activties based on their age and practice looking at the world through a camera lens. They also complete self-portraits at the secondary...
Curated OER
Getting Perspective In The Renaissance
Students engage in a lesson that is concerned with the art of photography. They conduct research using the Internet and other resources. The students use the lesson plan to create context for using analytical language for class discussion.
State Library-Florida
Florida Memory: Daguerreotype to Digital: Brief History of Photography
Online history of the photographic process arranged by type and time period.
PBS
Pbs: American Experience: George Eastman: The Wizard of Photography
American Experience offers a comprehensive look at George Eastman and his development of photography. Included are a timeline, biographies of important people in Eastman's personal and professional life, discussions in the history of...
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Learning Lab: Every Picture Has a Story
Smithsonian Education presents "Every Picture Has a Story". Teachers can download this comprehensive teaching package in which students examine some of the millions of photographs in the Smithsonian. This amazing teaching package comes...
Department of Defense
Do Dea: Digital Photography: Module 1: Past/present [Pdf]
In this first module of a course on Digital Photography, students learn about the history of photography, different styles and movements, photographers of the 20th and 21st centuries, tools photographers use for expression, and how...
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Early Photography: Niepce, Talbot and Muybridge
Photography is a controversial fine art medium, simply because it is difficult to classify-is it an art or a science? Nineteenth-century photographers struggled with this distinction, trying to reconcile aesthetics with improvements in...
Other
The Daguerreian Society
A great resource for students or teachers interested in the history of photography, specifically the earliest method, the daguerreotype, of the 19th century.
Library of Congress
Loc: America's First Look Into the Camera (Daguerreotypes)
A searchable database from the Library of Congress that provides a fascinating look into the history of photography from 1839-1864. There are images from the Matthew Brady Studio and studio portraits by black photographers James P. Ball...
The Franklin Institute
Franklin Institute Online: Motion Photography
Learn about the history of motion in photography. Eadweard Muybridge was very interested in photography and "had nothing to do but try" motion photography. Read his story here. Included are resources for the teacher and activities for...
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Education: Every Picture Has a Story
This retrospect on photography looks at the history of this art form and compares it to its function today.
Library of Congress
Loc: Popular Photographic Print Processes
This link is designed in a historic presentation to explain the various processes and functions of photography.
George Eastman Museum
Eastmanhouse: Inventors in Imaging Technologies
See how George Eastman, Thomas Edison, and Wilhelm Roentgen impacted American film history and had inventions that were interrelated.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art: William Henry Fox Talbot
The Metropolitan Museum of Art provides this informative page on William Henry Fox Talbot(1800-1877)and the invention of photography. With information and pictures this in a nice resource for study.
Other
Media History Digital Library: Technical Journals Collection (1916 1965)
A large collection of original journals that focus on the technology behind motion pictures, covering cinematography, photography, projection engineering, etc.
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Magazine Migrant Madonna
An article by Rebecca Maksel that delves into the mystery of the woman in the famous photograph by Dorothea Lange. The history of the photograph is revealed as is the woman's identity.