52-Exposure of Time

The first evidence of photography in Huntsville came in about 1841. This was very early since the daguerreotype was invented only two years earlier in 1839. The main source for the art came from itinerant photographers who were traveling through trying to make a living. Some were painters who found a better way to create a more realistic likeness of the sitter. Most of them took a chance and some did not make it in their new endeavor. The ones who took that chance and were successful became important in spreading the knowledge. Some of the main characters are well known, and some are overlooked. One thing is certain, Alabama played an important part in the early days of photography, and Huntsville has a part in this story. It is truly an exposure of time and changes.