Cinematograph andkinematograph are early terms for several types of motion-picture film mechanisms. The wordcinematograph was used formovie cameras,film projectors, and completecinematography systems that also printed arelease print of the movie, e.g. theCinématographe Lumière.
Acinematograph device was invented and patented as the "Cinématographe Léon Bouly" by French inventorLéon Bouly on 12 February 1892. As such, Bouly coined the term "cinematograph," from the Greek for "writing in movement".[1] Due to a lack of money, Bouly could not develop his ideas properly and maintain his patent fees, so theLumière brothers were free to adopt the name.[2] In 1895, they applied it to a device that was mostly their own invention.
The Lumière brothers made their first film,Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory (Sortie de l'usine Lumière de Lyon), that same year. The first commercial, public screening ofcinematographic films happened on 20 May 1895 at 156 Broadway, New York City, when the "Eidoloscope", invented byWoodville Latham andEugene Lauste was presented.[3] Nonetheless, this has often been incorrectly attributed to the first Lumière show on 28 December 1895 atSalon Indien du Grand Café in Paris, which was organised by the Lumière brothers.[4] This presentation featured ten short films, including a new version ofWorkers Leaving the Lumiere Factory.[4] Each of these early films was 17 meters long (approximately 56 feet), which, when hand cranked through a projector, ran approximately 50 seconds.
Louis Lumière and his brother Auguste worked together to create amotion-picture camera superior toThomas Edison'skinetograph, which did not have a projector. The Lumières endeavored to correct the flaws they perceived in the kinetograph and the kinetoscope, to develop a machine with both sharper images and betterillumination. TheCinématographe weighed only 16 lb (7.3 kg), which allowed for ease of transportation and placement. As well, theCinématographe was manually operated by a hand-crank, as opposed to Edison's electrically powered camera, which was not readily portable. Furthermore, while only one person at a time could use Edison's kinetoscope for viewing through an eyepiece-- an early model of aviewfinder. TheCinématographe could project an image onto a screen so a large audience of people could view images simultaneously.[5]
TheCinématographe produced a sharper projected image than had been seen before due to its design, in which a kind of fork held frames behind the lens in place using the perforations in the sides of the film strip.
In 1897, the Lumières further added to their invention by using a glass flask of water as thecondenser to concentrate the light onto the film frame and to absorb heat. The flask also acted as a safety feature, as the light would no longer focus on the flammable film if the glass were to break due to overheating or accident.[6]
After the success of the Lumières's initial public screening in 1895, theCinématographe became a popular attraction for people all over the world. The Lumière brothers took their machine to China and India[5] and it was enjoyed by people of all classes and social standings. TheCinématographe was used to show films innickelodeons, where even the poorest classes could pay the entry fee. It was exhibited at fairs and used as entertainment invaudeville houses in both Europe and the United States. While vaudeville is typically associated with the working and middle classes, the machine also found its way into more sophisticated venues, where it appealed to the artistic tastes of high society.[1]
Ang, Tom. 2019. Photography: History, Art, Technique, 2005–2019.
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