Digital Photography

Development

During the 1980s, electronic imaging (the conversion from analog to digital processing of information) shifted dramatically for many news operations prior to the full-scale adoption of digital cameras in photojournalism. Electronic imaging pulled photojournalists out of darkrooms and placed them in front of computer terminals. One driving force was the Associated Press's (AP) high-speed digital photo transmission and receiver system, which replaced older analog facsimile-style processes in many newsrooms. According to AP senior photo editor Brian Horton, “In 1988, a revolutionary device called an AP Leafax transmitter allowed a photographer to scan his processed film, instead of making a print. The photographer then could send that image to an attached receiver or transmit it over a conventional telephone line” (2000, 203). Furthermore, research by John Russial and Wayne Wanta (1998) showed that “electronic picture desks were used throughout the 1980s by the wire services, but they did not become common in daily newspapers until 1990.” The AP Leaf Picture system, with a constant stream of electronic imagery uploaded to thousands of newspapers worldwide, nudged the news business generally and photojournalism more specifically further into the digital age. In 1981, AP introduced its mini-electronic darkroom, capable of converting photos into 2.5 million bytes of information. With an investment of more than $500,000 in developing the new technology, AP promoted its mini-electronic darkroom as a way of providing editors with an “extra deadline service” to meet “special problems” and “provide more color.” A few years later, electronic picture desks were promoted along with color film scanner and image processors.

Development of the digital camera can be traced to the development of video tape recording in the late 1950s, a process later expanded for use in space exploration and government surveillance systems. Beginning in the 1960s with advances in computer technology, the U.S. space program began enhancing images transmitted back to earth from unmanned probes.

During the 1970s, Kodak, Canon, and RCA investigated the possibility of converting light into digital images. Using innovations in television photography, still photographers started experimenting with the use of video and electronic imagery in photojournalism. In 1979, National Geographic photographer Emory Kristof was the first to use an electronic camera while photographing life at the bottom of the ocean in a miniature submarine. Kristof worked closely with television engineers at RCA to develop what is considered the first use of a charge coupled device (CCD) in photojournalism.

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