News & Insight
Rare Color Photographs Of The First World War
In the midst of the centenary of the First World War, rare color images taken by a small group of pioneering photographers have been given new light. There exist hundreds of photographs from all around the world; here are a selected few gathered from the international archives, of Europe, America, and Australia, bringing together a striking collection of war.
Autochrome was the early process of color photography and was patented in 1903 by the Lumière brothers in France. Color photographs of war are much scarcer than you think, as the image itself needed to be exposed for a longer period of time, so the scenes were thought out a bit more than the usual before shooting.
The collection includes portraits, soldiers getting ready for the battlefield, and cities destroyed by the conflict.
[REWIND: Photographers Of First World War Capture Chaos Front And Center]
For the next four years, countries around the world will be putting together events to remember all those that lost and put their lives on the line in World War I.
CREDIT: Images, Courtesy of National Archives
[via] Express
That’s pretty incredible.
I always like seeing old images in color.
Awesome Images..
Excellent images.
Awesome post thanks!
Anytime, Tyler!
Just wonderful pics! Thank u!
You’re welcome Rui, glad you enjoyed them!
The colors are so weird, it’s almost like they’re hand-toned. (For anyone who remembers that process from back in the days of film!)
And wow, did anybody else notice the dynamic range on that Arc De Triomphe shot? Crazy!!!
I wish the world would all learn from pictures like this and see war and peace prevail
Loved this. I love black and white, but something about seeing color pictures of history make it feel more real and tangible.
So true Zeralda. It’s almost as if they are fake since we are so used to seeing them in black and white.
When I was a child our neighbor was a WWI vet. Had studied civil engineering so the put him in the artillery because he had the math and could measure the angles, etc. After, said he had enough of that and became a jeweler. Now of course I wish I had asked him more about it. Who knew I was living next to history.
Thats amazing
Thanks for sharing these amazing images and the process involved in producing photographs with colors back in the First World War.
You’re welcome Rafael! I’m glad you were able to gain something from the read.