(Louis) Lumière

Louis Lumière (1864-1948)

Nobody of us can imagine the world without movies, cinemas and actors. It is unbelievable especially for people who are living in XX century. But you have to know that it was not always like this. The possibility to go to the cinema and watch a new movie gave us Louis Lumière and his brother Auguste.

Louis Lumière was born in 1864 in Besancon, France. His father Antoine Lumière was a painter and photographer. In 1861 he married Jeanne Joséphine Costille, after opening a photography studio in Besancon. Louis finished La Martiniere, the largest technical school in Lyon and after graduating he started to work for his father who run a photographic company.

Antoine Lumière encouraged him and his older brother to develop their scientific skills. Auguste was more interested in topics of physics whereas Louis had a preference for subjects in biochemistry and medicine. Both Auguste and Louis had a knowledge of organic chemistry what was helpful during their photography work.

Louis with his brother and father invented a “dry” photographic plates which render to be a very useful invention. The production of this plates transformed Lumière’s business from a struggling shop into minor industrial concern. They sold the plates under the corporation name Lumière & Sons Company.

Money from selling the new invention gave them possibility to develop a motion picture camera. In March 1985, Louis and his brother demonstrated the first movie to audience. The projection system created by them allowed the film to be seen by more than one person at a time. People saw a short film titled Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory. Nine month later, in December, they held the first motion picture exhibition for a paying audience, presenting a twenty-minute program of ten of their short films:

1) Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory, 46 seconds
2) The Gardener, 49 seconds
3) The disembarkment of the Congress of Photographers in Lyon, 48 seconds
4) Horse Trick Riders, 46 seconds
5) Fishing for goldfish, 42 seconds
6) Blacksmiths, 49 seconds
7) Baby's meal, 41 seconds
8) Jumping Onto the Blanket, 41 seconds
9) Cordeliers Square in Lyon, 44 seconds
10) The sea (bathing in the sea), 38 seconds

On 13 February 1895 the Cinematograph was patented in both brothers names. However Auguste Lumière conceded that his brother was its primary inventor. Both brothers created movies for a while, eventually Louise returned to the research on color photography. In 1903 he patented the color photography process, the "Autochrome Lumière". It has remained the best means to produce color picture for the next 30 years.
Louis Lumière was responsible for practical improvements in photography and motion pictures. Together with his brother they started, we can say, new age.