Obscure Trivia on Photography Trivia Quiz

Answer: Ansel Adams

Ansel Adams (1902-1984) was an early conservationist and photographer, known for his spectacular black and white photos of the American West, especially Yosemite National Park. He preferred a large format camera because of the clarity of photographs produced. His world renowned photos became a centerpiece in the development of the Museum of Modern Art's permanent photography exhibit.

Answer: Battle of Iwo Jima

Joe Rosenthal won a Pulitzer Prize for his war photo named "Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima". War photographers brought home the brutality of war to those at home. This photograph appeared on the covers of multiple American magazines, as well as an American postage stamp, and served as inspiration for the Marine Memorial which stands outside Arlington National Cemetery.

Answer: Getting his shoes shined

An 1838 photograph of the Boulevard du Temple in Paris is believed to be one of the oldest photographs to still exist. It was taken from the roof of a tall building by Louis Daguerre, the brilliant inventor of the daguerreotype, one of the earliest photography processes.

The photo looks down a street from above and shows a man getting his shoes shined. This unknown man is often cited as being the first person to have had his photo taken.

Answer: France

Niepce was a French physicist who coated a sheet of pewter with an asphalt solution and placed it inside a camera obscura which was then set on a window sill. It took eight hours for it to develop, at which time he realized that he had the first permanent photograph known to man. He is also credited with creating the world's first internal combustion engine - a man of many talents!

Answer: False

The first aerial photograph was taken many years before The Hindenburg was built, from a hot air balloon by French photographer Gaspard-Felix Tournachon in 1858. World War I brought about many upgrades in aerial photography, with improvements made for the most part by European photographers.

Answer: Mathew Brady

Mathew B. Brady is considered by many to have been the father of photojournalism. While he was also a portrait photographer, his photos of Civil War battles captured the horror of this war that divided a nation. He also kept extensive written records of what he observed. It was not until after his death that his contributions were recognized.

Answer: False

The 7th President, Andrew Jackson, was photographed in 1837, and there is a photo of the 6th President, John Quincy Adams, that was taken in 1843. The oldest photo known of Lincoln was taken in 1846 while he was teaching law.

Answer: Life

"Life" magazine was originally published in 1883 as a general interest magazine. In 1936 the magazine switched its format to an all-photographic news magazine and then dominated this market until 1972. Photographs of world leaders, famous athletes, and movie stars have all graced the cover of this icon of American photojournalism.

Answer: Jacques-Yves Cousteau

It might not surprise you that world famous oceanographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau helped design one of the first practical underwater cameras. While the first underwater photograph was taken in 1856 by mounting a camera on a stick and holding it under the water, practical underwater photography took another 100 years to master.

Answer: The Mexican-American War

The oldest war photos are from the Mexican-American War in 1847. These are posed photos that were taken with a daguerreotype which had a long development time and required the persons being photographed to stand perfectly still for numerous minutes. They were also incapable of taking any kind of action photography.