When you think of old photos or historical pictures, you naturally think in terms of black and white, but as you can see from these stunning vintage photos from the turn of the 20th century, color pictures have been around for a lot longer than you think.
Before 1907, if you wanted a color photograph, you (well, a professional colorist) basically had to color it using different dyes and pigments. Still, two French brothers called Auguste and Louis Lumière revolutionized all that with a game-changing process that they called the Autochrome Lumière. Using dyed grains of potato starch and light-sensitive emulsion, they could produce color in vintage photography without the need for additional colorization. Despite being difficult to manufacture and somewhat expensive, the process was very popular among amateur photographers. As a result, one of the world’s first books of color photography was published using the Autochrome Lumière technique.
The brothers revolutionized the world of color photography until Kodak took things to a whole new level with the invention of Kodachrome film in 1935, a lighter and more convenient alternative that quickly made the Autochrome Lumière obsolete (although its popularity continued in France up until the 1950s). Kodachrome was also eventually overtaken by the rise of digital photography (Kodak stopped manufacturing Kodachrome in 2009), which is now by far the world’s most popular way to take pictures. Still, modern advances in photographic technology wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work of early pioneers like Auguste and Louis Lumière. Scroll down for a collection of stunning historical photos in color using their groundbreaking technique.
#1 Christina In Red, 1913
Image source: Mervyn O’Gorman
#2 Flower Street Vendor, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#3 Heinz And Eva On The Hillside, 1925
Image source: Friedrich Paneth
#4 Sisters Sitting In A Garden Tying Roses Together, 1911
Image source: Etheldreda Janet Laing
#5 Moulin Rouge, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#6 Daydreams, 1909
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#7 Musing (Mrs. A. Van Besten), C. 1910
Image source: Alfonse Van Besten
#8 The Eiffel Tower, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#9 A Girl Holds A Doll Next To Soldiers’ Equipment In Reims, France, 1917
Image source: Fernand Cuville
#10 The Grenata Street Army, 1915
Image source: Léon Gimpel
#11 Among The First Coloured Pictures Ever Taken By Louis Lumière, 1907
Image source: Mo
#12 Two Girls On A Balcony, 1908
Image source: Etheldreda Laing
#13 Young Girl Amidst Marguerites, C. 1912
Image source: Alfonse Van Besten
#14 Air Balloons, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#15 Charlie Chaplin, 1918
Image source: Charles C. Zoller
#16 Autochrome Of Mark Twain, 1908
Image source: Alvin Langdon Coburn
#17 Christina In Red, 1913
Image source: Mervyn O’Gorman
#18 Outdoor Market, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#19 Woman Smoking Opium, 1915
Image source: Léon Busy
#20 Two Girls In Oriental Costume, 1908
Image source: Etheldreda Janet Laing
#21 Van Besten Painting In His Garden, 1912
Image source: Alfonse Van Besten
#22 Bosnia-Herzegovina, Mostar, 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#23 Eva And Heinz On The Shore Of Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, C. 1927
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#24 Girl In A Garden With Hollyhocks, 1908
Image source: Etheldreda Laing
#25 Sweden, Near Gagnef (Mother And Daughter In Traditional Clothes), 1910
Image source: Albert Kahn
#26 Else Reading By The Nile, 1920
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#27 Woman And Girl By A Brook, 1910
Image source: Charles Corbet
#28 Family Portrait At Roannay, Belgium, 1913
Image source: Georges Gilon
#29 The Neptune Fountain, Cheltenham, 1910
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#30 An Autochrome Of Two Sisters, 1908
Image source: Etheldreda Laing
#31 Apan (Young Samurai), 1912
Image source: Albert Kahn
#32 Autochrome Of Else Paneth On A Camel, 1913
Image source: Friedrich Paneth
#33 Japan, Kyoto, 1912
Image source: Albert Kahn
#34 Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sarajevo, 1912
Image source: Albert Kahn
#35 Mother Of Seven Making Fringes For Knitted Shawls, Galway, Ireland, 29 May 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#36 Louis Lumière’s Daughter And Her Dolls, 1913
Image source: Mo
#37 Lanchester 38hp Tourer, 1913
Image source: Unknown
#38 Porte Saint Denis, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#39 Joan In Red Riding Hood Cape With Basket, 1907
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#40 Autochrome Of A Young Girl, 1910
Image source: Etheldreda Laing
#41 Girl With A Parasol Sitting On A Bench, 1908
Image source: Etheldreda Laing
#42 Giant Oranges,paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#43 Egypt, Giza, 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#44 Galway, Ireland 1 May 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#45 An Autochrome Of Etheldreda Janet Laing Daughter In A Garden, Holding A Brightly Coloured Bunch Of Pink Flowers, 1908
Image source: Etheldreda Janet Laing
#46 Mongolia, Near Ulaanbaatar (Buddhist Lama), 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#47 Traditional Irish Knitwear, An Spidéal, Galway, Ireland 1 May 1913 (Left), 14 Year Old Girl From The Claddagh Wearing Traditional Claddagh Dress. Galway, Ireland, 26th May 1913 (Right)
Image source: Albert Kahn
#48 Lunch Of A French Soldier In Front Of A Damaged Library, 1st April 1917
Image source: Paul Castelnau
#49 Metro, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#50 Margate Beach, Blue Girl , 1915
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#51 The Family At The Lake, 1925
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#52 Palace Of Horticulture, Pan American Exposition, 1915
Image source: George Eastman Museum
#53 Highland Castle, Scotland, 1920
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#54 Mrs. Warburg, 1915
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#55 St. Mark’s Cathedral, Venice, 1925
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#56 Market Stalls Outside An Egyptian Ruin, 1913
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#57 Children By The Breakwater, 1908
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#58 Galway, Ireland, 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#59 India, Bombay (Sadus), 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#60 Autochrome Of A Young Girl, 1910
Image source: Etheldreda Laing
#61 Moulin Rouge, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#62 Flower Street Vendor, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#63 Peggy In The Garden, 1909
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#64 The Younger Girl Stands Beside Her Sister Holding A Pink Parasol. The Older Girl Rests Her Bonnet On Her Lap, 1908
Image source: Etheldreda Laing
#65 Stagecoaches At Ghent, 1912
Image source: Alfonse Van Besten
#66 Staithes Harbor, 1915
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#67 Two Fishermen And A Boy, An Spidéal, Galway, Ireland, 31 May 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#68 At The Entrance To The Pyramid Of Menkare, 1913
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#69 A Rusty Buoy, 1908
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#70 Sphinx And Camel, 1913
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#71 One Legged Man, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#72 Lumiere Brothers. The Game Of Billiards, 1907
Image source: Mo
#73 Galway, Ireland, 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#74 Shepherd’s Boy, C. 1913
Image source: Alfonse Van Besten
#75 The Kiosk Of Philae, 1913
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#76 Oranges In Uhlený Trh (“coal Market Square”), Prague, 1910
Image source: Karel Šmirous
#77 Eva Poses After A Successful Hunt In Scotland, C. 1920
#78 Senegalese Soldiers Serving In The French Army As Infantrymen Are Resting In A Room With Guns And Equipment Next To Them, 16th June 1917
Image source: Paul Castelnau
#79 Man With Book Sitting In Chair, 1915
Image source: George Eastman Museum
#80 Horse, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#81 Eiffel Tower River View, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#82 Two Girls At The Gate, 1915
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#83 Cafe La Tasse, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#84 Autochrome Of A French Military Cemetery, 1916
Image source: Jules Gervais-Courtellemont
#85 Woman In Floral Silk Robe, 1915
Image source: George Eastman Museum
#86 The Temple Of Dor El-Medine, 1913
Image source: Friedrich Paneth
#87 Italian Riviera, 1910
Image source: Karel Šmirous
#88 Drunk Man Sleeping On City Street, Paris, 1914
Image source: Albert Kahn
#89 Woman Sitting In Library, 1915
Image source: George Eastman Museum
#90 Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar (Prisoner), 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#91 Peggy Reading, 1909
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#92 Girl With A Bucket, 1915
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#93 A Small Customer, 1915
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#94 Lady And Fruit Dish, 1920
Image source: Paul Sano
#95 Autochrome Photo By Cdt Tournassoud, 1910
Image source: Mo
#96 Washing And Bleaching, 1912
Image source: Alfonse Van Besten
#97 Autochrome Of French Soldiers Operating Machine Guns During The Second Battle Of The Aisne, 1917
Image source: Fernand Cuville
#98 The Last Digger, 1910
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#99 The Butcher’s Shop, 1915
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#100 On The Sands, 1910
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#101 Morocco, Benguerir, 1912
Image source: Albert Kahn
#102 Civic And Military Garb, C. 1911
Image source: Alfonse Van Besten
#103 Three Men Playing Cards, 1915
Image source: George Eastman Museum
#104 Autochome Of A Street In Jerusalem By An Unknown Artist During The Early 20th Century
Image source: Roger-Viollet collection
#105 Karnak, Egypt, 1913
Image source: Friedrich Adolf Paneth
#106 Newsvendor In Reims Streets, 1917
Image source: Apic
#107 Autochrome Of A French Military Observation Post, 1917
Image source: Paul Castelnau
#108 A Woman With A Cart Filled With Milk Cans In Rue De Vesle And A Man With Another Cart In Rue De Talleyrand Behind Her. 3rd March 1917
Image source: Paul Castelnau
#109 Krusevac, Serbia (Market Scene), 1913
Image source: Albert Kahn
#110 Two Nurses And Child Dressed As “Uncle Sam” In Wwi Support Parade, Pasadena California, 1917
Image source: George Eastman Museum
#111 The Orange Stall, 1908
Image source: John Cimon Warburg
#112 A French Soldier Stands Next To A Table With German Shells And An Aircraft Propeller, Along The Western Front In Reims, 1917
Image source: Fernand Cuville
#113 Autochrome By An Unknown Artist Of The Italian Battleship Caio Duilio During The Early 20th Century
Image source: Unknown
#114 Two French Soldiers Assigned To A Telephone Station Are Washing Their Laundry In A Trough Of A Fountain, While Three Others Are Watching, 18th June 1917
Image source: Paul Castelnau
#115 French Soldiers Dig Through The Rubble Of A Destroyed Building In Reims, France, 1917
Image source: Fernand Cuville
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