The History of Photography

Capturing and commemorating precious moments in time has been a need for humans since ancient times. All over the world Prehistoric men have meticulously painted countless cave walls depicting either hunting and sporting events or other significant moments of their time. Later civilizations across the globe operated in similar fashions constructing either elaborate paintings or laborious sculptures. Each painting or sculpture afterward would strive to appear more and more detailed as if attempting to attain that life-like quality of each moment being projected. Battlefield paintings are littered throughout countless history books and journals in multiple languages with the sole purpose of endeavoring to convey a message in which words alone could not express. It is impossible to imagine how much information has been lost in translation throughout time without the truly marvelous invention of the camera and photography. If important events such as the signing of the Declaration of Independence or the pilgrim's first Thanksgiving feast with Native Americans had been captured on film would they hold more important places in the minds and hearts than they do now? People may never know, but the importance and raw power of photography cannot be denied. Whether viewing a portrait or just a moment caught in time, never has the imagination been captured nor have emotions been pulled to the surface as by the captivating image of a photo.

It is important and necessary to understand and explore the origins, the historical figures, and advancements involved in photography's history before people can appreciate just how far this field moved and exceeded all expectations.

"Photography" is derived from the Greek words photos ("light") and graphein ("to draw"). The word was first used by the scientist Sir John F.W. Herschel in 1839. It is a method of recording images by the action of light or related radiation, on a sensitive material (Bellis, n.d.). Photography has played a crucial role in various societies the world over not only as an intricate art form but also as a significant part in our way of life. From its early beginnings to its key figures of inventors and innovators who ushered in the critical and the amazing technical advancements which have made photography the phenomenon it is today.

William M. Ivins was Curator of Prints at the metropolitan Museum of Art in New York from 1916 until 1946 and published a documentary on photography in 1953 which distinguished between the relationship of traditional techniques of hand-drawn printmaking (the woodcut, metal and wood engravings and lithograph) and photography. Ivins noted that historically, printmaking was not usually practiced as an art form as they are practiced today, but as a means of distributing visual information. Ivins argued that once you begin to examine prints (or pictures) in functional terms you discover that without them very few modern sciences would exist; technologies, archaeologies, and ethnologies. Each of these is dependent upon information conveyed by exactly repeatable pictorial statements (Crawford, 1948).

The idea of photography existed long before the camera was invented. The human urge to produce pictures that amplified the faculty of memory by capturing time is at the theoretical base of photography. Artist and inventors have sought after ways to expedite the picture making process and ultimately concentrated on how to repeatedly capture an image directly formed by light since ancient times. Around the fifth century the Chinese philosopher Mo Ti discovered that light reflecting from an illuminated object and passing through a pinhole into a darkened area would form an exact, but inverted, image of that object, offering a prototype of the pinhole camera. By the 10th century the Arabian mathematician Alhazen demonstrated how the pinhole could be an instrument and that images formed through the aperture became sharper when the opening was made smaller.

Leonardo da Vinci noted in 1490 the earliest surviving description of the camera obscura (dark chamber), which was a device designed to reproduce linear perspective. This was a prototype of the photographic camera and essentially a large dark room in which an artist physically entered. Light would emit through a small hole in one of its four walls and produce a distinct but inverted image onto the opposite wall which could be traced. The camera obscura was popular with artist because it could automatically modify a scene by compressing form and emphasizing tonal mass according to pictorial standards (Hirsch, 2000). In 1589 it was discussed that the use of mirrors could theoretically reverse the image that was reflected backwards into the camera obscura which is now the basis for modern-day single lens-reflex camera. By the 17th century camera obscuras were in frequent use by artist and also made portable in the form of sedan chairs (Bellis, n.d.).

Early in the 18th century the rising commercial class longed to procure the status of being commemorated in much the same pictorial style as of the rich. Multiple inventors had commercial incentives to harness the camera to portrait making, as less training would decrease the costs of making a picture. Machine-based systems for multiple copy production were on the threshold of replacing the outdated handmade methods. One such machine was the physionotrace invented by Gilles Louis Chretien in 1786. This device combined two inexpensive methods of portraiture, the cutout silhouette and the engraving. The operator would trace a profile on a glass using a stylus connected to an engraving tool which duplicated the gestures of the stylus onto a copper plate at a smaller scale. Although it was not a camera, the physionotrace reduced portrait making to a systematic mechanical operation and inevitably expanded the portrait market to the middle class.

In regards to the actual process of photography it was in 1727 Professor J. Schulze surmised that by mixing chalk, nitric acid and silver into a flask images would begin to appear in the presence of sunlight. He noticed a darkening on the sides of the flask which were exposed to direct sunlight and purely by accident was the initial creation of the first photo-sensitive compound (Bellis, n.d.).The first to experiment with in the production of images was Thomas Wedgwood from 1800 to 1802 using white leather impregnated with silver nitrate. It was known at that time that most chemical compounds of silver darkened on exposure to light. Wedgwood was able to produce reversed impressions of objects but was unable to make his pictures permanent by removing the unused silver salts after exposure. Joseph Nicéphore Niépce was the next experimenter and in 1816, even though he was able to produce reversed prints on this material and faint pictures on it in a camera obscura, he had little more success due to the paper eventually darkening. In 1822 he directed his attention to the problem of sensitizing metal plates. Niépce discovered that by coating a pewter plate with a varnish he could produce copies of engravings by placing them in contact with strong light and his coated plates and enabled him to etch his plates and them for printing. This process was later improved by his partner Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre who, after Niépce's death in 1833, established a workable process by exposure to the vapor of heated mercury.

"I have found a way of fixing the images of the camera! I have seized the fleeting light and imprisoned it! I have forced the sun to paint pictures for me!" These were the historical words of L. J. M. Daguerre spoken to Charles Chevalier at his Paris optical shop and reflect the driving desire to make permanent images through the action of light. (Hirsch, 2000, 10). Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre, inventor of the first practical process of photography, was born near Paris, France on November 18, 1789. A professional scene painter for the opera, Daguerre began experimenting with the effects of light upon translucent paintings in the 1820s. In 1829, he formed a joint venture with Joseph Nicéphore Niépce to improve the process Niépce had developed to take the first permanent photograph in 1826-1827.

After several years of experimentation, Daguerre developed a more convenient and effective method of photography, naming it after himself - the daguerreotype. In 1839, he and Niépce's son sold the rights for the daguerreotype to the French government and published a booklet describing the process. The invention was announced to the public on August 19, 1839 at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris and his process was used widely in Europe and in the United States. Daguerre's daguerreotype process required long exposure time and made portraits virtually impossible until in 1840 John Goddard cut exposure time in half by treating the plates with bromine and iodine. With this innovation and the development of new lens designs, made possible the idea commercial portraiture. The daguerreotype process went out of use to the general public in the 1850s due to tight patent restrictions which affected application and eventually became obsolete by 1860 (Coe, 1978).

During this time an English scientist, William Henry Fox Talbot, independently devised a camera based imagining process in 1834 using the light sensitivity of silver salts. He invented the salted paper print which was a printing-out process that allowed him to make images without the use of a camera of botanical specimens engravings, pieces of lace, and even solar photomicrographs. By first coating sheets of ordinary writing paper with sodium chloride, letting them dry, and then recoating them with silver nitrate he formed silver chloride which was more highly sensitive to sunlight and reduced exposure time tremendously producing spontaneous images without chemical development. In 1841 Talbot accidentally discovered a process for negative development that he patent under the name calotype. In this process, an exposed sheet of iodized paper was transferred to a darkroom and brushed with gallic acid until a potent negative was developed. It was then that the negative was contact-printed onto unexposed, salted paper in sunlight to form a positive. This process formed the foundation for silver-based photographic systems still in use today.

The negative-positive principle of the calotype process designed by Talbot and the popular daguerreotype were both truly remarkable for their times but not without limitations. A new process evolved from both but without their limitations and would eventually take their place and was referred to as wet-plate photography. It was a photographer's axiom that paper negatives advantages were outweighed by their disadvantages with their resolution limited of fine detail. It was realized that if glass was used the problem would not exist but it simply was not absorbent to carry the coating of light sensitive salts. In 1839 Sir John Herschel was able to produce an image on glass by precipitating silver chloride onto a glass plate and was later perfected by Abel Niépce de Saint-Victor in 1847 by using egg white albumen coated on the glass providing a suitable medium for sensitive salts. A new material for development called collodion was discovered by Frederick Scott Archer in 1851 formed through dissolving a form of gun-cotton in ether. A glass plate was covered with collodion and plunged into silver nitrate and then the wet-plate was loaded into and exposed in a camera. Immediately after exposure the plate was developed, fixed and washed. The collodion negative could record fine detail and subtle tones and also had the advantage of being more highly sensitive than either the daguerreotype and calotype processes. In contrast the gelatin dry plate was first developed by Dr. Richard Leach Maddox who used gelatin instead of ether vapor of the wet collodion plate due to his poor health. It was later perfected by Charles Bennett in 1878 by reducing exposure times drastically, retaining their properties, being easily manufactured and very sensitive.

Pertaining to film and photo depth, one of the most popular photographic novelties which went on display at the Great Exhibition in London in 1851 was the stereoscopic photograph. The mildly dissimilar vantage points provided by the eyes are combined in the brain to give an image in depth. If two photographs of a scene are taken from points of view separated by two about two inches, and are then viewed so that each eye receives only the image appropriated to it, the result is an apparently three-dimensional picture. This principle was first introduced by Sir Charles Wheatstone in 1832 but was not until Sir David Brewster in 1849 introduced an improved device using lenses that the stereoscope became really practical (Coe, 1977).

Another important milestone in photography is that of the photography of action. The early photographic processes were all relatively insensitive. It was impossible at that time to record moving objects without producing a blur on the plate. Specially designed lenses were utilized by Thomas Skaife in his cameras to pass 200 times more light than conventional landscape lenses. Skaife's 'Pistolgraph' camera was introduced in 1856 and after adding the required lens and a shutter powered by a rubber band allowed permitted exposures sufficiently brief to stop the action of slowly moving subjects. Sir John Herschel's name is synonymous with the term 'snapshot' which describes an instantaneous photograph. But it was Eadweard Muybridge who pioneered the process of motion picture photography using gelatin dry plates in the 1880s and eventually led the likes of Professor Etienne Marey and Ottomar Anschutz to document true animals in action. These individuals were often referred to as chronophotographers (Rosenblum, 1997).

Around the mid 1890s public interest began to peak over the publication of the results of chronophotography. This brought about the demand for the development of hand held cameras to replace the traditional and larger stand cameras. Even though small hand held 'detective' cameras were in circulation they were quite awkward and still required multiple cumbersome pieces of hardware that were an inconvenience to everyone but the most enthusiastic of photographers. Even though the dry plate relieved photographers from making their own plates they still had to process and print them requiring knowledge and necessary skills for the dark room. This was answered by the American bank clerk George Eastman who invented the Kodak camera. Eastman felt that photography was too complicated and stated that; "It seems that one ought to be able to carry less than a pack horse load."(Coe, 1978, 13). Though there were some 'detective' cameras that were reasonably small most were bulky. He developed a rolling mechanism and combined it with lightweight sensitive material and decided to construct a camera that would be small and simple to use. In 1888 the first Kodak camera with a celluloid roll-film was developed.

Around the 1850s, photography was viewed by some as a new medium of communication and became hard to discern between art and industry. Eventually it became apparent that photography was considered a business with a widening division of purpose between amateurs and professionals. The latter were motivated by market forces to develop profitable products while the amateurs pursued their personal inclinations and claimed the moral high ground of art, beauty, truth, relegating the professionals to the corner of crass commercialism. Many of England's most notable photographers abandoned their amateur status and turned professional. During the 19th century realism became a force in the arts. Realism sought to counter the idealized subject matter of Romantic and Neoclassical painting with direct and frank views of everyday life. As the public became acquainted with photography's veracity and ability to give significance to everyday experiences, their expectations about how reality should be represented and what subjects were worthy of depiction changed. Ironically photographs became artistic when they looked less photographic by utilizing retouching methods to appear more like a painting. Paintings, on the other hand, were thought to be more artistic if they portrayed more photographic detail. This contradiction resulted in neither medium being valued for its own inherent qualities. (Hirsch, 2000).

The evolution of the camera has advanced beyond all expectations from the digital mega pixel masterpieces we have today to their most earliest ancestors, the camera obscura. Dating back to ancient times, the camera obscura consisted of a pinhole in a contained box. The pinhole would allow light to pass through and project an image on the adjacent wall thus allowing artist to trace the captured image as it appeared at that moment. Niépce, Wedgewood, Talbot are credited with the first portable camera obscuras but it was Daguerre who designed the first cameras to be commercially produced on any practical scale.

The folding box camera, T. Ottewill's folding camera, and portable "dark tent" cameras all gave way to user friendly handhelds such as the momentograph and detective cameras in 1886, the unusual photosphere with its bell-shaped body and hemispherical shutter, the American Tom Thumb camera in 1889, and the Key camera. These box-form cameras eventually became less popular after 1890 and were replaced with collapsing and folding strut cameras.

Kodak sold these forms of cameras in which glass plates or roll films could be used. For a brief time a type of camera was introduced to appear as anything but a camera. The first 'concealment' camera to receive any publicity was Thompson's Revolver camera in 1862 which resembled a pistol. Another was Marion's Parcel Detective camera of 1885 which was supplied in brown paper and tied with a string to appear as a normal parcel and Ross's Photo scope in 1892 mimicked binoculars. Kodak cameras are credited in 1885 with introducing the ingenuity and the marketing of film development roll-film designs. In 1908 still photography was made practical by Audobard and Baradat with 35-mm film due to its small size and handling convenience. The development of Kodachrome, the first multi-layered color film took place in 1936 as did the development of Exakta which pioneered 35 mm single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras. In 1963 Polaroid developed the first instant color film while Instamatic was released by Kodak. Also in this year Nikon released the first purpose-built underwater camera thus changing the way the world viewed oceanography. As the world approached the millennia major advances in the field of computer technology swept the many nations and major advances in film development also transpired in the field of photography. Computer programs such as Adobe Photoshop was released to the public in 1990 and changed the way photography was perceived by allowing users to edit their own pictures. In 1992 Kodak introduced PhotoCD which permitted users to store their pictures on compact disc. In light of this new technology and with the arrival of digital cameras Kodak ceased all production of film cameras. And most notably, the cutting edge technology most familiar to the public is that of camera phones. These multifunctional cameras hit the market from Japan in 2000 and are changing the field of photography and availability unlike anything seen before (Greenspun, 2007).

Through the course of time and painstaking trial and error, the expansive field of photography had grown immeasurably from the exclusive dreams of a handful of visionaries determined to rival the skilled painters and bring to the public what only was available to the wealthy at that time. Cameras and photography have transformed from an artful pastime into an essential way of life touching it in all aspects the public could have never envisioned nor can foresee what will be next in its future.

Through presenting the history of photography in this research it is paramount to stress the importance and necessary to understand the origins of photography and appreciate the many designs that the camera has undertaken since its birth. The field of photography would have undoubtedly fell short in practical use, technological discoveries, and the art community would most likely have suffered a tremendous amount without the inventors and innovations of its past. The advancements involved in photography's history are all but unparalleled in its ingenious technology and reigns as a true marvel for all inventions. Far though as foreign lands may be and alien that other cultures may seem, with a better appreciation of photography our world could be closer captured instantly in snapshot.

References

Bellis, M. Historyof Photography and the Camera. Retrieved June 24, 2008, from www.about.com

Web site: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blphotography.htm

Coe, B. (1977). TheBirth of Photography: The Story of the Formative Years 1800-1900. New York: Taplinger Publishing Company.

Coe, B. (1978). Cameras: From Daguerreotypes to Instant Pictures. New York: Crown Publishers.

Crawford, W. (1948). The Keepers of Light: A History and Working Guide to Early Photographic Processes. Dobbs Ferry, NY: Morgan and Morgan

Greenspun, P. (2007, January). History of Photography Timeline. Retrieved June 24, 2008, from

http://photo.net Web site: http://photo.net/history/timeline

Hirsch, R. (2000). Seizing the Light: A History of Photography. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.

Rosenblum, N. (1997). A World History of Photography. New York, NY: Abbeville Press.

A Need-to-Know Basis: History of the Sundance Film Festival

I'm starting a new series of stories and articles, ones that have a particular focus and energy towards either history or information, particularly in sports and entertainment. They talk about things being talked about only in "need-to-know" bases. I have decided to take some of the important people, events, and outlets that have made these things important. These are things you need to know, and I'm gonna tell you. My first one is going to be about the Sundance Film Festival.

Intro to Sundance

For much of the year, when you think of Park City in Utah you are usually thinking about great slopes, soft snow, and luxurious spas. However, for a couple of weeks in January, the peaceful getaway that is Park City is transformed into a mecca of indy filmmakers and the world's biggest stars. The movers and shakers get away from the sun and the lights of Los Angeles, New York, and everywhere else in the United States and they head out to Utah for the Sundance Film Festival. Examine the history, from the mythological start of the festival to it's meteoric rise into the elite of the film world, and the tradition that comes along with Sundance.

It Begins With an Idea

Back in the late 70's, there were two major individual leaders who led the charge to bring the Sundance Film Festival to life. The corporate side was handled by a man who held the title of Utah Film Commissioner John Earle. On the side of the filmmakers and the artistic voices was Sterling van Wagenen, a Brigham Young University Film School graduate. They, along with a group of other people who supported the cause either financially or artistically, went forward to found the U.S. Film Festival. This group of people looked to accomplish three main tasks for the state of Utah and the film industry. They wanted to bring an artistic forum where people could watch and discuss the best of American films. Also, it was an idea meant to bring more filmmakers and studios to Utah with a national event that they could host. Finally, this group also looked to get a competition that would showcase and bring forward films that were not from the Hollywood Studio systems, or independent films.

The festival begun very small. It even added the "Utah" to the name of the film festival to make sure that citizens of Utah could feel as though it was an event all their own instead of something created outside of the area and therefore not authentic to their state. By giving them that connection to the festival in the early stages, some locals were able to lend their support and to persuade others to offer their support. One key to the early development was the involvement of Utah citizen and film star Robert Redford. He became the festival's first chairman and lent some instant credibility to the festival. Early on, they also switched the festival from a traditionally warm summer season to January, the heart of the ski season in Park City, the festival's new home in 1981. This would attract a lot more film heads, if for nothing else than to watch some films and ski the slopes.

Early funding would be largely provided by the commissioner John Earle, although many other sources could be found. Some local investors put money into the event in an effort to promote growth and development in the area. Other contributions came from some wealthy contributors and sponsors from within the business looking for a festival to support and allow to compete with some of the best festivals the world had to offer. They especially wanted a festival that they could call their own version of Cannes, which had been running since 1939.

Growth in the 80's

Although having some varied success in their first few years, it was after the 1981 festival when things began to come into focus and the picture looked bleaked. The year prior, they had been able to make up a lot of the debt that had been produced by the first one, and although the move to Park City had proven successful in terms of filling a time of the year which was considered vastly dead in terms of tourism and also brought record attendance at film showings. However, that positive energy quickly faded when it was realized that although there were record numbers in the films themselves, overall attendance had dropped due to the snowstorms. They would even find themselves over $100,000 in debt after this third festival. They would garner enough support to continue the festival by getting some key in-state donors and fundraisers by the Utah Film Commission. That 1982 festival would prove the turning point because they would broaden the span of films being shown while raising the box-office numbers.

After two more festivals, they seemed to receive the critical acclaim they were hoping for, but financial dificulties continued to threaten the festival. It was then, in 1985, that the Sundance Institute decided it would be in their mutual interest to take control of the festival. The institute's purpose was to continue to bring exposure to independent films, and having a festival under its wing would be a powerful ally in that fight. Meanwhile, the Institute, a non-profit organization, could provide for people to work all year organizing and promoting the events and, of course, much needed financial support. They would double their attendance that year and begin to grow with new, edgy films and an array of international films added.

A breakout moment, not only for the festival but for a young volunteer-turned-director, seemed to bring the festival to the mainstream like it had never been before. Steven Soderbergh, who once served as a volunteer driving a ferry bus around the festival, had brought into the festival his debut film Sex, Lies, and Videotape. Not only did he win the first ever audience award, he sparked a bidding war between major studios unrivaled in film history. His success earmarked the January festival as a "must" for industry execs looking for a breakout film that would make it in the mainstream audiences.

The 90's: Growing Media and a Name Change

The early 1990 festival did not receive the accolades that the prior year received, although it did display a few good films. In 1991, however, the festival would be changed forever in a way that makes it more recognizable now in the world's perspective. Geoffrey Gilmore took the lead of the festival, and they would give it it's final and famous name; The Sundance Film Festival. Interest in independent films grew exponentially and they would in turn see, in the early 90's, the emergence of young filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino, Richard Linklater, Kevin Smith, and Robert Rodriguez. Films began to push the envelope with its new forum, and while they produced awesome films, they were also the subject of some controversy in the industry.

As we would move later on in the decade, the influence of the Hollywood corporate system began to slowly take stronger hold of the festival. More and more, agents and lawyers were scurrying around the streets of Park City in hopes of finding that next breakthrough filmmaker. Studio heads were making their way to the event to attract films and cause stirs with bidding wars. As this growth continued, it was believed that they should move the festival back to Salt Lake City, it's original home, to house the larger crowds and the businesses. In the end, it was subdued by the building of the Eccles Center, which holds 1,300 people for a screening.

The end of the 90's would bring forth it's biggest buzz, which came in the form of The Blair Witch Project. It would breakout almost immediately, although the buzz for the movie was basically non-existant and considered very lackluster for its eventual success. It would end up bringing in $140 million domestically and would bring in more worldwide, making it the most successful independent movie of all time. It was not the only movie, however, as a movie called Go by Doug Liman, who had brought Swingersto the festival some years prior, and a German movie called Run Lola Run would intrigue festival goers.

The Future of Sundance

With the festival moving into the 21st century, they would turn away from the hype machines that the festivals embodied in the 90's and turn its attention back into the films that were there, not to the hype and the speculation surrounding them. They continue to set attendance records and have now easily cemented its place as one of the top festivals in the world, matching up to its French and Italian counterparts in Cannes and Venice, respectively. Big name stars are going back to doing independent films, bringing big-star credibility to the smaller films which have little else to draw on with the rising of the studio blockbusters. As Sundance continues to progress, as do the hopes and dreams of independent filmmakers everywhere.

Mirrormask: The Illustrated Film Script - Review

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Mirrormask: The Illustrated Film Script of the Motion Picture from The Jim Henson Company By Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean William Morrow The Jim Henson Company approached Messrs. Gaiman and McKean, inquiring whether they would be interested in making a fantasy film. They have collaborated on a number of projects over the course of almost twenty years, their most noteworthy achievement being the award-winning Sandman series. Even though The Jim Henson Company only had a $4 million budget, Gaiman and McKean were intrigued by the offer and agreed. In the book’s introduction Gaiman details how he and McKean worked together to create the film’s story and screenplay, which was a tad difficult because of their different approaches to writing. McKean outlines an entire project on cards, aware of every aspect and idea, before writing a screenplay while Gaiman talks until he’s ready to write and then allows a screenplay to flow out of him as he works. Mirrormask is about a young girl named Helena, whose parents run a traveling circus. She is tired of her life and wants to get out of it. Her mother falls very ill and is hospitalized, so Helena stays with her aunt. Helena loves drawing and covers the walls of small bedroom she is staying in with her pictures. One night, she has an odd dream and then unknowingly walks into a city on the other side of reality. It’s a magical world that is divided into the White City and the Dark Forest. Helena is mistaken for the Princess, who stole a charm that caused the White Queen to fall into a sleep she can’t be awoken from. Her slumber has broken this world’s balance and shadowy tendrils seep out of the Dark Forest, destroying everything in the White City they touch. Helena volunteers to find the charm because she has seen herself sleeping back in her aunt’s flat and assumes she is dreaming. As the adventure progresses, Helena learns that she may not be in a dream after all. She becomes aware that she has switched places with the Princess, who ran away from her mother, the Dark Queen. Helena discovers even graver news when she realizes that this strange, new world she is trapped in are her drawings pasted on her aunt’s bedroom walls. When the Princess sees Helena in the drawings, she begins tearing them down, destroying the world she ran away from. Gaiman and McKean have created a fabulous fairy tale that playfully deals with familiar archetypes, such as Sphinxes, while creating brand new ones like the Monkeybirds. Mirrormask should satisfy both children and adults because there is plenty of action and some mild frights. Gaiman wrote the screenplay from their story with plenty of input from McKean along the way. McKean directed the film, which is coming out this fall from Sony Pictures, but has no release date. The Illustrated Film Script contains the screenplay matched with McKean’s storyboards, including the deleted scenes that are sure to appear on the DVD. There are also stills from the sets and behind the scenes that show the final realizations of McKean’s vision. They look marvelous and should be a wonder to behold on the big screen. I was worried about the effect reading the script would have on me in regards to seeing the film, but Mirrormask is so imaginative and its story and visuals are so compelling that the book increased my interest in seeing the film. I highly recommend the book for fans of film and fantasy and certainly understand if you choose to see the film first before reading it. The screenplay format might be tough to read for young children who like the film Appendices in the back show the transformations the Mirrormask story made as Gaiman and McKean emailed back and forth with ideas and alterations and what-ifs. They write mutual-admiration letters and the book closes with the lyrics to the song over the end credits, which were written by Gaiman.

Sun's Effect on Baby Skin

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A baby skin is very thin and sensitive to sun. Within, ten - fifteen minute, exposure direct sunlight, causes sunburn. When a baby is placed, inside baby car seat, unaware seat and buckles, been exposed direct sunlight, will burn baby's skin. Sunburns can be very painful and serious health problems, including dehydration and fever. Estimates, one in every 100 children, may eventually develop melanoma, most deadly type, of skin cancer.

Treating mild or less severe, baby sunburns, applying onto the area, a washcloth been soaked, in cool water. Applying wash cloth, onto skin for fifteen minutes, a few times a day or more, but cautiously, observing for any chills. Alternatively, bath baby in cool water and baking soda, cools the skin, and reduces redness. Applying, moisturizer containing aloe vera, vitamin ‘E' oil or Noxema, cools down skin temperature, reduce redness, and discomfort. Provide, plenty of fluids, preventing dehydration. Severe sunburns or blistering of the skin, associated second degree burns, needs attentions of a physician or pediatrician, immediately. Prescribed treatment includes, applying ointments, creams, dressing of blisters, and relieving pain, taking infant non-aspirin.

Certainly, prevention is best method, from sunburn, any age. According, Dr. Paul J. Honing, chief of Dermatology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, severe sunburn or continued exposure to the sun early in life, may be correlated, with skin cancer, later in life. Furthermore, a child has two severe sunburns, before the age of 18, generally, greater risk of skin cancer. Dr. Honig warns, protecting the skin with baby oil, enhances damaging effect, of the sun's ultraviolet rays. Importantly, Children have greater risk of skin cancer: Fair to light skin complexion, family history of skin cancer, history of sunburn early in life, typical moles or larger number of moles, freckles, and long duration sunlight exposure. Living, closer to the equator, during peak summer months or between 10 AM - 4 PM, sun provides, strongest rays. Living in high altitudes, greater exposure to the sun. Every 1,000 feet of altitude, increases sun's rays by five percent, especially, living in Denver, exposure is 25 percent stronger. Baby should wear, long-sleeved shirt, tight woven clothing (prevents sunlight), light colored clothing, and loosely woven fabrics. Fabric labeled, Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) value, provides a level of protection, from the sun's harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. Ultraviolet Protection rating of twenty, allows 1/20 of the sun's UV radiation, pass through or reduces, skin's UV radiation exposure, by twenty times. Higher Ultraviolet Protection Factor, provide greater UV protection. Preferable, a baby should wear, sunglasses with UV-protection, and have big lenses, exposure to the sun. A child vision can worsen, after years of exposure to the sun, without any protection. Outside, attach an umbrella or canopy, when using a stroller. Otherwise, sun-protective tent, provides sun-protection, baby is playing or resting. Directly exposure to the sun, apply sunscreen or lotion, exposed areas. Contact your pediatrician, recommended sunscreens or lotions. Babies over six months old, applying waterproof sunscreen, designed for children, and labeled 'broad spectrum,' protecting against, both ultraviolet B (UVB), and ultraviolet A (UVA) rays. Additional protection, by apply zinc oxide, upon areas of the skin, more perceptible to sunburn, such as nose and lips. Same for adult skin protection.

Sunscreen protects the skin, by absorbing or blocking, and scattering UV radiation. Degree of protection rated by Sun Protection Factor (SPF) system. The higher SPF rating, adult or baby exposure sun longer, before getting sunburn. Applying, an SPF '15,' exposure to the sun, for 150 minutes, prevents sunburn. Recommend, applying new sunscreen, onto a small area of a baby skin, and observing, for allergic reaction, of rash or redness. Applying, sunscreen 20 minutes, before exposure to sun, enough time for skin absorption. Reapplying sunscreen, recommended, after a baby or adult, played in water or has been sweating. Otherwise, reapplying every thirty minutes, during sun exposure. If eyes are exposed to sunscreen, cause irritation, apply plenty of water to the eye, reduces discomfort, and contacting a physician, if irritation continues. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends sunscreen, protective sun hats, sunglasses, and clothing.

Sun light absorbs and provides Vitamin 'D' or 'sunshine vitamin,' essential for developing strong bones, and calcium absorption. Sufficient, amount of time, baby exposed to sunlight per day is five to thirty minutes, depending how sensitive, a baby skin reacts. Avoid, strongest sun light, between hours 10 AM, and 2 PM. During winter months, absorption of vitamin 'D,' is limited, because sunlight contains, a limited amount of ultraviolet rays, produce vitamin 'D.'