The first "cameras" were simple boxes that focused light through a pinhole, creating an image. By the 15th century, quality glass lenses could be used to focus these images, and by the 19th century chemicals such as silver nitrate allowed a permanent image to be preserved, establishing the modern science of photography
In many respects, cameras were developed, rather than having been invented by just one person. In 1685, Johann Zahn described, but could not build, a magic lantern device that would capture images. Nicephore Niepce used bitumen to create the first actual photograph in 1825. The first practical portable camera was built by Louis Daguerre in 1837. The first camera that was practical for everyday use by ordinary people was invented by George Eastman in 1888.