Color photography was explored throughout the 1800s. Initial experiments in color could not fix the photograph and prevent the color from fading.
The first permanent color photo was taken in 1861 by the physicist James Clerk Maxwell. The first color film, Autochrome, did not reach the market until 1907 and was based on dyed dots of potato starch.
Other systems of color photography included that invented by Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii, which involved three separate monochrome exposures of a still scene through red, green, and blue filters.
The first modern color film, Kodachrome, was introduced in 1935 based on three colored emulsions. Most modern color films, except Kodachrome, are based on technology developed for Agfacolor (as 'Agfacolor Neue') in 1936. Instant color film was introduced by Polaroid in 1963.
reference
Coe Brian (1978) Colour Photography: the first hundred years 1840-1940, Ash & Grant
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