Yes, kids. There once was a time when 12x Optical Zoom and Megapixels didn't exist.

In the days of the Ernest Brown Photography Studio, Photography was still developing as a commercial service. Photographs in the studio were initially taken with a dry-plate camera. These cameras were much larger and much more bulky than today's standard digital cameras.

Dry-plate cameras did not use film. Instead, photographers inserted a glass photographic plate coated with silver iodide in gelatin and silver bromide. These chemicals reacted to sunlight; when the shutters on the camera opened, it allowed light to reflect on the coated plates. To develop the negatives, the glass plates were then soaked in a variety of developing solutions. Printing was the final stage in the process. After the negatives were developed, photographers used a low-wattage light source to develop the negatives on to photographic paper.

Dry-plate cameras did not come with a flash. Since these cameras relied on light to capture the image, night photography was virtually impossible. If photos were taken in areas of immense shade or darkness, the image printed out unclear and dark. In good lighting, the images that these cameras produced were either sepia or grayscale; color photography plates were not invented until the 1930's.

This summer you can visit the Ernest Brown Studio at Fort Edmonton Park and get your pictures taken in costume, or tour through the studio's gallery to see dozens of amazing photographs revealing early Edmonton life. Turn the corner and visit Sun Drugstore on 1920 Street to see some portable 'Brownies' on display. Learn more about the photography studio and get your portraits during your next visit to Fort Edmonton Park.