Eastman Patent

September 4, 1888: George Eastman receives a patent for his roll film, a flexible celluloid-based medium that replaced glass plates and paved the way for portable cameras. On this date, he patented the first roll-film camera, the “Kodak,” and registered the trademark “Kodak”. This camera, pre-loaded with 100-exposure rolls of film, made photography accessible to the public with its simple “You press the button, we do the rest” slogan and business model.

The invention: The Kodak camera was a simple, handheld box camera that contained a roll of flexible, celluloid-based film. This replaced the cumbersome glass plates previously used in photography.

The process: After taking 100 pictures, the owner would mail the entire camera back to Eastman’s company in Rochester, NY.

The service: For a fee, Eastman’s company would develop the film, print the photos, and return the camera to the customer, reloaded with a fresh roll of film.

The impact: This innovation democratized photography, transforming it from a complex and expensive hobby for professionals into a popular pastime for ordinary people. It paved the way for modern photography and the widespread documentation of everyday life.