When you look at old photographs—those stiff, sepia-toned images of people in Victorian garb—you’ll notice a trend: almost nobody is smiling. There’s a certain formality to the faces staring back at you, lips firmly pressed or set in neutral expressions. For decades, scholars and casual observers alike assumed smiling was a modern phenomenon in photography, but here’s something that might surprise you: the earliest recorded smile in a photograph dates all the way back to 1853.
It’s a curious piece of photographic history that peels back layers about cultural norms, technology limitations, and human nature itself. Why were smiles so rare in the early days of photography? And what does this one famous image reveal? Let’s unpack this scene and see what it tells us about why that early smile matters more than you might guess.
Why Was Smiling So Rare in Early Photos?
If you imagine early photographs—the daguerreotypes and calotypes of the mid-19th century—you might picture them as solemn affairs. That serious look wasn’t because people weren’t feeling joy or playfulness; it had a lot to do with how photography worked back then. Early cameras required incredibly long exposure times, sometimes several minutes. Holding a grin for that long, without breaking the pose, was not an easy feat.
A smile, after all, is fleeting and dynamic. It’s an expression tied to emotion and spontaneity, but early photo sessions were more like slow, technical procedures. Think about it: can you grin earnestly for a minute or more without your face feeling stiff or tired? That technical barrier alone kept many subjects locked in a more neutral, solemn expression.
Then there’s the cultural meaning of photographs during this era. Photography wasn’t some casual fun snapshot appointment. It was a serious, almost sacred event—not unlike a painted portrait—which meant people presented their most dignified, formal self-image. A smiling face, so associated with casualness and levity, wasn’t how one wanted to be immortalized.
The Technological Leap: Why the 1853 Smile Matters
In this context, the 1853 photograph known widely as “Edinburgh Smile” is remarkable. The picture shows a woman named Felice Beato’s wife (or in some accounts, a young girl on the streets of Edinburgh) captured grinning broadly. This image is widely considered to contain the first deliberate smile intentionally captured on film.
This snapshot didn’t just happen by accident. The slight reduction in exposure times thanks to camera improvements made it possible to hold a smile long enough. Plus, photographers began experimenting with capturing more candid moments, shifting away from rigid, formal portraits. This change mirrored subtle cultural shifts too, where personal expression was gaining traction.
The photograph itself feels alive in a way most early photos don’t. It’s an intimate glimpse back at a fleeting joy that defies the stiff, buttoned-up image we typically associate with that time.
The Evolution of Smiling in Photography
Once photographers finally began capturing smiles more frequently, the image of photography itself started to change. Slowly but surely, photos became less about stiff formality and more about capturing moments—awkward, awkwardly happy, and utterly human.
Come the 20th century, smiling in photographs became the expectation. Kodak popularized the idea of snapshot photography with the slogan “You press the button, we do the rest,” encouraging people to get comfortable in front of the camera. The shift from a formal studio experience to casual home photos changed everything. Suddenly, people could experiment with their expressions and show joy with reckless abandon.
The cultural weight of a smile, too, evolved. It transformed from a rare, precious display of emotion to an everyday gesture, a symbol of friendliness, happiness, and openness. Smiling faces became media icons, advertising staples, and social cues.
The Psychological Weight of a Smile in Photos
Why do smiles hold such power? Beyond cultural shifts, smiles bond us psychologically. When you see a picture of someone smiling, it triggers an emotional relay in your brain—dopamine and oxytocin rush, and suddenly you feel trust, warmth, connection.
In a way, that 1853 smile carries more than historical weight—it’s a bridge reminding us that beneath the hallmarks of technology and time, people sought joy then as they do now. Those early smile photos are silent, warm whispers from the past, bridging centuries with a mutual human truth.
What the 1853 Photograph Tells Us About History and Humanity
That simple smile, frozen on film over 170 years ago, invites us to reimagine the people we see in old photos. They weren’t just somber figures posed stiffly for the camera. They were people with a full spectrum of emotions, moments of laughter and happiness, even if few survived in images.
It reminds us that photography, at its core, is about connection. We long to capture ourselves as we are—complex, joyful, flawed, alive. The 1853 image, in particular, is a subtle yet powerful reminder that the pursuit of expressing true human emotion is deeply woven into how we record our stories.
For anyone who’s ever felt like old photos are just dusty, distant relics of a black-and-white past, this smiling face cuts through that barrier and says, “I was here. I felt. I laughed.”
If you want to explore more curious moments that shape how we view media today, check out this intriguing weekly quiz on entertainment trends. There’s no better way to keep those neurons firing than digging into the moments that define culture.
How Has Digital Photography Changed Our Relationship With Smiling?
Fast forward to today’s world, where smiles flood our Instagram feeds, Snapchat stories, and TikTok videos. The evolution is so extreme that “smile for the camera” has become almost reflexive, sometimes even performative. But it all started with that tentative, patient grin back in 1853.
Our devices capture smiles effortlessly, instantly, and in high definition. But as the image of that first smile teaches us, it was once a brave act of defying the technical and cultural constraints of the time.
In a strange way, knowing this trivia deepens our appreciation for every genuine smile caught today. Each one is part of a lineage—a testament to the unchanging human desire to connect and express joy, no matter the era or technology.
A Smile Worth Remembering
Next time you flick through antique photo albums or stumble upon a history book featuring early portraits, try to find that rare hint of joy—a crinkle of the eyes, a subtle grin. They are precious breadcrumbs through time, proof that even when circumstances kept smiles locked away, people still found reasons to express happiness.
That 1853 smile may seem small, almost trivial, but it’s a quiet revolution. It’s a reminder that behind every historical fact lies a burst of humanity, and sometimes just a smile is all that’s needed to remind us that the past was alive with feeling, too.
For additional perspectives on photography history and visual storytelling, take a look at this detailed archive offered by the Library of Congress.
History doesn’t just repeat itself; sometimes, it smiles back at you.
