Stamp. DDR 1959. This stamp is part of a two-stamp set issued to commemorate the Spring Trade Fair held in Leipzig, Germany. Listed as Scott no. 425 in the catalog, this special stamp depicts film and photographic cameras manufactured in Dresden. Dresden was recognized throughout the 20th century as one of Germany’s most important centers for optical and camera manufacturing. World-renowned brands such as Ihagee, Zeiss Ikon, and Pentacon operated there, producing high-quality equipment used by both amateur and professional photographers. The cameras shown on the stamp represent models celebrated for their optical excellence and durability during that era. This stamp not only highlights the commercial significance of the Leipzig Fair but also honors Germany’s long-standing tradition in photographic technology and Dresden’s pioneering role in the field, bringing together both trade and technical heritage in a single design.
Stamp. DDR 1955. This stamp is part of a two-stamp series issued to commemorate the Leipzig Trade Fair in Leipzig, Germany. It features a depiction of the 35 mm SLR Exakta camera alongside a microscope. This design highlights the importance of both the optical industry and the production of scientific instruments at the fair. The 35 mm SLR Exakta was manufactured by the Dresden-based Ihagee Kamerawerk and holds a special place in photographic history. Introduced in 1936, the Kine Exakta is considered the world’s first mass-produced 35 mm single-lens reflex (SLR) camera. It was designed for left-handed operation rather than right-handed use, featured a distinctive film advance lever, and offered an interchangeable lens system, making it highly innovative for its time. Exakta models were widely used by both professional and amateur photographers during the mid-20th century and were especially favored in specialized fields such as macro and microscope photography.
Stamp. Austria 1973. This stamp was issued in honor of the EUROPHOT Congress held in Vienna in 1973. It features the name, lifespan, and a depiction of the photographic lens invented by the renowned mathematician and optical engineer Josef Petzval (1807–1891). Petzval is regarded as a pivotal figure in the history of photography. The lens he developed and patented in 1840 was the first specifically designed for portrait photography. This lens provided much sharper images and greater light sensitivity compared to previous lenses, greatly advancing photographic technology. Petzval’s design laid the foundation for modern optical lenses and became the standard equipment in portrait studios. This stamp honors Petzval’s scientific and technical legacy as well as his critical role in the development of photographic art.
Stamp. USSR 1989. This special stamp was issued to celebrate the 150th anniversary of photography. It depicts the negative and positive images of a 19th-century photographer, visually referencing one of the most fundamental concepts in photographic history—the negative-positive process. Photography emerged in the first quarter of the 19th century and radically transformed the way the visual world is recorded. Joseph Nicéphore Niépce’s 1826 photograph, “View from the Window at Le Gras,” is considered the birth of photography. Pioneers like Louis Daguerre and William Henry Fox Talbot further developed photographic techniques, enabling its widespread adoption. The negative-positive process is the foundational method that made reproducibility possible in photography. In this method, a reversed image (negative) is first created on light-sensitive film. Then, this negative is projected onto photosensitive paper to produce a positive print that displays the true colors and tones. This process allows multiple positive prints to be made from a single negative. This stamp not only pays tribute to the history of photographic art but also highlights the importance of the negative-positive techniques that played a crucial role in spreading visual culture.
— Published by The Stamp Times —
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