What Do Lantern Slides Do?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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Since its invention in the mid-nineteenth century, the lantern slide, also known as a magic lantern slide, has played

a pivotal role in the history of projected images

. The lantern slide is a positive transparency that can be projected.

Are lantern slides valuable?

The train itself should probably retail in the $4 to $8 range, but the Edison could bring as much as

$75 to $100

. The remaining lot of early 20th-century slides is probably worth only $75 to $100 at retail — unless there are some interesting examples and views of which we are not aware.

What were lantern slides used for?

Lantern slides were used for

home entertainment and public lectures

, and they were displayed in photographic exhibitions. Alfred Stieglitz made lantern slides throughout the 1890s.

What are magic lantern glass slides?

The Magic Lantern was

the forerunner of the modern slide projector

. The slide a transparent positive image of a photograph in the form of a glass slide that could be projected onto a wall or screen using a Magic Lantern.

When was the lantern slides invented?

History. Lantern slides first originated in

the 17

th

century

and consisted of hand-painted illustrations on glass that were projected with light to be used as a form of storytelling. It was not until 1849, ten years after the invention of photography that photographic lantern slides were introduced.

How do you view magic lantern slides?

  1. Acquire a flatbed scanner with a transparency lid. …
  2. Use a digital camera to photograph slides on a lightbox. …
  3. Photograph the slides against a window on a bright day.

Who invented lantern slides?

Generally, they were considered useful for little more than children’s toys. It was not until 1849, ten years after the invention of photography, that the more modern conception of the lantern slide was invented by

the brothers William and Frederick Langenheim

in Philadelphia.

What size are magic lantern slides?

The magic lantern slides that were used in those large magic lanterns mostly had the format

8.2 x 8.2 cm or 8.2 x 10 cm

. Those slides could not be simply placed in the slide holder of the lantern.

How do you store magic lantern slides?

Lantern slides are best stored in

four-flap wrappers

(to prevent scratching the glass) and vertically in boxes such as these from our sponsor Hollinger Metal Edge.

How does magic lantern work?

The magic lantern used

a concave mirror behind a light source to direct the light through a small rectangular sheet of glass

—a “lantern slide” that bore the image—and onward into a lens at the front of the apparatus. … Stereopticons added more powerful light sources to optimize the projection of photographic slides.

Who invented the first magic lantern?

The magic lantern was invented in the 1600’s, probably by

Christiaan Huygens

, a Dutch scientist. It was the earliest form of slide projector and has a long and fascinating history. The first magic lanterns were illuminated by candles, but as technology evolved they were lit by increasingly powerful means.

How do you clean magic lantern slides?


Put a little cleaner on a wipe

and use little circle-movements to clean side A. Use a clean bit of the same wipe with more cleaner to do side B. Put the slide down (unstacked) on the paper at the upper right side of the table (or the other side if your dominant hand requires it. Next slide, new wipe, same motions.

What are magic lantern shows?

The chances are you’d go to a magic-lantern show, or, as we Americans often called them, a “stereopticon show.” Magic lantern shows were

the combination of projected images, live narration, and live music that the movies came from.

When was the magic lantern used?

The first documented use of a magic lantern in the colonies was in

1743

in Salem, Massachusetts. The magic lantern went through various updates and improvements and remained in popular use up until the early 1950s when it was replaced by the electric slide projector.

Charlene Dyck
Author
Charlene Dyck
Charlene is a software developer and technology expert with a degree in computer science. She has worked for major tech companies and has a keen understanding of how computers and electronics work. Sarah is also an advocate for digital privacy and security.