Although there are many textbooks, monographs and manuals that are available today dedicated to what has now become imaging, The Manual of Photography stands out as a significant and unique publication. It was first published in the very early days of photography in 1890 under the editorship of C.H. Bothamley at the request of the then Ilford Company as The Ilford Manual of Photography. The preface to this first edition has set the scene for all later editions:

… an endeavour has been made to state, in a simple way, sufficient of the principles to enable the reader to work intelligently, and to overcome most of the difficulties that he is likely to meet with …

This firm foundation has persisted throughout all subsequent editions under the guidance of a number of editors leading to this tenth edition.

It has been revised and reprinted many times under only five editors during its 120-year period of publication. Forty years after its initial publication, George E. Brown provided a complete revision and started the tradition of using a number of specialist authors. This reflected the changes in photography that no longer could be fully understood and explained by a single author. The second edition appeared in 1942 under the editorship of James Mitchell, and the third and fourth editions rapidly followed in 1944 and 1949 respectively.

Alan Horder edited the fifth and sixth editions. The sixth edition of 1971 saw the move away from publication by Ilford Limited when it was acquired by the present publishers and the name Ilford was removed from the title. This edition also saw contributions for the first time by two of the contributors to this edition: Sidney Ray on the camera and Geoffrey Attridge on colour photography. In 1978 Ralph Jacobson became the editor for the seventh edition, followed by the eighth edition in 1988 and the ninth edition in 2000. He continued with the specialist contributions from these two authors and others at the then Polytechnic of Central London (now the University of Westminster). The ninth edition of 2000 and certainly this tenth edition must make it one of very few books to have a presence in three centuries. It has come to be valued by many generations of photographers for the straightforward account it provides of both the theory and practice of photography as the technology has evolved.

Sophie Triantaphillidou and Elizabeth Allen are the joint editors of this edition and under their guidance have ensured that the manual remains true to its traditions. In the 10 years since the last revisions were made to the manual there have been many significant technological developments. This edition remains absolutely up to date with explanations of the principles of modern imaging techniques. Like their predecessors they have enlisted the help of their colleagues with specialist knowledge that ensures that the explanations remain both accurate and authoritative.

The previous edition saw a move away from traditional chemical-based photography to the now widely practised electronically based imaging methods. This was in the era of hybrid imaging. Today this is even more apparent with digital camera sales outstripping conventional analogue cameras by around 100 to 1, excluding camera phones and one-shot single-use (recyclable) cameras. In order to provide a balanced basis of modern photographic practice and keep the size of the book within reasonable limits, the editors have been faced with difficult decisions on what to keep, what to discard and what to add. Fortunately much of the core information applies as much to modern electronic systems as it does to analogue chemical systems. Optics and the basic physics of imaging are examples of core areas which also appeared in previous editions. These core areas have been considerably expanded to provide a sound basis for the understanding and practice of digital imaging. Surprisingly, explanations of colour photography were only introduced in 1971, but since then have become a significant topic in subsequent editions. This edition has four chapters devoted to this topic and aspects of colour are of course embedded in other chapters where appropriate.

The move to digital imaging is now virtually complete, with conventional analogue or film-based imaging now being practised by a relatively small number of photographers. This is reflected very much in the content of this edition and arguments on the relative merits of the two approaches are almost over as the quality obtainable by digital systems has exceeded all expectations. However, the traditional chemical image-forming processes still have a smaller but significant presence in this edition to cater for the needs of those dedicated users of this technology.

This edition is a completely revised book necessitated by the changes in imaging that have taken place in the last 10 years.

The measurement of image quality both by physical means and by perception by observers has been a key area for the development of all imaging systems. This is reflected in this edition by specialist chapters dedicated to image quality and system performance, and important physical aspects of image quality that include fundamental aspects of noise, sharpness, resolution and information content. These considerations also apply to all imaging systems. Information on aspects of modern digital imaging are extensively covered in specific chapters dedicated to sensors, cameras and scanners, output media, file formats, image compression and image processing, workflow and colour management systems.

The editorial team has made sure that this tenth edition remains true to the basic principles of their predecessors in providing accessible and authoritative information on most technical aspects of imaging.

Also, they have ensured that it remains of interest and value to anyone with an interest in imaging systems who has a need for explanations of the principles involved in their practical applications. Examples might include enthusiasts, students, professionals, technicians and computer users involved in imaging.

Ralph Jacobson
Emeritus Professor of Imaging Science,
University of Westminster,
June 2010