When Was the First Color Photograph Taken?

Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell demonstrated the first color photograph on May 17, 1861, during a lecture at the Royal Institution in London. The subject was a tartan ribbon, photographed three times through red, green, and blue filters. When the three images were projected simultaneously through the same filters and superimposed, they produced a recognizable color image. This three-color method became the foundation of virtually all color photography and display technology that followed. Practical color photography for consumers didn't arrive until Kodachrome film was introduced in 1935.