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September 4, 2026

Quote of the Day

It’s not so much that I write well, I just don’t write badly very often, and that passes for good on television.

~ Andy Rooney

This Day in History

September 4, 1888: George Eastman patents the Kodak camera. On this day in 1888, inventor George Eastman secures a patent for a small roll-film hand camera and registers the trademark “Kodak.” Designed with the novice photographer in mind, the device optimizes ease of use. The preloaded roll of film and new box-style camera revolutionizes photography, transforming the field from a specialized profession into a popular, widely adopted pastime.

Measuring just 3.75 by 3.25 by 6.5 inches, the handheld Kodak camera weighed less than 2 pounds and required no adjustments or specialized technical training. The once-cumbersome affair of taking a photograph – which in earlier cameras had required loading heavy glass plates – now only involved pulling on a string to arm the shutter, pointing the camera at a subject and pressing the shutter release.

The Kodak also streamlined photo development. Once the preloaded 100-exposure roll was finished, the camera could be mailed to Eastman’s factory in Rochester, New York. The company then developed the film, returning mounted prints, negatives and the camera reloaded with fresh film to the owner. To promote its sheer simplicity, Eastman coined the slogan, “You press the button, we do the rest.”

The first Kodak was sold in May 1888, three months before its patent was secured. Within a year, more than 5,000 Kodak cameras were sold. Within 10 years, one photography journal estimated that over 1.5 million roll-film cameras had been purchased, turning snapshot photography into a national hobby.

Ojai Weather

Mostly sunny – High 82 / Low 51

Lake Casitas water capacity – 95.9%