1920s: Photography Becomes a Mass Medium

For a long time photography was the preserve of the upper classes. While most people could afford to have single photographs taken, buy a postcard or purchase illustrated publications, cameras and materials were expensive and unwieldy, meaning that only very few people could take their own pictures and produce prints. This changed fundamentally after the First World War. Soon cameras were being made that were so cheap, even workers could afford one, provided they earned a halfway decent wage. In addition, more cameras came on the market that did not need a tripod. This made photography an affordable hobby for larger sections of the populations. More and more often people created their own private photo albums.

At the same time, the illustrated press enjoyed a huge upturn and took on a new look. Illustrated publications did already exist, for example the Interessante Blatt (1882) and the Österreichische Illustri(e)rte Zeitung (1893), or the Wiener Bilder (1896) and Illustrierte ‘Kronen-Zeitung’ (1900, from 1905 with Illustrierte in the title). Yet it was not until the 1920s that photo journalism—helped by the new, extremely handy and effective cameras—became more modern and, above all, more important. Reporting, public relations, propaganda and advertising all capitalised on photography, as did clubs, families, friends and acquaintances. The result was more and more of these easily produced images in circulation. Photography became the defining visual medium of the age.