It is news that truly marks the end of an era when Eastman Kodak is preparing to file for bankruptcy, after being the leading photographic company in the world for more than a hundred years. The skills required to use the cameras and chemicals required by the photography of the mid-19th century were far beyond those of most people — until a man named George Eastman created a company called Kodak, which made cameras that ordinary people could use.

It was Kodak’s humble and affordable box Brownie that put photography on the map for millions of people, who just wanted to take simple pictures of family, friends and places they visited.