1826

This image is believed to be the world’s first photograph, the oldest surviving photograph, or both.

It was taken by the French inventor Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, using a camera obscura.  He used a pewter plate coated with a thin layer of Bitumen of Judea (a naturally occurring asphalt) as the light sensitive material to record the image.  The technique is called as heliography, the shot was taken from an upstairs window at Niépce's estate in Burgundy, France.

Niépce exposed this plate to record the buildings and countryside of his estate, Le Gras.

The exposure is believed to have lasted at least eight hours according to Niépce's writings, but some trying to reproduce the image say three or more days.