Photography began as both a scientific and artistic pursuit to capture realistic representations of reality. The first permanent photograph was created by Joseph Nicephore Niepce in 1827 with his "View from the Window at Le Gras." Louis Daguerre later improved the process and introduced the daguerreotype, the first publicly available photographic process, in 1839. John Herschel is credited with coining the term "photography" to describe the new technology.