Definition of slow motion

The term "slow motion" originated in the late 19th century with the development of film technology. Before this time, there was no concept of slowing down or speeding up motion as it appeared to us in real life. In the late 1800s, inventors like Thomas Edison and Georges Méliès began experimenting with movie cameras, which could capture and project moving images. However, these early motion pictures were limited to just a few seconds of footage due to the lengthy time it took to rewind and replace the film in the camera. In 1898, a French inventor named Joseph-Louis Lumière presented a demo of his Cinématographe, which could project a series of still images quickly enough to create the illusion of motion. He demonstrated this by capturing and projecting a real-life event, such as a person lighting a cigarette or pouring a cup of coffee. At this time, film footage was projected at a speed of about 16 frames per second, which produced a somewhat jerky, unrealistic appearance. To make films more fluid and lifelike, filmmakers began experimenting with faster projection rates, such as 24 frames per second. However, some filmmakers realized that by projecting footage at a slower rate, they could create a dramatic effect, such as making an action seem to move in slow motion. This technique was initially called "cortofictione" by Georges Méliès, who used it to create special effects in his films. Eventually, the term "slow motion" became widely adopted, with the first known usage in an English-language article published in The New York Times in 1927. Today, slow motion is a common technique used in films, television, and sports broadcasts to create dramatic effects and emphasize key moments.