autochrome

American  

[aw-tuh-krohm] / ˈɔ təˌkroʊm /

noun

Photography.

1. a material once used for color photography, consisting of a photographic emulsion applied over a multicolored screen of minute starch grains dyed red, green, and blue-violet.

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Etymology

Origin of autochrome

First recorded in 1905–10; auto- ¹ + -chrome

Example Sentences

In February 1947 the couturier Christian Dior harked back to the rosy autochrome with his first collection, “Corolle,” named for the petaled cup of a flower and later christened the New Look.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025

As the world entered the tumultuous ’30s—a decade of avid modernism, economic upheaval and creeping fascism—the autochrome aesthetic was suddenly too rose-colored, its saturated light too Edenic.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025

One, “Killers of the Flower Moon,” mixes a muted autochrome look with naturalistic lighting to conjure a mood of impending doom.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2024

These autochrome plates produced a unique image that could then be processed into a lantern slide or a four-color print.

From New York Times • Jun. 16, 2016

All the illustrations, both autochrome and monochrome, are the work of Mr. Coburn.

From Mark Twain by Henderson, Archibald