Photoprocessing

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The practice of using light to initiate a chemical reaction in materials, particularly in photography
2. The series of techniques involved in developing photographs through the interaction of light and chemical compounds
3. A technology encompassing various methods for converting light into visual images, primarily in the context of photographic development

Etymology: "Photoprocessing" is a plain compound: "photo-" joined to "processing." The prefix comes from Greek "phōs" (genitive "photos"), meaning light, and turns up in English words such as "photograph," "photosynthesis" and "photon," mostly coined in the 19th and 20th centuries from classical roots. "Processing" is the familiar noun from "process," which traces back through Old French and Latin to "procedere," to go forward. Put together, the word names the treatment that turns an exposed photographic material into a visible image: developing, fixing and washing film or paper, all carried out with chemicals that respond to light. The term follows the usual pattern of "photo" compounds, where the first element points to the light-sensitive medium and the second names the operation performed on it.

Synonyms: photo development, image processing