Plate 306—Picking up a ball and throwing it, 1887
Original collotype
14 × 20 in.
January 12, 2026
It's hard to overstate the historical importance of Eadweard Muybridge's pioneering motion studies, which laid the groundwork for the motion picture. They're also a lot of fun to look at, which is equally important when considering how they have stood the test of time and enchanted many generations of viewers. There's a delightful musical quality to the way that he arranges his figures in motion in front of a grid. In this plate, the dip as the girl picks up the ball leads up to a satisfying visual crescendo as we see her toss the ball aloft in a single frame.
