William Friese-Greene (1855 – 1921) was a prolific English inventor and professional photographer. He is known mainly as a pioneer in the field of motion pictures, having devised a series of cameras in 1888–1891 and shot moving pictures with them in London. He went on to patent an early two-colour filming process in 1905. Wealth came with his inventions in printing, including photo-typesetting and a method of printing without ink, and from a chain of photographic studios. However, he spent it all on inventing, went bankrupt three times, was jailed once and died in poverty.
