Marey pioneered the use of graphical recording in the experimental sciences, using instruments (many of his own invention) to capture and display data impossible to observe with the senses alone, and to record the progression of such data over time. He began by applying graphical recording methods to problems in physiology, using machines to investigate the mechanics of the circulatory, respiratory and muscular systems. After 1868 he turned to the study of human and animal locomotion. In the second edition (1885) Marey added a 51-page supplement, Développment de la mêthode graphique par l'emploi de la photographie. Digital facsimile of the 1878 from Google Books at this link; digital facsimile of the 1885 edition from the Internet Archive at this link.

For the second issue the title was changed to La méthode graphique dans les sciences expérimentales et principalement en physiologie et en médecine.