Who Is Ansel Adams
Ansel Adams Biography
Ansel Adams (1902-1984) was an American photographer and environmentalist, best known for his black and white images of the American West, particularly Yosemite National Park. He was born in San Francisco and began taking photographs at a young age.
Adams was a member of the Sierra Club, an environmental organization, and became an advocate for the preservation of wilderness areas. He used his photographs to promote the conservation of natural resources and wilderness areas.
Adams is considered one of the greatest photographers of the 20th century, he developed the "Zone System," a method of determining optimal exposure and adjusting the contrast of photographs. He also co-founded the group f/64, which was a group of photographers that emphasized sharp focus and the use of the full tonal range of photographs.
Adams’ work has been widely exhibited and published, including in his own Biographys such as “Taos Pueblo” and “Yosemite and the Range of Light”. He also worked as a teacher and mentor to many photographers. He passed away in 1984, and his legacy continues to influence photographers and conservationists.
Ansel Adams Fast Facts
Ansel Adams was an American photographer and environmentalist. Some facts about him include:
* He was born in San Francisco, California in 1902 and died in 1984.
* He is best known for his black and white photographs of the American West, particularly of Yosemite National Park, where he spent much of his career.
* He was one of the first photographers to use the Zone System, a technique for determining optimal exposure and development of film, which he developed with Fred Archer.
* Adams was a member of the Sierra Club, an environmental organization, and used his photographs to advocate for the preservation of wilderness areas.
* He was a lifelong advocate for the preservation of wilderness areas, and his photographs of the American West helped to establish the national park system.
* He was a member of the f/64, a group of seven photographers who advocated for "straight" photography, which was defined by sharp focus, the use of the full tonal range of film and the use of large-format cameras.
* He was the recipient of numerous awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal.
* His photographs are widely recognized as some of the most iconic and important images of the American West and continue to be widely admired and collected today.
Ansel Adams Life Highlights
Birth and Early Childhood:
Ansel Adams was born in the Fillmore District of San Francisco to Charles Hitchcock Adams and Olive Bray. He was their only child and was named after his uncle, Ansel Easton. Adams' mother's family hailed from Baltimore, where his maternal grandfather initially had a successful freight-hauling business. However, investments in failed mining and real estate ventures in Nevada led to financial losses. The Adams family had New England roots, tracing their ancestry back to immigrants from Ireland in the early 18th century. Adams' paternal grandfather established a profitable lumber business that his father managed. Despite this, Adams later criticized the industry due to its impact on the redwood forests.
Early Childhood and Memories of the 1906 Earthquake:
One of Adams' earliest memories was of the smoke from the fires caused by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. At the age of four, he was unharmed during the initial tremors but was injured in an aftershock that followed, causing his nose to break and scar. Although a doctor suggested correcting his crooked nose later in life, it remained misshapen and affected his breathing. In 1907, the family moved to a new home near San Francisco's Seacliff neighborhood, offering views of the Golden Gate and Marin Headlands. Despite being hyperactive and frequently sick, Adams enjoyed exploring the natural beauty of his surroundings, collecting bugs, and exploring the rugged coastal areas.
Early Education and Astronomy:
Adams' father shared his passion for astronomy with him, and they often engaged in stargazing together using a telescope. His father even served as the paid secretary-treasurer of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. However, financial losses after the Panic of 1907 led to a decline in the family's living standards. Adams' restlessness and inattentiveness got him expelled from several private schools, leading his father to decide to homeschool him for two years. Private tutors, his aunt Mary, and his father were his educators during this time. His aunt Mary, a follower of agnostic Robert G. Ingersoll, influenced his upbringing. He resumed his formal education by attending Mrs. Kate M. Wilkins Private School, graduating from the eighth grade in 1917. His father instilled in him the principles of Ralph Waldo Emerson, emphasizing a modest and morally responsible life in harmony with nature.
Family Relationships and Impact of Photography:
While Adams shared a close relationship with his father, he had a distant connection with his mother, who disapproved of his interest in photography. After his mother's death in 1950, Adams' interactions with the undertaker illustrated his practical approach to life. He chose the cheapest casket available, leading to a dispute with the undertaker over his perceived lack of respect for the deceased. This event reflected his pragmatic attitude and his tendency to handle situations in a straightforward manner.
Interest in Piano and Music:
At the age of 12, Ansel Adams became captivated by the piano after hearing his 16-year-old neighbor Henry Cowell play. Self-taught in playing and reading music, Adams received some lessons from Cowell, who later became a renowned avant-garde composer. This marked the beginning of his musical journey. Over the next ten years, Adams' passion for the piano grew. Despite facing various challenges, including contracting the Spanish flu during the 1918 pandemic, he remained determined to pursue a career as a classical pianist. He received guidance from three music teachers who helped him develop his technique and discipline.
Introduction to Photography and Yosemite National Park:
Adams' first encounter with photography coincided with a family trip to Yosemite National Park in 1916. He vividly described the impact of his first view of the park's beauty, which left a lasting impression on him. During this visit, his father gifted him an Eastman Kodak Brownie box camera, which marked the beginning of his photography journey. He returned to Yosemite the following year, armed with better equipment and a tripod. He spent time honing his darkroom skills while working part-time for a San Francisco photograph finisher during the winters of 1917 and 1918.
Sierra Club Involvement and Music Pursuits:
Adams' love for nature and outdoor activities led him to join the Sierra Club at the age of 17. He was later appointed as the summer caretaker of the Sierra Club's visitor facility in Yosemite Valley, the LeConte Memorial Lodge, from 1920 to 1923. Throughout his life, Adams remained an active member of the Sierra Club and held various roles, including serving on the board of directors.
Despite his growing interest in photography and his involvement with the Sierra Club, Adams continued to pursue his passion for music. He sought to refine his piano skills and technique while also giving piano lessons for extra income. Adams often spent summers hiking, camping, and photographing the wilderness, while the rest of the year was dedicated to improving his piano playing. He believed in the philosophy of pursuing beauty in both life and art, as endorsed by Edward Carpenter's work "Towards Democracy." This philosophy became a guiding principle for Adams.
Musical Ambitions and Self-Realization:
Adams was dedicated to his musical ambitions, aiming for a career as a concert pianist. Despite facing limitations due to his small hands, he persisted in perfecting his technique and musical expression. He even formed the Milanvi Trio with a violinist and dancer, but his role as an accompanist proved challenging. Over time, Adams came to the realization that his piano playing might have limitations in terms of range and scope. This awareness marked a turning point, and he began to consider alternative paths for his artistic expression.
Ansel Adams Career Highlights
Emergence of Ansel Adams' Photography:
In 1921, Ansel Adams' early photographs were published, and the following year, his prints began to be sold by Best's Studio. Even in his early work, Adams exhibited a keen sense of composition and a sensitivity to tonal balance. He recounted daring adventures to reach the best vantage points and capture images under challenging conditions.
Exploring Pictorialism and Evolving Style:
During the mid-1920s, the prevailing trend in photography was pictorialism, characterized by soft focus, diffused light, and attempts to mimic the qualities of paintings. Adams experimented with these techniques, as well as the bromoil process, which involved using oily ink on paper. An example of his work from this period is "Lodgepole Pines, Lyell Fork of the Merced River, Yosemite National Park," which showcased a soft-focus lens and a glowing luminosity.
However, by 1925, Adams had moved away from pictorialism towards a more realistic approach. He embraced sharp focus, heightened contrast, precise exposure, and darkroom craftsmanship. This marked a shift in his style towards a more technical and detail-oriented approach to photography.
Partnership with Albert M. Bender and Shift to Visualization:
In 1927, Ansel Adams collaborated with Albert M. Bender, an insurance magnate and arts patron. This collaboration resulted in Adams' first portfolio in his new style, titled "Parmelian Prints of the High Sierras." Notably, this portfolio included his famous image "Monolith, the Face of Half Dome." For this photograph, Adams used a Korona view camera with glass plates and a dark red filter to enhance tonal contrasts.
"Monolith" is considered one of Adams' most significant photographs because it represented a departure from traditional photography. This image displayed an extreme manipulation of tonal values that reflected Adams' unique visualization of the scene. His concept of visualization, defined by Adams in 1934, became a central principle in his photography. It involved not just capturing how a subject appeared in reality, but conveying how it felt to him and how it would be portrayed in the final print.
Success and Personal Life:
Ansel Adams' first portfolio, produced with the sponsorship and support of Bender, proved successful, earning nearly $3,900. As a result of the portfolio's success, Adams received commercial assignments to photograph wealthy patrons who purchased his work. He recognized the importance of high-quality reproduction for his photographs and became involved in fine printing and book arts through his association with the Roxburghe Club.
In 1928, Adams married Virginia Best, whom he had met during his time in Yosemite. They initially moved in with Adams' parents to save money, eventually building a home adjacent to his parents' house. The newlyweds' house was connected to the older house via a hallway, symbolizing the union of their lives.
Mature Period and Wilderness Advocacy:
Between 1929 and 1942, Ansel Adams' photography evolved and matured, leading to his establishment as a renowned photographer. The 1930s marked a particularly experimental and productive phase for him, during which he expanded the technical range of his work and embraced a diverse range of subjects, from detailed close-ups to grand landscapes.
Influence and Artistic Growth:
Ansel Adams' association with Albert M. Bender played a pivotal role in his artistic growth. Through Bender, he connected with influential figures such as poet Robinson Jeffers, artists John Marin and Georgia O'Keeffe, and photographer Paul Strand. Adams' friendly nature and exceptional piano skills made him popular among his artistic peers. He released his first book, "Taos Pueblo," in 1930, featuring text by writer Mary Hunter Austin.
Paul Strand's influence was significant for Adams. Strand's style of detailed, sharp negatives stood in contrast to the prevailing soft-focus, pictorialist approach. Strand's advice encouraged Adams to delve further into photography, including the use of glossy paper to intensify tonal values. This shift in approach is evident in his photographs, including those displayed in his solo museum exhibition, "Pictorial Photographs of the Sierra Nevada Mountains by Ansel Adams," at the Smithsonian Institution in 1931.
Broadening Horizons and Group f/64:
Ansel Adams felt the need to expand his artistic repertoire and enhance the quality of his work. He embraced still life and close-up photography while emphasizing the importance of visualizing each image before capturing it. During this period, he developed techniques involving small apertures and long exposures in natural light to achieve sharp details and varying depths of focus.
In 1932, Adams participated in a group show at the M. H. de Young Museum with fellow photographers Imogen Cunningham and Edward Weston. Following this collaboration, they formed Group f/64, advocating for "pure or straight photography" over pictorialism. Adams' art and photography gallery was opened in San Francisco in 1933, inspired by the example of Alfred Stieglitz.
Advocacy and Impact:
Ansel Adams' passion for wilderness preservation grew during the 1930s. He was concerned about the encroachment of commercial development into Yosemite Valley, and he used his photography to advocate for the protection of natural landscapes. His limited-edition book, "Sierra Nevada: The John Muir Trail," published in 1938, played a significant role in Congress designating Kings Canyon as a national park in 1940. This marked his contribution to the cause of wilderness preservation through photography.
Photographic Achievements and Challenges:
In 1935, Adams captured the iconic image "Clearing Winter Storm," showcasing the entire Yosemite Valley after a winter storm. His solo exhibition at Alfred Stieglitz's gallery in New York in 1936 garnered praise and recognition. Unfortunately, a fire in his Yosemite darkroom in 1937 nearly destroyed his negatives, with the help of friends, including Edward Weston, Adams managed to salvage some of his work.
Desert Southwest Exploration:
Adams, along with artist Georgia O'Keeffe and others, embarked on a camping trip to the Arizona desert in 1937. During this trip, Adams captured several significant works, including a candid portrait of O'Keeffe with Orville Cox on the rim of Canyon de Chelly. The works created during this trip showcased the desert Southwest's unique beauty.
Commercial Endeavors and Teaching:
During the 1930s, Adams balanced his commercial assignments, which included working for clients like Kodak and Fortune magazine, with his artistic pursuits. He began teaching photography, including military photographers, and authored instructional essays and books.
1940s and Continued Contributions:
In the 1940s, Adams remained active in his photographic endeavors. He organized a significant photography show, "A Pageant of Photography," in 1940. Together with his wife, he created children's books and guides to Yosemite Valley. Adams also began teaching at institutions like the Art Center School of Los Angeles. His dedication to photography and advocacy for nature continued to shape his legacy.
Moonrise and Continued Achievements:
During his New Mexico project, Ansel Adams captured the iconic photograph "Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico." The image features the Moon rising above a village with snow-covered mountains in the background under a dark sky. Adams' description of how he calculated the exposure, based on the Moon's luminance, enhanced the photograph's fame. Over time, he reinterpreted the image using various darkroom techniques, creating over 1,369 unique prints. This photograph became one of his most famous works.
World War II and Photography:
During World War II, Adams was approached by Edward Steichen to join his Naval Aviation Photographic Unit. However, Adams had conditions, including being commissioned as an officer and joining later due to prior commitments. Steichen assembled his team without Adams, who then engaged in various photographic assignments, including documenting the Japanese American internment at the Manzanar War Relocation Center. Adams' work on this project resulted in the publication of the photo-essay "Born Free and Equal: The Story of Loyal Japanese-Americans." This marked a departure from his usual style and showcased his concern for social issues.
Photography and Teaching:
Adams' involvement in photography remained multifaceted. He received three Guggenheim Fellowships, with the first awarded in 1946. He embarked on a project to photograph every national park, capturing memorable images of famous landmarks. In 1945, he founded the first fine art photography department at the California School of Fine Arts, inviting renowned photographers as instructors. He initiated annual workshops at Yosemite in 1955, attracting numerous students over the years.
Involvement in Publications and Magazines:
Ansel Adams co-founded the magazine "Aperture" in 1952, a platform to showcase photography's best practitioners and innovations. He contributed to Arizona Highways, a travel magazine, and his article on Mission San Xavier del Bac was expanded into a book. His collaboration with Nancy Newhall began with this project, leading to future collaborations.
Late Career and Photography Equipment:
Adams' workshops at Yosemite continued until 1981, and he remained active with commercial assignments and consultancy work. He had a consulting role with Polaroid Corporation, founded by Edwin Land, and made numerous photographs using Polaroid products. Adams favored the Hasselblad medium format camera in the final two decades of his life.
Continued Influence and Legacy:
Ansel Adams' legacy persisted through his ongoing contributions to photography, publications, teaching, and innovative techniques. His dedication to both artistic expression and societal issues solidified his position as a significant figure in photography and a driving force behind the documentation and preservation of natural landscapes.
Later Career and Achievements:
In the 1960s, Adams faced health challenges due to gout and arthritis. He and his wife considered moving to Santa Fe but settled in Carmel Highlands overlooking Big Sur. He focused on printing the backlog of negatives accumulated over decades, dedicating significant time to this task. Adams gained recognition in mainstream art galleries during the 1960s, with some galleries exhibiting his images alongside fine paintings. In 1963, he and Nancy Newhall accepted a commission from the University of California to produce a series of photographs commemorating the university's centennial celebration. This collection, titled "Fiat Lux," was published in 1967.
70s:
During the 1970s, Adams reprinted negatives from his vault to meet the demand from emerging art museums with photography departments. He continued to contribute his work to social causes, including supporting Proposition 20, which aimed to regulate coastal development in California. Adams participated in significant exhibitions, such as the Rencontres d'Arles in France in 1974 and a retrospective exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1975. He also co-founded the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in 1975, which handles aspects of his estate. In 1979, President Jimmy Carter commissioned Adams to create the first official photographic portrait of a U.S. president.
Death and Legacy:
Ansel Adams passed away from cardiovascular disease on April 22, 1984, at the age of 82. He died surrounded by his family in Monterey, California, and his ashes were scattered at Yosemite National Park. The publishing rights for most of Adams' photographs are managed by The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust. His archive is preserved at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona. Many of Adams' works have been sold at auction, with notable sales, including "Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite National Park," and "The Tetons and the Snake River," achieving high prices. Adams' enduring legacy is marked by the love and appreciation Americans have shown for his work and his contributions to the field of photography. His impact on visual art and environmental awareness remains unparalleled in American history.
Ansel Adams Top Quotes
"You don't take a photograph, you make it." (Meaning)
"The negative is the equivalent of the composer's score, and the print the performance."
"A photograph is usually looked at - seldom looked into."
"A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed."
"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer."
* The editor of this short biography made every effort to maintain information accuracy, including any quotes, facts, or key life events. If you're looking to expand your personal development, I recommend exploring other people's life stories and gaining inspiration from my collection of inspiring quotes. Exposing yourself to different perspectives can broaden your worldview and help you with your personal growth.
Chief Editor
Tal Gur is an author, founder, and impact-driven entrepreneur at heart. After trading his daily grind for a life of his own daring design, he spent a decade pursuing 100 major life goals around the globe. His journey and most recent book, The Art of Fully Living, has led him to found Elevate Society.
