A pianist, environmentalist and writer as well as a renowned photographer, Ansel Adams had many skills and talents. He is most commonly known for his black and white photographs of Yosemite National Park. When viewing Adams’ photographs an overwhelming sense of appreciation of the natural beauty of the world around us arises. Adams is considered to be a visionary in nature photography. As a child growing up in San Francisco Adams always had an affinity for nature. His attraction to photography did not come until his later teen years, after visiting Yosemite National Park at the age of fourteen. Adams’ interest in photography grew over the years and eventually made him one of the most renowned and famous nature photographers. (Turnage) (About…Adams) Ansel Adams has many notable works but one photograph stands out among the rest. Titled “Moon and Half Dome” Adams’ encompasses the true beauty and splendor of nature in this one photograph. As quoted by Adams:
“The great rocks of Yosemite, expressing qualities of timeless, yet intimate grandeur, are the most compelling formations of their kind. We should not casually pass them by for they are the very heart of the earth speaking to us.” (Yosemite…Adams)
Ansel Adams is a distinguished photographer, his life is filled with a rich history and his photographs are magnificent. Ansel Adams’ life, even as a child was filled with life altering events, that shaped him into what he became. Ansel Easton Adams was born on February 20, 1902, to Charles and Olive Adams, a wealthy business family. At the age of four, an aftershock from an earthquake shook their San Francisco home causing young Adams to fall face first into a wall, resulting in a broken nose. After that incident, Adams was left with his trademark “crooked nose.” (Ansel Adams) Later in that same year, the Adams family fortune collapsed. This would have a major effect on Adams’ outlook and views on life. His father could not gain back the losses of the Adams’ fortune, leaving an insecure, and impression on Ansel. Adams would now look at life with a shy, calm, private, and independent attitude, different from any child at that time. This attitude change left Adams with the inability to “fit in” in school. His parents made the decision to pull Ansel out of school and tutor him at home. If not for the home schooling, Adams would have never found his love of nature. He could be seen taking a walk almost everyday along the beaches and creeks near his home, after his studies. (Turnage) Adams’ love of nature would have a major impact in his life.
When Adams was twelve he taught himself how to play the piano. Soon after he began taking lessons and pursed music as his main career. It was not until at trip to Yosemite that Ansel gave up his career goal of a pianist. (Turnage) This trip to Yosemite was the defining moment in Adams’ life. With his father’s Kodak Brownie box camera and the beautiful, majestic scenery around him, Adams began capturing the unforgettable images that are appreciated today. Photography became his number one goal and hobby. From that point on photography was the major part in Adams’ life. (A Life’s Work) In his late teen years Adams joined a group dedicated to preserving the world’s environments. It was his dream to conserve the earth’s natural wonders and beauties. This group became known as Sierra Club. Because of Adams’, dedication it still exists today. The Sierra Club added to Adams’ success. Many of his photographs and writings have been published in the club’s bulletin. (Ansel Adams) In April of 1984 Adams died of heart failure. A peak in Yosemite is named in his honor. An appropriate acknowledgment of Adams’ love of nature’s grandeur and his avocation. (A Life’s Work) Ansel Adams was and still is considered a remarkable man and a wonderful and highly appreciated photographer.
The photograph that Ansel Adams is most known for and exemplifies his work the best is “Moon and Half Dome.” This photograph was taken in 1960 at Yosemite National Park. (Yosemite…Adams) The photograph is of a large, mammoth, single, solid rock. The rock appears to have been split in two leaving a clean face. The top has a dome shaped quality. To the left of the rock a large, weathered fractured schism. On the face of the large rock there are vertical striations with a major cracking etched across the middle region of the rock. Based on the size of evergreen trees at the footing it appears to be as earlier stated a “huge” rock face mountain. In the upper region of the photograph appears the moon, in the final stages of becoming full. Lastly, directly across facing Half Dome is a very dark, shadowed rock face rising from the same floor ground as Half Dome. It appears that its shadow is cast onto Half Dome. Finally, on the top peak of the dome there is snow intermittently dispersed, as there is on the forest floor below.
Emotionally the picture strikes me as cold, stark and distant. This is brought out especially by the distance of the moon in the background. This image could be a moonscape image in itself. In Adams’ minds eye he saw a similarity between the moon’s distance, gray muddled surface and primarily the silence that the mountain’s face evokes. The image is ominous and is to some degree threatening. The mountain like the moon is very unapproachable; it is beyond one’s grasp. It emanates a graphic sense of the power of nature. Even something as solid appearing as Half Dome and for that matter the moon, overtime is wearing away and in fact is not solid. This realization is akin to the trauma Adams faced as a child. The financial reality of his family broke apart, leaving him exposed and vulnerable to social elements. From that point on he felt alienated.
Even though Ansel Adams has past on, his work lives on and is viewed by many. It can be seen in museums, one in particular is the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts. His works have been published and can be found in the Sierra Club Bulletin, magazines, and even in brochures at Yosemite National Park. Just because Adams is not with us there is no reason to stop showing or seeing the majestic scenery that he has captured.
Ansel Adams played an important and pivotal role in the development and popularity of nature photography. Throughout his life he faced many altering incidences, but ultimately all was for the best. Without those challenges, the world might never have seen the magnificent photographs that he has produced, such as the recognized “Moon and Half Dome” for which he is most known for. His photographs continue to inspire not only photographers but environmentalist as well. He is one of America’s treasures.
- "About Ansel Adams." Sierra Club. 16 Oct. 2005.
- "Ansel Adams - Environmentalist, Artist, Photographer, and American Icon: A Life's Work." Apogee Photo Magazine. 16 Oct. 2005.
- "Ansel Adams." Wikipedia. 16 Oct. 2005.
- Turnage, William A. “Ansel Adams, Photographer.” The Ansel Adams Gallery. 18 Oct. 2005
- Yosemite Ansel Adams. 1st ed. Boston, New York, London: Little, Brown and Company, 1995.
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