New Topographics was a term coined by William Jenkins in 1975 to describe a group of American photographers (such as Robert Adams and Lewis Baltz) whose pictures had a similar banal aesthetic, in that they were formal, mostly black and white prints of the urban landscape.

What is New Topographics?

New Topographics is a man-altered landscape, that can include man-made buildings, such as homes, towers, car parks etc. as well as natural environments, such as fields, mountains and beaches. The New Topographics can also just be a man-altered landscape with only man-made things.

The New Topographics photography was presented in the same way as natural/ romanticism/ sublime landscapes by many photographers.

The photos of man-altered landscapes presented man and nature coinciding with each other.

When did it become Popular?

A turning point in the history of photography, the 1975 exhibition New Topographics signalled a radical shift away from traditional depictions of landscape. This became popular post-war, because this was when society returned to normal and many more buildings/ man-made structures were built.

The Beginning of the Death of the American Dream

Many of the photographers associated with The New Topographics including Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Nicholas Nixon and Bernd and Hiller Becher, were inspired by the man-made.

New Topographics was inspired by the likes of Albert Renger Patszch and the notion of The New Objectivity.

Parking lots, suburban housing and warehouses were all portrayed with a beautiful stark austerity, almost in the way early photographers documented the natural landscape. An exhibition at the International Museum of Photography in Rochester, New York featuring these photographers also revealed the growing unease about how the natural landscape was being eroded by industrial development.

What was the New Topographics a reaction to?

The New Topographics was a reflection of the increasingly suburbanised world around us, and a reaction to the tyranny of idealised landscape photography that elevated the natural and the elemental.

Post-war America struggled with:

• Inflation and labour unrest. The country’s main economic concern in the immediate post-war years was inflation. …
• The baby boom and suburbia. Making up for lost time, millions of returning veterans soon married and started families…
• Isolation and splitting of the family unit, pharmaceuticals and mental health problems
• Vast distances, road networks and mobility

The New Topographics became popular post-war, because as all the soldiers were returning from war to their families and more babies were being made, this meant that more buildings had to be built in order for everyone to have a home and so society can return back to normal. Buildings that were damaged in the war were also repaired and rebuilt.

The New Topographics were to have a decisive influence on later photographers including those artists who became known as the Düsseldorf School of Photography.

Popular New Topographics Photographers

Many of the photographers associated with new topographics including Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Nicholas Nixon and Bernd and Hiller Becher, were inspired by the man-made, selecting subject matter that was matter-of-fact.

The New Topographics were to have a decisive influence on later photographers including those artists who became known as the Düsseldorf School of Photography.

Robert Adams

Robert Adams was an American photographer, who was best known for documenting both the beauty and commercialization of the American West. He was born January 21st 1928 and died March 2nd 1997 at age 69. Adams was born in New Jersey and raised in the suburbs of Denver, Colorado. He moved to Southern California in 1956 to attend the University of Redlands. He chose to major in English literature and went on to earn a Ph.D. in that subject at the University of Southern California in 1965.

About his work

When Adams returned to Colorado to begin what he anticipated would be a career in teaching, he was dismayed by the changes he saw in the landscape. He bought a 35-mm camera, taught himself the fundamentals of photography, and began making pictures infused with a love for the geography of his home state.

Robert Adams has photographed the landscape of the American West for more than forty years, particularly in California, Colorado and Oregon. His vision is inspired by his joy in nature’s inherent beauty, yet tempered by his dismay at its exploitation and degradation. Adams uses photography to express his love for the landscape and to understand how urban and industrial growth have changed it, all the while insisting that beauty in the world has not been entirely eclipsed.

Who inspired him?

Adams style of work and his work was inspired by many other well known photographers who came before him. He was especially inspired by:

• Timothy O’Sullivan
• William Henry Jackson
• Carleton Watkins.

Other photographer, who often merged their social concerns with aesthetic ones also inspired Robert Adam’s work, such as:

• Lewis Hine
• Edward Weston
• Dorothea Lange
• Ansel Adams

His Books

Robert Adams made many books, such as:

• Los Angeles Spring
• Why People Photograph
• Art Can Help
• Turning back

As well as many other books.

However, his most popular book was a photo book called, ‘The New West,’ which included many of his new topographic photographs.

Robert Adams used Ansel Adams zonal System aswell for all his photographs, so he could get good exposure/ contrast in his black and white images. He was expired to create black and white images using the zonal system from Ansel Adams, just like he did.

Critic Sean O’Hagan, writing in The Guardian, said ‘his subject has been the American west: its vastness, its sparse beauty and its ecological fragility. What he has photographed constantly, in varying shades of grey is what has been lost and what remains’ and that ‘his work’s other great subtext’ is silence.

His Photographs

These are just some photos of Robert Adams work in New Topographics, where he includes images of man-made structure, as well as the natural environment around them, such as the trees, field or mountain.

His most Popular Work

This photo is his most popular work:

This image uses natural daylight lighting as it is taken outside during a cloudy day, so that when it is in black and white the sky is light grey instead of dark grey. The horizon line is positioned straight and above the caravan site. The image is located at a caravan site, where there is also a natural environment (the mountains in distance), as well as a man-made environment (the caravan site). This image has lots of contrast, as it is in black and white, so the image consists of a range of different grey tones. It has lots of different light and dark tones throughout. The layout of this image in split in half. The bottom half 9foreground) consisting of the man-made environment (caravan site) and the top half (background), where the horizon line is consisting of the natural environment (the field and mountain in the distance). These two very different environments are balanced and coincide in harmony.

This relates to the New Topographics, because the image presents how urban environments can coincide with nature and natural environments and how urban environments are growing more and more and can be displayed in the same way as natural landscapes. Roberts Adams took inspiration from Ansel Adams in this photo, as he used his zonal system when taking this photo, so he could get the correct exposure and contrast on his black and white photo. Ansel Adams also produced black and white landscapes. However, Robert Adams landscapes moved further away from the ‘norms’ of landscapes, which is what Ansel Adams focused on.

The concept of this photo is create awareness on how urban structures are growing in size over a vast majority of the world, but how this is not always a bad thing, as it can be just as beautiful and as much of an art as natural landscapes.

My Favourite Photograph

This image is my favourite of Robert Adams work, because it displays how man can live in harmony with the natural environment, without destroying it. This photo presents that, because it is just one church house in the middle of a natural environment and not an image of a big city for example, which ruins and takes over the environment.

This image uses natural daylight lighting as is it taken outside during a cloudy day, so that when it is in black and white the sky is light grey instead of dark grey. This image is in black and white has has contrast of light and dark tones. The main viewpoint is the small church in the middle of the field as it presents the balance and harmony between man kind and the natural environment.

This relates to the New Topographics, because the image presents how urban environments can coincide with nature and natural environments and how urban environments are growing more and more and can be displayed in the same way as natural landscapes. Roberts Adams took inspiration from Ansel Adams in this photo, as he used his zonal system when taking this photo, so he could get the correct exposure and contrast on his black and white photo. Ansel Adams also produced black and white landscapes. However, Robert Adams landscapes moved further away from the ‘norms’ of landscapes, which is what Ansel Adams focused on.

The concept of this photo is create awareness on how urban structures are growing in size over a vast majority of the world, but how this is not always a bad thing, as it can be just as beautiful and as much of an art as natural landscapes. This photo especially expresses how urban environments are not always destructive as there is one small man-made church in a vast natural environment, which is still there and protected.

Lewis Baltz

Lewis “Duke” Baltz was an American visual artist, photographer, and educator. He was an important figure in the New Topographics movement of the late 1970s. He was born September 12th, 1945 in California and died 22nd November, 2014 at age 69, in Paris. He worked as a freelance photographer in California and taught photography at various institutions, including the California Institute of the Arts, the University of California (Riverside and Santa Cruz), Yale, the École Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris, and the Art Academy of Helsinki. 

About His Work

His best known work was monochrome (black and white) photography of suburban landscapes and industrial parks which highlighted his commentary of void within the “American Dream”. Lewis Baltz produces photographs in series focused on a particular theme or geographic area and usually publishes them in book form;

• The New Industrial Parks Near Irvine, California (1975)
• Nevada (1978)
• Park City (1981)
• Sites of Technology (2007)
• WORKS (2010)
• The Prototype Works (2011)
• Candlestick Point (2011).
• etc

His work, like that of others associated with the New Topographics, challenges the nineteenth century tradition of western landscape photography. Baltz’s perception of the landscape necessarily reveals the effects of twentieth-century culture and suburban development on the nation’s topography. 

Lewis Blatz also created typology photographs, which is photographs that share a high level of consistency and Baltz most commonly took these typologies of large buildings in urban areas.

Who inspired him

Lewis Baltz started photography at age 12 and his early influences were Ed van der Elsken, Wright Morris and Edward Weston and frequented camera shops, especially William R.

His photographs

New Topographics:

Typologies:

His most popular work

This image was one of his most popular images, because his most popular images were his black and white photographs. The lighting used was natural daylight lighting, because the image was taken outside on a cloudy day, so that the sky would be a light grey, instead of a dark grey, like it would be on a sunny day. The image has high levels of contrast and lots of black and white tones (different shades of grey) throughout. The main viewpoint of this image is the old, dirty house.

This relates to the new topographics, because the photograph shows how urban man-made buildings and things can be taken as landscapes in the same way and style as natural landscapes are. This image may also show how houses were early post war, before they had been rebuilt and fixed. Houses would be like this post war due to the destruction of the war and bombings etc. The meaning behind this photo was to show that no matter how ugly, or worn down the man-made things/buildings are they can still be portrayed as beautiful, just like natural landscapes.

My Favourite Photo

This image is my favourite image, because it displays man-made structures coinciding with nature and living in balance and harmony.

This image uses natural daylight lighting, because the image was taken outside on a cloudy day, so that the sky would be a light grey, instead of a dark grey, like it would be on a sunny day. The image has high levels of contrast and lots of black and white tones (different shades of grey) throughout. The layout of this photo had the man-made structure in the background and uses the grass as a leading line towards the man-made structure, which makes me believe that the man-made structure is the viewpoint.

This relates to the New Topographics, because the image presents how urban environments can coincide with nature and natural environments and how urban environments are growing more and more and can be displayed in the same way as natural landscapes.

The concept of this photo is create awareness on how urban structures are growing in size over a vast majority of the world, but how this is not always a bad thing, as it can be just as beautiful and as much of an art as natural landscapes. This photo especially expresses how urban environments are not always destructive as there is one small man-made structure in a vast natural environment, which is still there and protected.

Their Influence

The world of photography underwent a significant transformation with the emergence of Robert Adams and Lewis Baltz, two photographers known for injecting purpose and innovation into their work. Renowned for their change from traditional norms (natural landscapes), these artists reshaped the visual expression landscape. 

New Topographics was a term coined by William Jenkins in 1975 to describe a group of American photographers (such as Robert Adams and Lewis Baltz) whose pictures had a similar banal aesthetic, in that they were formal, mostly black and white prints of the urban landscape.

Mind Map

Mood Board

The photos I have highlighted green are the images I have chosen to edit, because they represent Romanticism and the sublime the best, by using different elements of nature. They also have the best lighting and are the most dramatic images. The images highlighted in other colours are the images I have chosen to use for my HDR.

I edited these images in the same way, by increasing the exposure, contrast, shadows, whites, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the highlights and the blacks. I did this, so the images would have better lighting, because they originally had poor lighting. This also made the image brighter and the colours brighter.

I took this image at Harve De Pas at around 4pm on the beach. The photo is off into the distance and captures the rocks, sand, sea and the green mountain/fields in the distance. This image shows how a large amount of land is all still nature and has not been urbanised yet.

This is how the final edited images came out. They show the nature closer up and far in the distance. This portrays the beauty of nature well and relates to Romanticism, because it is beautiful, admired and has been kept and not urbanised yet, which was Romanticists goals. This also relates to Ansel Adams work.

I edited this image by increasing the contrast, whites, shadows, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the exposure, blacks and highlights, so that the image would be brighter and the colours more vibrant.

This image was also taken at Harve De Pas beach and shows the nature up close and in the distance. It also relates to Romanticism, because it shows the beauty and peacefulness of the nature and the sea. However, it also links to the Sublime, because I had people in the photo, so that the comparison between the size of humans and the sea and rocks around could be seen. This highlights how big the sea is compared to humans, who are much smaller. The clouds also look ‘heavenly’ in this photo, so that symbolises the religious parts of Romanticism and how they believed nature was religious and sacred. This also relates to Ansel Adams work.

The final edited image came out like this, of the sea, clouds, sand and rocks.

I edited this image by increasing the contrast, whites, shadows and vibrancy, while decreasing the exposure, blacks and highlights, so that this image would be brighter and the green of the leaves would ‘pop’ more.

This image was taken in St Brelade near Corbiere in a little forest walk way.

I chose to have a person in this image, so that it would relate to the Sublime. The over grown bushes and trees are much larger and more powerful than the small human in the photo, which relates to the Sublime and how nature is strong and powerful and humans are nothing compared. This also relates to Ansel Adams work.

The final edited image came out like this.

I edited this picture by increasing the contrast, exposure, whites, shadows, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the highlights and the blacks, so that this photo would have ,more of a contrast and more of a tonal range as the trees create shade closer up and there is a break in the trees further down, where there is sun light.

This image was taken in St. Catherine’s woods down near the lake.

This is the final edited image.

This image relates to the Sublime, because it presents how big the trees are, and how they tower over the much smaller people in this photo. It also supports romanticism, because the nature is beautiful, and the people are there to be in awe of it. The sun light coming through the break in the trees in the distance of the photo also looks ‘heavenly,’ which is important to Romanticism, because Romanticists believed that nature was sacred, because it was put it from God. This also relates to Ansel Adams work.

I edited this image by increasing the contrast, shadows, whites and vibrancy, while decreasing the blacks and highlights, so that the clouds looked more grey and storm like, and the create contrast in the shades in the grass.

This image was taken at the sand dunes in St ounes.

This photo represents the sublime, because it shows how tiny a human is compared to a vast land of nature. It also shows how there is a storm brewing and how the clouds look ‘angry’ in a way. This supports the Sublime, because the Sublime supports nature as being stronger, bigger and more powerful than humans. This also relates to Ansel Adams work.

I edited these three images by increasing the exposure, contrast, shadows, whites, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the blacks and highlights, so that the images would have better lighting, because the original images had poor lighting as they were taken in the dark using the flash.

These images were taken in St Andrews park in St Lawrence.

These are the final edited images.

These images relate to Romanticism, because they present lots of different elements of nature, such as trees and flowers. They present the beauty of them all and the vastness of the nature, as there is nature all through into the distance, with no urbanisation, as it is still a grass field. This also relates to Ansel Adams work.

HDR Merge

Next, I wanted to make a HDR, but I had no photos with bracketed exposure. However, I did take some images at school with bracketed exposure with Mr Toft, but they were lost. Instead, I decided to use these images to make a HDR:

I used Lightroom to create my HDR, but I also did attempt with photoshop, but ultimately decided I prefer using Lightroom.

I chose three images from above with different exposures to create my HDR. Then, I merged them together and chose the type of exposure I wanted.

Here is the HDR in Lightroom with the overlay, while I decided my exposure.

Here is my final HDR image, after using Lightroom to create it.

Then, I experimented with other photos I had taken using exposure bracketing.

These are the images I used to create this HDR:

Storm Ciaran

Storm Ciaran hit Jersey Channel Islands Wednesday 2nd November 2023. Jersey was hit by a tornado and extremely strong winds lashed the island. This caused dozens of people to be evacuated from their homes. Schools, work, shops were shut due to this storm and the whole island was advised to stay inside until the next day due to the really unsafe conditions and unsafe damage.

“It’s really clear certain areas of the island have really been hit hard this time and the damage is very significant.”

“We’ve all seen footage of some really serious damage that has been done but it will take some time to be able to assess all of that.”

The government asked any islanders planning to return to their properties and assess damage should only return “if it is absolutely safe to do so.”

“For properties that have sustained significant damage, we strongly advise seeking the opinion of a property surveyor or structural engineer before entering and or trying the collect belongings.”

Lots of damage was caused, mainly in St Clements, as that is where the storm/ tornado hit the worst. Damage occurred to;

• Schools (Hautlieu, Highlands)
• Many homes
• Airport
• St Clements Golf club
• Trees/ environment
• etc.

This has taken a while to fix, even though some of the damage still has not been fixed yet. This also costed the Government and many people lots of money and time to fix this damage created by the storm.

Examples of tree Damage

These images were taken by other people in jersey a few days after the storm, when there was much more damage and fallen trees still around, before the clean up. This is an example of how powerful Storm Ciaran was.

Examples of house Damage

These images were of peoples homes not long after Storm Ciaran, and these images present just how powerful the storm and the wind was, to be able to knock down walls, and take off roofs etc.

Examples of other buildings Damage

These images were also taken not long after the storm of other buildings, which were not people’s homes. These images also present how strong and powerful, while also dangerous the Storm and the winds were.

Examples of Rough Waves

These Images were taken of the waves during the strong winds of the storm. These waves help present how rough and strong the storm and winds were, to be able to produce these mighty waves.

My Storm Damage Photos

The images that I have highlighted green are the images I have chosen to edit, because I think they show all the different damage the storm did the best, while also having the best focus and composure.

House Damage

I took these photos in my bedroom in St Helier near Harve De Pas. The storm damaged my room, by causing flooding, which you can see with the water on the floor. This then caused the walls to wear away, and then have to be knocked down.

Edits

I edited these pictures by increasing the exposure, contrast, shadows, whites, vibrancy and saturation, while also decreasing the highlights and blacks, so that the photo would be brighter, and so the white walls would have less of a grey tint and look more of a clean white. I also did this, so the image would be brighter and have less blacks through it, so that all the damage was more visible.

The final edited images then came out like this. In this image you can see the hole in the wall in the corner, where the water is flooding in, as well as the damage it has done to the walls and floor. You can also see lose wires that have been hung up, so they do not fall in the water, so they will not cause any electrocutions.

I edited this photo by increasing the exposure, contrast, shadows, whites, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the blacks and highlights, so that the room and walls looked much brighter, and so the water on the floor was more visible.

This is how the final edited image came out. You can still see the damage to the corner of the room, but you can also see the water on the floor now, and a broom which was used to tidy some of the damage.

I edited these photos in the same way, by increasing the exposure contrast, whites, shadows, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the blacks and highlights, so that the images were more vibrant and visible. However, on the second image I also increased a yellow tint, because the original image had a slight blue tint.

This is how the final edited images came out. They show the huge damage done by the storm to the walls in my bedroom.

Tree Damage

I took these images near the Post Office in St Clements. The storm has caused many of these trees to have fallen over and fallen all on top of each other. This presents how powerful and strong the wind was from the storm to be able to blow all these trees down. Many bigger trees were cleared up just days after the storm, but smaller trees in non-hazarded places are less of an urgent concern. In these images there was also damage to the fence surrounding the trees, which you can see.

Edits

These first images I took had quite a blue tint on them, so I had to adjust it and add more of a yellow tint to be able to cancel the blue out. Then, I edited these pictures in the same way, by increasing the contrast, shadows, whites and vibrancy, while also increasing the saturation on the first one. Then, I decreased the exposure highlights and blacks on both. I did this, so that the colouring was better and brighter on each image, so that the image was more accurate compared to what I saw.

The final images then came out like this, where you can see all the fallen trees piled on top of each other, while also being able to see the damage done to the fence surrounding the trees in the second image.

Once, I realised my photos were coming out with a blue tint I played around with my camera settings adjusting them, so that there was no longer a blue tint.

I edited these images, by increasing the contrast, shadows, whites, vibrancy and saturation, while also decreasing the exposure, highlights and blacks, so that the image looked less dull and the damage done by the storm could stand out more.

The final edited images then came out like this. You can clearly see the damage done to the trees, as they are all fallen and on top of each other, while also seeing the damage done to the fence surrounding it. This presents how strong the storm must of been to be able to cause all this damage.

I edited these images by increasing the exposure, contrast, shadows, whites, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the highlights and blacks, so that the image would be brighter and more visible, as the images were taken when it was dark.

The final images came out like this. These images are not the best, as they were taken on my phone, because I only spotted this, while on a dog walk and did not have my camera, so they could have been better quality. However, I think the images show the damage from the storm very well and shows how powerful the storm was the be able to tear the tree out of the ground like that.

Other Buildings

I took these images of the buildings near the Post Office in St Clement. I focussed on taking pictures in St Clement, because that is where the storm hit Jersey the hardest. In these images you can see the damage done by the storm on other buildings and walls. Most damage to many buildings has been fixed by now, but this damage was minor, so not a priority.

Edits

I edited all these images, by increasing the contrast, shadows, whites, vibrancy and saturation, while decreasing the highlights and blacks, so that the image would be more clear and vibrant.

This is how the final edited photos came out, and you can see where the storm sad damaged the walls and equipment near it. This also shows how strong the storm must of been, to be able to knock down a brick wall.

Final Best Images

I have chose these images as my final best images, because I think they have the best editing skills done to them , while also having the best composure. They also all present the storm damage well and present how strong and powerful the storm was.

Virtual Gallery

I made this virtual gallery of my storm damage images using ArtSteps. Firstly, I picked out a suitable gallery that I liked. Then, I imported my chosen images into ArtStepsand put them in the gallery. Next, I positioned them all where I thought they looked good and gave them all different frames. Finally, I previewed my gallery and took photos of all my images.

PhotoShop

I made this image using photoshop. Firstly, I imported my two chosen images onto and a4 print and resized them both so they filled up the print. Next, I adjusted the opacity of the image on top, so that all the trees from the image underneath would come through. I did this, so it looked light there was much more damage and trees fallen in this image. The only thing ruining this image is the sign post.

The two images before:

Ansel Adams

Ansel Adams was born 20th February 1902, in San Francisco California and died 22nd April 1984, in Carmel California. He was an American photographer and environmentalist, who was the most important landscape photographer of the 20th century, creating black and white landscapes, and even creating the zonal system. His work has continued to increase in popularity since his death and now inspires many other artists, such as Robert Adams, Judy Dater, Robert Dawson, Minor White, Ted Orland and many more.

Ansel Adams was a hopeless and rebellious student, until his dad removed him from school at the age of 12. He then became a serious musician as a highly gifted pianist, until he fell and broke his nose and lost his confidence. After he received his first camera in 1916, Adams also proved to be a talented photographer. Throughout the 1920s, when he worked as the custodian of the Sierra Club’s lodge in Yosemite National Park, he created impressive landscape photographs.

Group f64?

 In 1930 he met the American photographer Paul Strand and was shown the negatives that Strand was then making in New Mexico. Adams was deeply impressed with the simplicity of the images’ conception and by their rich and luminous tonality, a style in contrast to the soft-focus Pictorialism still in vogue among many contemporary photographers. The experience confirmed in him his evolution toward a purer and more realistic style. In 1932 Adams helped form Group f.64, a loose and short-lived association of West Coast photographers (including Edward Weston and Imogen Cunningham), who favoured sharp focus and the use of the entire photographic grey scale, from black to white, and who shunned any effects borrowed from traditional fine arts such as painting.

What is the Zonal System?

Ansel Adams created the zonal system, so he could predict what the exposure would need to be for his visualisation of his landscape, so he could get his visualisation quicker and correct.

Ansel Adams base rule was:

‘Exposure for the shadows, develop for the highlights.’

 The zone-system of Ansel Adams divides the photo into eleven zones; nine shades of grey, together with pure black and pure white.

This zonal system was used, so he could create the photograph he was visualising. This zonal system helped him get his visualisation correct quicker, because he could not just take multiple tries for free, like we can today. This zonal system was also what he used to create his black and white pictures, as 0 was pure black, 5 was middle grey and 10 was pure white. However, you could assume that a normal photo does not contain pure black and pure white.

How did he use Romanticism and the sublime?

Ansel Adams produced photographs using the sublime, because he took photos of different parts of nature, such as mountains, waterfalls, rivers, cliffs etc, which are places that support the sublime, because they can be admired and create a sense of awe, while also creating a sense of panic and danger, because these parts of nature can be very strong and violent, because of their power and strength, or there mass/ height.

Adams created romanticism images as he took pictures of different parts of nature again, such as forests, trees, mountains, flowers etc, which supports romanticism, because romanticists believed that nature should be admired and create a sense of awe, because of its beauty. Adams presented the beauty of the nature through all his different photographs.

Who did he influence?

Ansel’s photography has had great impact, not only in awakening people to the beauty of nature but in inspiring many other photographers to turn their efforts to the natural scene and to use photography in the interests of environmental preservation.

Ansel Adams was influenced by Paul Strand, because his images had a powerful impact on Adams and helped him to move away from the pictorial style, which Adams and favoured in the 20s and focussed him more on the sublime and on the beauty and awe of nature, while also capturing the strength and power of it.

Ansel Adams has left a legacy to everyone by creating visually unforgettable images of unspoiled nature in spectacular places. He has paved the way for photography to be exhibited beside traditional painting and portraiture in national galleries. He is remembered for his most important work, which was devoted to what was or appeared to be the country’s remaining fragments of untouched wilderness, especially in national parks and other protected areas of the American West. He was also a vigorous and outspoken leader of the conservation movement.

Ansel Adams inspired people by making photography more creative by saying:

‘You don’t take a photograph, you make it.’

This influenced many other photographers to become more creative with their work, like Ansel Adams did instead of just taking pictures that looked ‘pretty’ and were the ‘norm.’

Most Popular Work

Ansel Adams favourite and most popular photograph was the Half Dome in full shadow in the Happy Isles. He travelled from his home there with his fiancée, Virginia, and two friends to begin a photoshoot.

He used a Korona View Camera with two lenses, two filters, a wooden tripod and twelve wratten panchromatic glass plates.

Firstly, he attempted to take the photo using an 8 1/2 inch focal length and made his first exposure of 11, using a wratten no. 8 k2 yellow filter. This image did not fit his visualisation. Next, he used his deep red wratten no. 29 with the shutter release for 5 second exposure at f/22. He then achieved his visualisation.

Image Analysis

I have chosen this image to analyse, because I think it portrays the sublime in Romanticism very well, as Adams has used the clouds/fog to his advantage, to show how strong and powerful they really are, as they cover the entire ground and most of the trees. However, he also uses them to show the beauty of the nature in this photograph.

Ansel Adams used natural lighting, while he was positioned on top of a mountain, while taking an image of the surroundings and down below. He used a high contrast of white and blacks throughout this whole image. He also used high exposure for the lighter areas and lower exposure for the darker areas, so he could create that contrast.

Adams created a black and white image with dark and light tones throughout, with lots of texture throughout (the trees, mountains, clouds). He also used leading lines in his image, so that the viewers eyes follow the line down the picture, until they reach the viewpoint. The viewpoint in the image was the low ground, where the mountains were surrounding. He also used depth of surface illusion in this image, to attract the viewers attention more.

This image was taken on the West side of America, because Adams believed the weather was better for photographs on this side of America, because it was darker and colder and changed more, compared to California where it was always sunny. This helped him create the sublime in Romanticism better, because the weather was more powerful here.

I think Ansel Adams took this image, so he could portray the sublime and move away from just ‘pretty sunsets.’ He showed ‘bad weather’ and made it beautiful, but also scary, because of its strength and power.

Romanticism is the celebration of the individual and the glorification of nature. Romanticism was a revolt against the aristocratic social and political ‘norms’ of the Age of Enlightenment (the age of reason), which promoted reasonable and sensible decisions. It went against this, because romanticism promoted making decisions based on your emotions and not reason. Romanticism legitimized the individual imagination as a critical authority, which permitted freedom from classical notions of form in art. An example of art that used the ideas of romanticism was the sorrows of young Werther, which was written by Johann Wolfgang Goethe in 1774. It was a story about a young man called Werther, who was in love with a women named Charlotte. However, Charlotte was already married to another, so he could not have her. This then caused him to end his life. This supports the movement of romanticism, because it is him following his emotions, no matter how unreasonable his decision may have been.

Romanticism also focuses on nature and how that ignites emotions in individuals as well, because nature can be admired, but also feared, as it is so powerful. Romanticism supports being in awe of nature. Romanticism embraces the uniqueness of the human spirit, which Romantics feel is reflected in and deeply connected to the untamed wildness of nature.

When did Romanticism come about? What was going on at the time?

Romanticism is a movement in the arts and literature that originated in the late 18th century. The effects of the French revolution, which was industrialisation created the context from which the romantics emerged, because they did not like how nature was being demolished and turned into factories and buildings. The French revolution influenced Romanticism, which was in part about escaping from modern realities.

 As the revolution began to play out the French monarchy that had been in power for centuries had collapsed in just three years. This resulted in a complete transformation of society. A majority of the population was greatly in favour of this as the working class had been suffering oppression for many years. According to Albert Hancock, in his book ‘The French Revolution and the English Poets’: a study in historical criticism,

“The French Revolution came, bringing with it the promise of a brighter day, the promise of regenerated man and regenerated earth. It was hailed with joy and acclamation by the oppressed, by the ardent lovers of humanity, by the poets, whose task it is to voice the human spirit.”

“Writers and artists rejected the notion of the Enlightenment, which had sucked emotion from writing, politics, art, etc. and focused too much on Science, logic and reason. Writers and artists in the Romantic period favoured depicting emotions such as trepidation, horror, and wild untamed nature.”

“The ideals of these two intellectual movements were very different from one another. The Enlightenment thinkers believed very strongly in rationality and science, but the Romantics rejected the whole idea of reason and science. They felt that a scientific worldview was cold and sterile.”

What are some characteristics of Romanticism?

• Emotion and passion
• The critique of progress
• A return to the past
• An awe of nature
• The idealization of women
• The purity of childhood
• The search for subjective truth
• The celebration of the individual

An import characteristic of romanticism is emotions, such as fear, terror awe etc. Romanticists valued emotions and passion over reason and believed that people should make decisions based of their emotions and passions, no matter how unreasonable they are. This went against the age of reason. Romanticists believed passion was strong and one should do anything for the one they love. Eg the sorrows of young werther.

Romanticism was the critique of progress, because Romanticists critiques and went against industrialisation, as well as aristocratic social and political norms. They went against industrialisation, because it was destroying the nature of the world and they thought that the nature was more beautiful and should deserve more attention and admiration. They went against the aristocratic and social norms, because they believed people should marry for love, not for wealth or status, and should do anything for their emotions and passion, no matter how unreasonable it may be.

Romanticism tended to want to ‘return to the past’, before the French Revolution, and wanted to return to the Middle ages and medieval period, because they cherished the preoccupation with religion.

Romanticism was in awe with nature, because romanticists believed that nature was a source of beauty and truth. They believed nature was transfigured into a living force and held together as a unity by the breath of the divine spirit. This made them believe that nature should be admired by all and not destroyed by the French Revolution and industrialisation. They also thought that nature should be feared and create a feeling of terror, because of its strength and force compared to the human.

Romanticism idealised women, because women were seen as innocent and pure creators, who should be admired and respected. Many Romantic poets and novelists centred their narratives around celebrating the purity and beauty of a woman.

The child became a symbol of Romanticism, because the purity of childhood was admired by Romantics, because they saw children as innocent and free, with no worries and reason, which is what romanticism represents. The child is also seen as naturalness and proximity to nature, innocent, and sacred.

Romanticists believed that truth could be discovered in nature and imagination. They shunned the objective truths of science in favour of the more subjective truths of art.

The celebration of the individual, for the Romantics, goes hand-in-hand with the celebration of isolation. From their perspective, only when the individual is alone and, ideally, surrounded by nature, can he or she truly be free.

What is meant by the ‘sublime’?

The sublime applies to nature in Romanticism and means that while the nature is beautiful and can be admired, it should also be feared and create a sense of terror and darkness, because of how strong and powerful it is compared to humans. Different types of nature can create a sublime, such as storms, earthquakes, tornados, tsunami etc. All these events in nature are stronger and more powerful than any individual and are feared, but the individual will also feel a sense of awe, due to the vastness of the scene.

The sublime has five different principles, which are:

• great thoughts
• strong emotions
• certain figures of thought and speech
• noble diction
• Dignified word arrangement

The sublime was important to Romanticism, because they were obsessed with the idea of transcendence (going beyond normal expectations), with possible crossings between the self and nature, with the boundlessness of the universe.

What did Edmund Burke think was the ruling principle of the sublime?

Edmund Burke thought the ruling principle of the sublime was the feelings of awe, terror and danger. Anything could be sublime, as long as it excited emotions of pain and danger eg. a storm.

Burke claimed The Sublime was:

‘The strongest passion.’

‘Whatever therefore is terrible, with regard to sight, is sublime too, whether this cause of terror be endued with greatness of dimensions or not; for it is impossible to look on anything as trifling, or contemptible, that may be dangerous.’

Edmund Burke’s Philosophical Enquiry 1757, connected the sublime with expressions of awe, terror and danger. Burke saw nature as the most sublime object, because it was capable of creating the strongest sensations in its beholders. The romantic conception of the sublime proved influential for several generations of artists.

Landscape photography commonly involves daylight photography of natural features of land, sky and waters, at a distance. This can also include man made features. Landscape photography may include photos of artificial scenery, such as fields, orchids, gardens and architecture and human-made structures such as buildings, roads bridges etc. Landscape photography is capturing an image that embodies the spirit of the outdoors. It carries a sense of being to see something wonderful for the viewers.

When did landscape emerge as a genre?

Landscape emerged earlier in western culture, as it came about during the Renaissance period in the 16th century, an era towards a more modern, art appreciating society. Landscapes were seen as a part of earths surface that can be viewed at one time from one place. However, classical landscapes only emerged as a genre in the 17th century. Classical landscapes were influenced by classical antiquity, and wanted to illustrate an ideal landscape recalling Arcadia, which is a legendary place in Greece known for its peaceful and quiet tone.

What prompted the rise of Landscape art during the late 18/19th century?

Landscape painting eventually gained prominence in the late 18th century with the rise of romanticism and often carried a religious significance. It also became a method of self-expression with the emotions of the painter and their appreciation of nature demonstrated in the painting. The interest in landscapes grew during this time, because it was during the Renaissance period, which is when factories were constantly being built, so the interest in landscapes grew, because of the lack of them and how they began slowly disappearing.

When did landscape photography originate?

The first Landscape painting came before the first landscape photo, because landscape paintings became popular earlier the the landscape photos, in the late 18th centaury. However, the first landscape painting was painted by Leonardo da Vinci, Albrecht Dürer, Fra Bartolomeo at the end of the 15th period.

Landscape photography originated between 1826 and 1827 and the first landscape photo was taken by a French inventor named Nicephore Niepce. He took a landscape photo of snowy mountains.

Definition

Landscapes are all the visible features of an area of land, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.

Mood board

Mind Map

I have chosen the following images as my final photos, because they have the best lighting, composition and represent the themes femininity and masculinity the best.

These are my favourite images from the snow, because they use different props, such as the pink scarf and the pink flowers. I think this helped really represent the theme femininity, because it showed how stereotypes, such as flowers and the colour pink represent women. However, the beauty and delicacy of the snow also represents femininity.

These images use natural lighting, because they were taken outside in the snow. The lighting of these images had little control, because they photos were located outside. The colour cast was very white and used cool tones. The camera settings are shown below:

F-stop: f/5

Exposure time: 1/125 sec

ISO: ISO-100

The photograph included mainly the colour white, because of the snow, but it also included the pink scarf, which was used a prop to show stereotypes. The snow in these images was used to portray femininity, because snow is beautiful and delicate, which is also interpretations of women. The tone of the image was very light, because of the white snow all around. The photos that used the flowers used different lines (from the twigs) and shapes (the flowers). This made the photo more interesting, as it added texture behind the model. In the images of the models sat you can see the texture of the ground and the snow, as tire tracks were left in the snow. The viewpoint of all these images were always the model, because they are what represented the femininity theme, as well as some props. The model was also mainly the centre of the photo, so the viewers eye would be drawn more to them. However, in the last image the model is off to the right, so that the viewers eye would be drawn to the flowers instead. There is also lots of contrast between the model and snow. These images were all taken to portray different stereotypes of women and to show femininity in different way.

I made these images, so that I could represent femininity. I took different inspirations from Claude Cahun and Cindy Sherman, because they both present femininity by using different props and stereotypes. The props I used was the pink scarf, because the colour pink is stereotypically associated with femininity. I also used flowers and snow, because both are beautiful and delicate, which is what women are seen as. Flowers are also more related to women, because the women is the one who ‘should be given flowers.’

These are my best images using mirrors as props, because I feel like they all tell a story. They show insecure females, who are emotional about their looks, so they apply make up, so they can be beautiful. This also correlates with different stereotypes, such as women are too emotional and women should wear makeup to be beautiful.

Different types of lighting were used in these images, but they were all indoors studio lighting. The white flash was used in the first four images, so it would present a white light. However, in the last image pink lighting was used by covering the light with a pink film. This was used to represent femininity, as a stereotype of females is that they relate to the colour pink. The lighting was very controlled in this shoot, because the lights could be positioned in different ways and the distance and intensity and the lights could also be manipulated. This photo shoot used cold white lighting, but the pink lighting was more warm. The camera settings are shown below:

F-stop: f/11

Exposure: 1/125 sec

ISO: ISO-100

The three black and white images have a higher contrast and contain light and dark tones. They also contain different shapes mirrors. The models holding the mirror were centre in the image, because they are the main focus of the image, so I wanted the viewers eye to be drawn to them more. The images also create a depth of surface illusion, because it looks like the model is stuff inside the mirror. In the image of the model applying make up in the mirror, the mirror with her in is the main viewpoint, because we can clearly see her applying it, even though it is not centred, it is still the view point. This image uses space between the mirror and the model, and also creates a depth of surface illusion, because the mirror creates depth, making the model seem further away. The first image of the model holding her face looking in the mirror contains lots of colours, such as her blue jeans, pink perfume, grey jumper and gold/ green mirror. This image also has different light and dark tones, which creates more contrast in the image. The model is not centred in the image, but she is the main view point of the photo, because she is displaying the theme of femininity. The photo also creates a depth of surface illusion, because the mirror makes the distance of the model from the camera much larger than it actually is. The last image uses the colour pink in the lighting and in the makeup, because the colour pink is associated to women stereotypically. The model in the mirror is the main viewpoint of this photo, even though she is not centred in the image. This photo also creates depth of surface illusion, because of its use of mirrors, which make the model look a different distance away than she actually is.

The model has her hands positioned on her face in this image, because she is insecure. This is a stereotype of women and I took inspiration from Cindy Sherman for this photo, because she also produced a women looking in the mirror looking insecure with a lot of make up on, which also relates to my photos of the models applying make up in the mirror. Make up links to femininity, because makeup is seen as something women should wear and not really men. The two images with the circle mirror show different emotions of the models being sad in the mirror, because a stereotype of women is that they are too emotional. However, the models not in the mirror are happy, because women are not allowed to show that they are being too emotional.

These are my best photos, when using different coloured lighting to portray different stereotypes. These are my best, because they present the different coloured stereotypes well, while also presenting other male stereotypes and going against stereotypes. The stereotypes presented are that men are strong and tough, but also that they are aggressive, which are shown. However, both the female and male model go against the colour stereotypes, as they pose in the opposite colour (eg man in pink lighting).

These photos all used indoor studio lighting, which was either pink, blue or white lighting. The lighting was very controlled in this shoot, because the colours, positioning, distance and intensity of the lighting could all be controlled. The images used different tonal ranges, because it used different coloured lighting. The black and white image used white lighting and the image using just blue lighting use cold tones. However, the images using pink lighting only use warmer tones. The images using both pink and blue lighting have both warm and cold tones. The camera settings are shown below:

F-stop: f/4.5

Exposure: 1/60 sec

ISO: ISO-100

These images either use blue, pink or both colours. They have light and dark tones and have bits of contrast, however the black and white photo has more light and dark tones and more of a contrast. These images contain shadow shapes behind the model. The model/ models are centre in all these images, because they are the main view point and I wanted the viewers eyes to go directly towards them. These images had different layout, where the male model would be in pink and the female model in blue vies versa. The models also had many different poses throughout, such as flexing muscles to present the stereotype that men are strong and tough, or squaring up to show that they are aggressive.

I took inspiration from Claude Cahun and Cindy Sherman in this shoot, because they both present different stereotypes, however Cahun also goes against stereotypes, so I also experimented with that by having female models stand in blue light with a male pose or stance and vies versa. I also had my male model stand in the same lighting that he did when he was being aggressive, and instead of being aggressive just smile, so he could go against the stereotype that males are aggressive.

Photoshop

I created this edit on photoshop. Firstly, I imported the two photos that I wanted into photoshop. I then selected one of the layers and adjust the opacity. Then, I positioned the images to where I wanted and played around with the opacity until I liked how it looked.

I created this on photoshop. Firstly, I painted a black background. Then, I important the three images that I wanted into photoshop and resized them all and repositioned them. I then added the white boarder to one image and copy and pasted the effect onto the other 2 images.

I made this image on photoshop, by exporting my chosen three images and resizing them and positioning them where I thought looked good. Then, I changed the opacity of each image and added a different colour gradient to each one. I also changed the opacity of the gradient.

I created this diamond cameo, by exporting my four chosen images then cutting oval shapes and selected create via layer. Then, I deleted the layers that I know longer needed and made the edges of the circles less harsh, by feathering them. Finally, I repositioned them all where I wanted them.

Virtual Gallery

I used ArtSteps to create my virtual gallery. Firstly, I imported all the photos I wanted to use for my virtual gallery into ArtSteps. Then, I dragged and placed the images where I wanted them and then moved them around until they were the right height and width apart. Finally, I added a black frame to each photograph.