Who is Ansel Adams?
Ansel Easton Adams was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his black-and-white images of the American West. He helped found Group f/64, an association of photographers advocating “pure” photography which favoured sharp focus and the use of the full tonal range of a photograph. Adams was a key advisor in the founding and establishment of the photography department at the museum of modern art in New York, an important landmark in securing photography’s institutional legitimacy. He helped to stage that department’s first photography exhibition, helped found the photography magazine aperture, and co-founded the centre for creative photography at the university of Arizona.
What is group F/64?
Group f/64 or f.64 was a group founded by seven American 20th-century San Francisco Bay Area photographers who shared a common photographic style characterized by sharply focused and carefully framed images seen through a particularly Western viewpoint
Ansel’s famous quotes
“Life is your art”. “An open, aware heart is your camera”. “A oneness with your world is your film”. “Your bright eyes and easy smile is your museum”.-A.A
Image analysis
This image is called The moon and the half dome.
The moon and the half dome is a testament to the artistic refinement and confidence that comes with age. Here, it shows his outlook on photography in its finest and purest light, where only the elements he wished to highlight are visible – just the moon, the rock face, and the artist’s intent. Likewise, it is a testament to the energy and artistic vigor that Ansel was capable of in his later years – and to the enduring, timeless quality of Yosemite National Park’s natural beauty. This image remains an iconic reminder of Ansel’s gift to all who love nature, and to the art of photography. Ansel Adams uses the black and white process in such a way, that makes him able to make an appealing contrast between light and dark and highlights and shadows. This picture illustrates the beauty of the Half Dome under the moonlight. There are three aspects that make this picture stand out; the clear skies, the moonlight and the silhouette of the setting sun The clear skies help define the beautiful formation of the dome. It accentuates the sharp edges and curve of the cliff that give life to the picture. In addition, the shadow of the sun that starts to cover the precipitous cliff appears that it’s concealing the dome from the coldness of the night, while the gleaming moon starts to shed light. The black and white contrast gives softness and smooth comparison between the two.
Zone system
The Zone System created by Ansel Adams and Fred Archer over 80 years ago, is a technique that offers photographers a way to control exposure and capture the entire tonal scale in their photographs.
some of his photos
