William Klein

William Klein was born in 1928 in New York City. He studied painting and sculpture at the City College of New York. Later, he joined the U.S. Army and was stationed in Europe, specifically in Germany and France. It was here that he won his first Camera from a game of poker and began experimenting with photography. He focused on street photography and photojournalism, known for his unconventional, raw, and energetic style that challenged traditional photography norms. He used techniques such as wide-angle lenses, unusual framing, motion blur, and grainy textures to create dynamic and spontaneous images.

William Klein’s Confrontational Approach vs Cartier-Bresson’s Observational Style

William Klein’s approach to street photography was radically different from Henri Cartier-Bresson’s quiet observation. While Cartier-Bresson waited patiently to capture the “decisive moment”, a perfectly balanced, calm instant in the street, Klein was much more direct and confrontational. Klein didn’t hide from his subjects, instead he got up close and personal, often invading their space with a wide-angle lens. His images are raw, energetic, and sometimes shocking, showing the gritty, chaotic reality of urban life. Unlike Cartier-Bresson’s poetic, composed style, Klein embraced blur, grain, and distortion, breaking many traditional photography rules.

WK Image analysis

Visual Analysis

William Klein’s photo Moves and Pepsi, Harlem, New York, 1955 really captures the lively energy of street life in Harlem back in the ’50s. You can feel the movement and hustle of people going about their day. Since the photo is black and white, it highlights the contrasts and textures more than colors, which gives it a gritty vibe. The natural light and shadows help add depth and a bit of drama to the picture, making it feel alive and real.

Technical Analysis

On the technical side, Klein used a wide-angle lens that probably made parts of the photo feel closer or more exaggerated, which pulls you right into the action. Shooting with black-and-white film and high contrast gives the image that raw, documentary look Klein was known for. Most of the scene is in focus, letting you notice lots of details throughout the busy street. Depending on how fast people were moving, Klein might have used a quick shutter to freeze the moment or a slower one to show some motion blur, really showing how active the street was.

Contextual Analysis

The photo also has a lot going on in terms of history and culture. Harlem in 1955 was a vibrant place full of Black culture and creativity but also faced some tough social and economic challenges. This was before the big Civil Rights Movement kicked off, so the photo gives a snapshot of everyday life during an important time. Klein was famous for capturing real, sometimes raw moments in city life, and this photo fits right into that style, making it more than just a snapshot, it’s a story about the place and its people.

Conceptual Analysis

Conceptually, the photo explores the mix of everyday life, culture, and consumerism in the city. Y It tells a story about resilience and the energy of Harlem’s streets, while also making you think about how big companies and ordinary people coexist. Klein’s photo invites you to see the city’s rhythm and complexity, showing both its struggles and its spirit.

Comparison Between their key photos

Confrontational and Observational Images

Robert Capa

In relation to WK and HCB:

Alexander Mourant is a photographer from Jersey. Being raised in Jersey, Mourant developed a strong connection to the island’s coastal scenery, which significantly influences his photographic style. His early exposure to the island’s dramatic landscapes, including its cliffs, beaches, and ever-changing skies, provided the foundation for his interest in landscape photography.

Mourant pursued formal training in photography, allowing him to refine his technical skills and explore various photographic techniques. His work focuses primarily on the natural environment, particularly coastal and rural landscapes, with a special emphasis on light and texture. His photographs often highlight the raw beauty of nature, showcasing both expansive vistas and intricate details within the landscape. Through his use of natural light, Mourant creates compositions that evoke a sense of atmosphere, often capturing the landscape during early morning or late afternoon to achieve softer, more dramatic lighting.

Over the years, Mourant’s photography has been featured in numerous galleries, both in Jersey and internationally, and his work has been published in several magazines and photography platforms. His portfolio reflects his dedication to capturing the untouched beauty of the natural world, with many of his images focusing on Jersey’s unique geography and landscapes. Additionally, Mourant has published several photography books that present his artistic vision and exploration of the island’s ever-changing environment.

Mourant’s work is also driven by a commitment to environmental conservation. He often uses his photography to raise awareness of the importance of protecting natural landscapes, especially in light of modern development and climate change. Through his lens, Mourant encourages viewers to appreciate the fragility of the natural world and the need to preserve it for future generations. His work stands as both an artistic expression and a call for environmental responsibility.

Henri Cartier-Bresson was a famous French photographer, born in 1908 and known as one of the most important figures in photography. He believed in capturing the perfect moment when everything in a scene comes together naturally, something he called “the decisive moment.” He used a small camera to take black-and-white photos of people and everyday life around the world. He also took pictures of big events like wars and political changes. In 1947, he helped start Magnum Photos, an agency that gave photographers more control over their work. His photos were both artistic and documentary, and he helped make photography respected as an art form. Later in life, he stopped taking pictures and went back to drawing and painting.

His Photos

Henri Cartier-Bresson took this famous photo in 1932 with a small Leica camera. It was a 35mm camera that was easy to carry around and helped him take quick pictures without being noticed. He used a 50mm lens, which shows the scene like how our eyes see it, natural and clear. This helped him catch real, everyday moments without people realizing he was photographing them.

The photo was taken behind a fence near the Gare Saint-Lazare train station in Paris. The space was tight because of the wooden fence planks, so he couldn’t get the perfect shot right away. Later, he cropped the photo on the left side to make it look better. This was unusual because Cartier-Bresson normally didn’t crop his photos and liked to get everything perfect in the camera itself.

What makes this photo special is how Cartier-Bresson captured the exact moment when the man jumps over a puddle. The man is frozen in the air, not touching the ground or the water, and you can see his clear reflection in the puddle below. It’s like catching a moment that usually only lasts for a second, but here it feels frozen forever.

The photo uses natural light nicely, it’s soft and not too bright, so the man and his reflection stand out clearly. The vertical lines from the fence and a ladder in the background help frame the man and make the photo look balanced. These lines also guide your eyes to the main action, which is the jump.

Overall, this photo shows how skilled Cartier-Bresson was at catching quick moments with great timing and making everyday life look interesting. It’s a perfect example of his style, simple but powerful, full of life, and very well composed.

Why is a camera an extension of the eye?

A camera is basically like an extra eye, one that lets you freeze what you see and keep it forever. Just like your eye, it lets in light, focuses on things, and adjusts to brightness. The lens works like the eye’s focus, the shutter is like a blink, and the aperture is like your pupil, opening and closing depending on the light. But a camera doesn’t just copy what you see, it helps you notice things you might miss. It can zoom in close, slow down a moment, or frame something in a way that tells a story. It’s not just seeing, it’s seeing with intention. In that way, a camera isn’t just an extension of your eye, it’s an extension of your mind and how you experience the world.

What is the physical pleasure in making photographs?

The satisfaction from photographs comes from the feeling that you’ve captured something real, something that mattered, even if just for a second. There’s a pleasure in looking at an image you made and knowing that you saw the world in a certain way, and managed to hold onto it. It might be the way light hit a wall, a quiet moment on someone’s face, or a perfect bit of chaos falling into place. Whatever it is, it’s proof that you were there, that you noticed, that you turned a passing moment into something lasting. It’s not just about making something beautiful, it’s about making something yours. A good photograph doesn’t just show what was in front of you; it shows how you saw it, and that can feel incredibly satisfying, even powerful.

How can photography be likened to hunting?

Photography is a lot like hunting because it’s all about watching, waiting, and knowing the right moment to take the shot. A photographer, like a hunter, moves through the world with sharp eyes, always looking for something, good light, a strong expression, an interesting scene. Sometimes you have to wait, stay still, or follow a subject quietly, hoping for the right moment to appear. The camera is your tool, and when you press the shutter, that’s your shot. But instead of taking something away, you’re keeping it, capturing a moment before it’s gone. Just like hunting, it takes patience, timing, and a bit of instinct. And when you get it right, there’s a real feeling of excitement and satisfaction.

Henri Cartier-Bresson image analysis

Line

The photograph features strong diagonal lines from the staircase and railings, guiding the viewer’s eye through the frame. Vertical and horizontal lines from the buildings create a structured, geometric feel, adding a sense of rhythm and direction.

Shape & Form

The image uses both geometric shapes (like rectangles from the windows and steps) and organic forms (like the people and shadows). These shapes create contrast and visual interest. The forms are mostly two-dimensional due to the flatness of the image, but the angles of the stairs give a sense of depth.

Pattern

There is a repeating pattern in the stair steps and the railing bars, which adds visual rhythm. The architecture itself, especially windows and balconies, contributes to a sense of structured repetition.

Tone

As a black-and-white photo, tone plays a key role. There are contrasts between light and dark, with deep shadows under the stairs and lighter tones on the street and walls. This range of tones helps create depth and mood.

Colour

Since it’s black and white, colour is not present in the usual sense. Instead, Cartier-Bresson uses shades of grey to create contrast and emphasize texture, light, and form.

Texture

You can sense the roughness of the stone steps, the smoothness of the metal railing, and the gritty texture of the street and buildings. Light and shadow help reveal these surfaces, even without color.

Space

The image shows good use of depth and perspective. The stairway creates a feeling of space leading into the background. The placement of people and objects adds to the sense of distance, layering the scene in foreground, middle ground, and background.

What Are Typologies?

Typologies in photography are series of images that show a group of similar objects, buildings, or scenes in a consistent, repetitive way. Each photo follows the same style or setup, helping viewers easily compare the similarities and differences between subjects. It’s all about noticing the small details you might usually overlook.

Typologies make everyday things feel unique. By photographing similar subjects side-by-side, photographers show patterns, differences, and stories we might not see otherwise. Typologies can highlight social, cultural, or environmental themes too. They encourage viewers to slow down and really look.

Typologies became famous through German photographers Bernd and Hilla Becher. Starting in the 1950s, they photographed industrial structures like water towers, coal bunkers, and gas tanks. They used a very deadpan style: plain backgrounds, even lighting, and no fancy angles. Their work inspired a whole new way of thinking about photography.

Artist reference:

Bernd and Hilla Becher are considered pioneers of typological photography. They met at art school and started working together in the late 1950s. Their goal was to document disappearing industrial architecture across Europe and North America. They photographed structures like water towers, blast furnaces, and silos with a strict, consistent style. Every image was black and white, taken from a similar angle, and presented in grids to highlight small variations. Their influence can still be seen today in modern documentary and conceptual photography.

Typology plan:

I will have to choose something repeatable like doors, shop fronts, trees, or street signs. This will allow me to accurately represent the main idea of typologies.

To recreate these photos shown, i will have to use the same framing, lighting, and angles for every photo. This will give it an effect that the photos do have similarity in them whilst also being unique in the process.

I will then edit these photos and crop them to allow assortment into grids that make up the typologies. I could even go out of my way to make them black and white to better represent my work in the way of Bernd and Hilla Becher.

Typology Photos:

These photos are only one of the small photoshoots i’m going to be doing for typologies, this photoshoot focuses on windows, with there being a difference in photos but also a type of similarity between them.

In the grid format:

Landscape photography used to be about capturing nature at its most dramatic and untouched. But in 1975, a group of photographers took a different approach. Instead of photographing mountains and forests, they focused on suburbs, industrial sites, and parking lots, everyday places shaped by people. This style became known as New Topographics and changed the way we think about landscapes.

Where Did New Topographics Come From?

The term New Topographics came from a 1975 exhibition at the International Museum of Photography in Rochester, New York. Curated by William Jenkins, the show featured photographers like Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Bernd and Hilla Becher, and Nicholas Nixon, who all photographed human-altered landscapes in a neutral, documentary style.

Their images weren’t meant to be beautiful or dramatic. They were often black and white, simple, and straightforward, just showing the way things were, without adding emotion or judgment.

Robert adams

One of the most influential photographers in the New Topographics movement was Robert Adams. His work focused on the rapid urbanization of the American West, particularly in Colorado. Adams documented how new housing developments, roads, and industry transformed the once-open landscapes.

His photos often present stark contrasts between nature and human expansion. In images like Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1968, Adams captures rows of identical houses against vast, empty skies. The uniformity and repetition of these structures highlight the loss of individuality and natural beauty in the push for economic growth.

Adams’ work isn’t entirely pessimistic, though. While his images show environmental change and urban sprawl, they also find quiet beauty in the ordinary. His compositions are carefully framed, making even mundane subjects, like highways or suburban fences, visually striking. His photography encourages us to look at familiar places differently, questioning how we shape and experience the world around us.

Image Analysis

Robert Adams’ Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1968:

Technical

• Camera and Film: Adams likely used a medium or large-format camera, which gives a lot of detail and depth to the image.
• Exposure and Lighting: The lighting looks natural, with soft shadows and clear highlights. It feels like it was taken in the late afternoon, with a balanced exposure showing both light and dark areas clearly.
• Composition: The photo is well thought out, with elements like the land, sky, and possibly some buildings placed carefully. The horizon line is low, making the sky feel vast.

Visual

• Tone and Contrast: Since it’s black-and-white, the contrasts between dark and light are important. The stark contrast gives the photo a clean, sharp look that adds to the feeling of openness.
• Subject Matter: The focus is on wide, open spaces, often with very little human presence. Any human-made structures are small, showing how nature dominates the scene.
• Space: There’s a lot of empty space, making it feel wide and open. This can give a sense of loneliness or isolation.

Contextual

• Historical Moment: The photo was taken in 1968, during a time when cities were rapidly growing, and suburban sprawl was taking over. This fits into Adams’ focus on how human development was starting to change the natural landscape.
• Environmental Impact: Adams is known for photographing the American West, especially focusing on how urbanization and development were affecting the environment.
• Adams’ Perspective: He loved the American West and wanted to capture it before it was changed forever. In the late ’60s, he started showing the effects of that change, highlighting the quiet, sometimes sad consequences of human growth.

Conceptual

• Nature vs. Civilization: The photo highlights the tension between the open land and the human structures that are slowly taking over it. It’s a reminder of how much nature is being altered by development.
• Solitude: The wide, empty spaces give a feeling of loneliness. The smallness of human figures or buildings in the scene makes you think about how we’re just one part of a much bigger, more powerful world.
• Critique of Development: Adams is kind of questioning the idea of constant growth and progress. The photo feels like a commentary on how human development might be coming at the cost of something beautiful.

What Was New Topographics a Reaction To?

Before this movement, landscape photography often romanticized nature, ignoring how people had changed the environment. New Topographics photographers challenged that idea, documenting the way human expansion had reshaped the landscape.

Historical Context

It was also a response to what was happening in post-war America. After World War II, there was a housing boom, highways expanded, and shopping malls took over open land. Cities grew fast, and suburbs spread further out. These photographers were capturing that shift.

At the same time, environmental issues were becoming more noticeable. Industrial development and urban sprawl were raising concerns about pollution and overdevelopment. While these photographers didn’t make direct political statements, their images highlighted the impact of human progress on the landscape.

Why It Matters

The 1970s was a time of big changes. The economy was shifting, inflation was rising, and protests for civil rights, women’s rights, and against the Vietnam War were shaping society. The landscapes captured by New Topographics photographers reflected this moment, a world where expansion, progress, and loss were happening all at once.

Their images still feel relevant today. Urban sprawl, industrialization, and environmental change haven’t slowed down. This style of photography makes us look at these spaces differently, not as background scenery but as part of the world we’ve built.

Stephen Shore, Beverly Boulevard and La Brea Avenue, Los Angeles, California, June 21, 1975, chromogenic colour print

• Foreground vs background | Dominant features
• Composition | low horizon line | Square format
• Perspective and detail / cluttering
• Wide depth of field | Large Format Camera
• Colour | impact and relevance
• Nationalism vs mobility vs isolation
• Social commentary | The American Dream ?
• An appreciation of the formal elements : line, shape, form, texture, pattern, tone etc

Description:

Technical:

Stephen Shore’s photo of Beverly Boulevard and La Brea Avenue captures the harsh daylight of midday, where the sun is directly overhead, creating sharp shadows that give the scene a lot of depth and texture. The use of a large-format camera makes everything in the shot super detailed, from the cars on the street to the buildings and the trees. The chromogenic color print brings out the vivid colors, making even the smallest things stand out. The result is a super clear, almost crisp image that feels both real and slightly heightened, like you’re seeing the everyday world in a new way.

Visual:

The composition is all about the urban environment. You see a long stretch of road and low buildings, and there’s a sense of space that feels wide and open. The way the elements of the photo are arranged follows the rule of thirds to some degree, but it’s not strict. There’s a flow to the image, with the street and the buildings pulling your eye toward the horizon. The lines of the road and the edges of the buildings lead you into the distance, creating a sense of depth. The square format of the photo makes everything feel balanced, and the whole scene seems a bit compressed, like it’s all being funneled toward one point, adding to the feeling of space in the image.

Contextual:

This photo was taken in Los Angeles in 1975, a time when the city was all about cars and expansion. The image shows the effects of urbanization, with lots of streets, billboards, and cars, symbols of a rapidly industrializing America. The bright colors, reds, blues, and whites, could be nods to the American flag and what those colors represent in terms of national identity. The scene is a bit isolating, even though it’s a busy street, you don’t see much interaction between people. Instead, it’s all about the car culture and consumerism that defined the time. It feels like Shore is commenting on how progress and technology shape our lives, for better or worse, and how that can sometimes disconnect us from nature.

Conceptual:

The image is more than just a snapshot of Los Angeles, it’s a reflection on what America was going through at the time. The street seems to go on forever, pointing toward a future that’s all about roads and infrastructure. There’s this pull between the ideal of the open road and the reality of urban sprawl. The photo isn’t romanticizing the city but is more about observing it as it is, big, fast, and sometimes a little isolating. The cars and the billboards show the busy, consumer-driven culture, but the image also makes you think about where all this progress is taking us. It’s like the road stretches out, but does it lead to something meaningful or just more of the same?

My photos:

These are my photos that i think represent the type of new topographic photography the best, in which i will pick a few that i think are edit worthy and more likely to reproduce this way of photography.

These are the photos i think are good enough to be able to edit and that i think most represent the work of new topographics

The way i have edited these photos makes it so it better represents the way of new topographics at the time of its relevance, with it being in black and white.

Contact sheet:

I got the chance to try and recreate the feel of Romanticism through landscape photography. While I was at the reservoir, I took around 250 photos, making sure to cover different areas of the place. I really focused on capturing the natural beauty, so I avoided including any buildings or man-made structures in the shots. This made it tricky at times because there were parts of the reservoir that I just couldn’t photograph without having something modern in the frame, like a bridge or a trail. It was a bit frustrating, but it made me think more about where I was shooting and what I was capturing. I had to be picky and really find those spots where nature felt untouched.

My best shots:

After going through all the pictures, I picked the ones I thought had the most potential for editing. At first, I chose 53 photos, but I’m planning to narrow it down even further. I’ll aim to end up with 3 to 5 solid shots that I can really focus on editing and polishing. The goal is to pick the ones that best capture the feel I’m going for without overcomplicating things. I’m looking for the images that will really pop after some editing.

I’ve since cut it down to 11 photos, which gives me a more manageable selection to work with. I also color-coded them to help me keep track of which ones I think are the best for editing. It just makes it easier to visually see which ones I like the most. I’m aiming to refine these even more and really bring out the details that could make them look even better.

Now, I’ve settled on 3 photos that I think are the strongest. I’ve marked them green to show they stand out the most and have the most potential for editing and color grading. These 3 are the ones I’ll focus on, making sure they’re as sharp and vibrant as possible. Once I get these right, I’ll be happy with the final result.

These final 3 photos represent the shots I feel best capture the essence of the landscape I wanted to portray. After carefully reviewing and narrowing down my collection, I chose these because they stand out the most in terms of composition, lighting, and how well they convey the natural beauty of the reservoir. Each one has its own unique qualities, from the way the light plays across the water to the dramatic contrast between the elements of nature. I believe these images have the most potential for editing, and I’m excited to take them through the process to really enhance their impact. These will be the key photos that help showcase the Romanticism-inspired vision I’ve been working towards.

Exposure Compensation:

This is just a way to tweak how bright or dark your photo turns out. Your camera tries to find the “perfect” exposure, but it doesn’t always get it right. If your photo’s too dark or too bright, you can use exposure compensation to fix it.

Minus (-) makes it darker.

Plus (+) makes it brighter.

Exposure Bracketing:

This is when you take several shots of the same thing, but with different brightness levels. The idea is to make sure one of them is perfect. It’s useful if you’re in tricky lighting, like a scene with both bright lights and dark shadows.

For example, you might take:

One that’s a bit brighter.

One regular shot.

One that’s a bit darker.

HDR photos:

How to use it:

HDR modes can usually be found in the settings of most cameras, in which it gives you a variety of options to choose and tweak to how you want your photographs to be.

On the camera screen you are also able to choose High speed continuous photos, this makes it so the 3 photos needed for HDR (low exposure, medium exposure, high exposure) are taken in a fraction of a second, this makes it so if there is any movement in the camera, there wont be any differences in the photos besides how dark or light they are. This will overall make it alot easier to obtain the HDR photo you are looking for as you wont need a tripod or anything to stabilise the camera.

HDR is a trick where you combine multiple shots with different exposures to get a photo with more detail in both the bright and dark areas. It’s like using the best parts of each shot to make the final one look more interesting.

So, if you’re taking a picture of a sunset or something with a lot of contrast, HDR can help you show both the sky and the shadows in detail.

My own photos:

These are the before and after of my photos regarding HDR photos in which there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference but it is quite hard to replicate the HDR without taking multiple photos of the same shot but with different exposure, so using photoshop doesn’t correlate with the same type of quality if i were to do it properly.

Case study:

Monolith, The Face of Half Dome

Technical

Ansel Adams was a pro at the technical side of photography, and Monolith, the Face of Half Dome shows that off perfectly. He used a large-format camera, which helped him capture tons of detail and a wide range of tones. The photo is a black-and-white gelatin silver print, which gives it those rich contrasts and deep blacks. Adams also controlled the exposure really carefully to make sure everything, from the shadows to the highlights, was just right. He was also known for using the zone system to manage exposure, which helped him get that perfect tonal range.

Visual

The composition is pretty striking. Half Dome’s rock face dominates the image, standing tall and powerful. The vertical orientation of the photo and the lines in the landscape really emphasize the rock’s size and texture. There’s a lot of contrast between the dark shadows on the rock and the bright areas lit by sunlight, which gives the whole image a dramatic feel. The rest of the landscape isn’t the main focus, but it’s still sharp, giving us a sense of the surrounding area without taking attention away from Half Dome.

Contextual

Adams took this photo in Yosemite National Park in 1927, a time when he was deeply involved in pushing for the conservation of natural spaces. The photo was part of his effort to show off the beauty of America’s national parks, especially Yosemite. Half Dome had already been a famous subject in American landscape photography, symbolizing the beauty of the wilderness. Adams used his photography to encourage people to appreciate and protect nature, especially as industrialization was on the rise.

Conceptual

Conceptually, the photo is all about nature’s power and timelessness. Half Dome, standing tall and dominating the landscape, represents the sheer scale and endurance of the natural world. Adams wanted to capture a feeling of connection between people and nature, and this photo really speaks to that. The contrast between light and dark also suggests a balance between opposing forces, like nature versus human influence or light versus shadow. Ultimately, Adams wanted to show us how grand and fragile nature can be.

Who is ansel adams ansel?

Ansel Adams was a famous American photographer, known for his black-and-white photos of nature, especially landscapes like Yosemite National Park. He had a unique way of capturing the details and contrasts in his photos, which made them stand out.

He also created the Zone System, a method that helped photographers get the perfect exposure and tonal range in their shots. Besides his photography, Adams was passionate about protecting the environment and pushed for the preservation of national parks. His work has had a huge impact on both photography and the conservation movement.

About his childhood:

He was born on February 20, 1902, in San Francisco, California, to a wealthy family. His father, Charles, was a successful businessman, but his mother, Olive, was a more artistic influence on him. However, Ansel had a somewhat difficult early life. He had a rough start with his education, he was a bit of a daydreamer and had trouble fitting in at school, partly because of a broken nose he suffered from a fall, which made him self-conscious.

Because of this, he was largely homeschooled, and that gave him more time to focus on his personal interests. As a child, he was fascinated by nature and often spent time outdoors, especially in the San Francisco Bay Area. His love of nature, particularly the mountains, became a major theme in his future photography work.

Sierra Club:

The Sierra Club is one of the oldest and most influential environmental organizations in the United States. It was founded in 1892 by John Muir, who was a major advocate for preserving the natural beauty of the American wilderness.

1927

In 1927, a significant event in Ansel Adams’s life occurred: he had his first solo exhibition of photographs. This exhibition was held at the Crocker Art Gallery in Sacramento, California. It was a big milestone for him, as it marked the beginning of his professional career as a photographer. At the time, he was still experimenting with photography, focusing mainly on landscapes.

Around this time, Adams was also taking lessons from photographer Edward Weston, who would go on to become an important mentor to him. This period helped Adams refine his technical skills and solidify his commitment to landscape photography.

So, 1927 was a pivotal year where Adams started to transition from a passionate hobbyist into a professional

Involvement besides photography:

Environmental Activism: He was a big advocate for nature and worked hard to protect national parks, especially Yosemite. His photos helped raise awareness about the importance of preserving these places.

Writing and Teaching: Adams didn’t just take photos, he also wrote books on photography and taught others about it. His books like “Making a Photograph” are still helpful to photographers today.

Music: Before photography took over, Adams was really into music. He was a talented pianist and even thought about pursuing a career in music at one point.

Government Work: He advised the U.S. government on environmental and artistic issues, even being part of boards that worked on preserving natural places and supporting public art.

When were Ansel Adams’ images first used for environmental purposes?

Ansel Adams’ images were first used for environmental purposes in the early 1930s. One of the most notable early instances was in 1933, when Adams was invited by the U.S. government to photograph the national parks and public lands for the Department of the Interior. His stunning photographs of places like Yosemite, Grand Canyon, and the High Sierra helped capture the beauty and importance of these areas, making a strong case for their preservation.

Kings Canyon

Kings Canyon was at risk of Development and Logging: In the early 1900s, there were plans to build dams and develop the area for agriculture, hydroelectric power, and commercial logging. These actions would have disrupted the natural landscape, altered ecosystems, and reduced the beauty and biodiversity of the region.

Water Projects: One of the biggest threats to Kings Canyon was the construction of a large reservoir system, including the proposal for the Big Pine Dam. This would have flooded parts of the canyon and severely impacted the natural environment, especially the wildlife and plant species dependent on the river.

Tourism and Overuse: As with many national parks, the growing number of visitors posed risks to the park’s delicate ecosystems. Overuse of the land, including the destruction of habitats by tourists, would have had long-term damaging effects.

How did ansel adams help with protecting the high sierra?

In the 1930s, Adams began capturing the stunning landscapes of the High Sierra, including its rugged mountains, lakes, and wilderness areas. His breathtaking black-and-white images were used to promote the protection of the region. These images became a powerful tool to show the public and lawmakers why such areas needed to be preserved.

Ansel Adams visualisation:

In terms of Ansel Adams, visualization refers to his process of mentally planning and imagining a photograph before taking the shot. It’s a technique he developed that involves seeing the final image in his mind’s eye, even before capturing it with his camera. Adams believed that successful photography starts with the photographer’s ability to mentally visualize the image they want to create, this allows them to control every aspect of the scene, from composition to exposure.

What is Romanticism?

Romanticism was an art and literary movement from the late 1700s to the 1800s. It pushed back against logic and reason, focusing instead on emotions, nature, and personal expression. It aimed to capture deep feelings and the wild beauty of the world.

Facts About Romanticism

• Who: Artists like J.M.W. Turner and John Constable, poets like William Wordsworth, and composers like Beethoven.
• What: A movement that highlighted emotion, imagination, and nature.
• Where: Started in Europe, mainly in Germany, Britain, and France, then spread.
• When: Late 18th to mid-19th century.
• How: Expressed through paintings, poetry, and music that captured the power of nature and human emotions.
• Why: It was a reaction to the Industrial Revolution and the cold, logical focus of the Enlightenment.

The Sublime

The Sublime is all about the overwhelming power of nature, huge mountains, wild storms, or endless oceans that make people feel tiny. Romantic artists loved showing this contrast between human life and nature’s vastness.

J.M.W. Turner (1775–1851)

• Turner painted with bold colors and light to show nature’s energy.
• Famous for works like The Fighting Temeraire and Rain, Steam, and Speed.
• His art often captured The Sublime, showing wild seas and dramatic skies.

John Constable (1776–1837)

• Constable painted calm, detailed scenes of the countryside.
• Known for The Hay Wain and Dedham Vale, celebrating everyday rural life.
• His work was more peaceful compared to Turner’s dramatic style.

Key Words and Terms

• The Sublime: The feeling of awe when facing nature’s power.
• Emotion: A big part of Romantic art, often shown in dramatic scenes.
• Nature: A main theme, focusing on its beauty and unpredictability.
• Imagination: Valued over strict logic and reason.
• Individualism: Celebrating personal expression and feelings.
• Picturesque: The charm of irregular, natural scenery.
• Dramatic Light: Used by Turner to create intense moods.
• Atmospheric Perspective: A technique to add depth and feeling.

Today, landscape photography often follows Romantic ideals, capturing nature’s drama and beauty, much like Turner and Constable did in their paintings.

Notes:

was not a very popular genre in this period of time, very large painting of a store river where john constable grew up at noon – before it was called The Hay Wain. Constables father was landowner, a lot of economic stress and relation to the industrial revolution. The industrial revolution presumed to have had taken workers away. Because landscape were not very popular at the time, this time of very large painting gave a shock factor in which wasn’t very expected. No sense of nature to be thought in this sense of moment, an expression of his own personal experiences. The use of nature now has meaning for the advancement into large cities which many do not have much experience with nature, this made his artwork stand out. The texture of the photos made it so you could feel the rivers and foliage, in which his artwork relates to his experiences in growing up with a lot of nature and his actual art skills to replicate this.