The Cameras Eye: Ansel Adams
Remembered primarily for his stunning photographs of California’s Yosemite Valley, Ansel Adams nurtured an unparalleled love not only for photography, but also the printed word and the piano. During his lifetime, Adams authored numerous books on photography in conjunction with such masters like Edward Weston, Willard Van Dyke, and Imogen Cunningham.
His expertise and love of the camera led him to author the famous trilogy of technical instruction manuals: THE CAMERA, THE NEGATIVE, and THE PRINT. A pioneer and visionary in his field, Adams invented what is known as the zone system. The zone system was a technique offered photographers a better control over finished photographs by enabling them to translate light they see into specific densities on both negatives and paper.
Adams enjoyed an upper-class upbringing in San Francisco. His interest in photography was fueled when as a sick child, his Aunt Mary presented him with a copy of IN THE HEART OF THE SIERRAS, a book by George Fiske. So taken was young Adams by the photographs in the book that he persuaded his parents for a vacation in Yosemite National Park. The year was 1916, the same year Adams was given his first camera.
He dropped out of school when he was thirteen. The idea of uniformity in the education system was a hindrance and he decided to educate himself. Although self-taught as a pianist, his love of photography kept him alternating throughout his adult life between being a photographer and a concert pianist.
Although he did give up formal education very early in life, Adams received three Guggenheim fellowships during the course of his career. In the year 1966, he was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. And in 1980 he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor by Jimmy Carter.
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