Ansel Adams Quotes

[abraxas]

From Ansel Adams, the Grand-daddy of landscape photography. I don't quite agree with some of these, but still pretty good reading when things get boring and slow.

A good photograph is knowing where to stand.

A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed.

A photograph is usually looked at - seldom looked into.

A true photograph need not be explained, nor can it be contained in words.

Dodging and burning are steps to take care of mistakes God made in establishing tonal relationships.

I tried to keep both arts alive, but the camera won. I found that while the camera does not express the soul, perhaps a photograph can!

In my mind's eye, I visualize how a particular... sight and feeling will appear on a print. If it excites me, there is a good chance it will make a good photograph. It is an intuitive sense, an ability that comes from a lot of practice.

In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration.

It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment.

It is my intention to present - through the medium of photography - intuitive observations of the natural world which may have meaning to the spectators.

Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer - and often the supreme disappointment.

Millions of men have lived to fight, build palaces and boundaries, shape destinies and societies; but the compelling force of all times has been the force of originality and creation profoundly affecting the roots of human spirit.

Myths and creeds are heroic struggles to comprehend the truth in the world.

No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.

Not everybody trusts paintings but people believe photographs.

Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas. It is a creative art.

Photography, as a powerful medium of expression and communications, offers an infinite variety of perception, interpretation and execution.

Some photographers take reality... and impose the domination of their own thought and spirit. Others come before reality more tenderly and a photograph to them is an instrument of love and revelation.

Sometimes I do get to places just when God's ready to have somebody click the shutter.

The negative is comparable to the composer's score and the print to its performance. Each performance differs in subtle ways.

The negative is the equivalent of the composer's score, and the print the performance.

The only things in my life that compatibly exists with this grand universe are the creative works of the human spirit.

There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer.

There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs.

There are worlds of experience beyond the world of the aggressive man, beyond history, and beyond science. The moods and qualities of nature and the revelations of great art are equally difficult to define; we can grasp them only in the depths of our perceptive spirit.

There is nothing worse than a brilliant image of a fuzzy concept.

There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept.

These people live again in print as intensely as when their images were captured on old dry plates of sixty years ago... I am walking in their alleys, standing in their rooms and sheds and workshops, looking in and out of their windows. Any they in turn seem to be aware of me.

To photograph truthfully and effectively is to see beneath the surfaces and record the qualities of nature and humanity which live or are latent in all things.

Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop.

We must remember that a photograph can hold just as much as we put into it, and no one has ever approached the full possibilities of the medium.

When I'm ready to make a photograph, I think I quite obviously see in my minds eye something that is not literally there in the true meaning of the word. I'm interested in something which is built up from within, rather than just extracted from without.

When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.

Yosemite Valley, to me, is always a sunrise, a glitter of green and golden wonder in a vast edifice of stone and space.

You don't take a photograph, you make it.

 

[Dweller]

Wonderful post, thank you. I see now after reading this that I should not only appreciate his photography, but should be seeking out his writing as well.

 

[abraxas]

Wonderful post, thank you. I see now after reading this that I should not only appreciate his photography, but should be seeking out his writing as well.

I should break down and get one of his books. Quotes like these tend to get my thinking right without effecting my own originality.

 

[Mike_E]

They're cheap at twice the price!

 

[Stephi]

Ansel Adams is one of my favorite photographers, thanks for this post

 

[Big Mike]

I tried to read one or two of his books...they started off very technical and put me to sleep.

Ansel Adams occasionally brought a class to the wildlife sanctuary that my grandfather ran for 40 years. There is a photo of Ansel (presumably taken by my grandfather) in the book that my grandfather wrote. He was an award winning photographer himself. Unfortunately, I only got to meet him a handful of times and he passes away a couple months ago.

 

[abraxas]

I tried to read one or two of his books...they started off very technical and put me to sleep.

Ansel Adams occasionally brought a class to the wildlife sanctuary that my grandfather ran for 40 years. There is a photo of Ansel (presumably taken by my grandfather) in the book that my grandfather wrote. He was an award winning photographer himself. Unfortunately, I only got to meet him a handful of times and he passes away a couple months ago.

I'm not as enthused with technical publications as I used to be. I've seen little bits and pieces of the 'zone system', and notes from others as well as wonderful work that can be produced by using it. However, I know what you mean, it gets tedious and I'd rather work on developing my own techniques and style.

It's easier for me to enjoy his quotes and see his work.
The Ansel Adams Gallery

That's a shame about your grandfather. My grandfather died before my mother was born. I suspect that the talent/artistic abilities in my family come from his genes. I wish I knew something about him other than he was the 'black sheep' of his family and my grandmother never considered remarrying, even though she was a young widow.

 

[Big Mike]

I wonder too, if I got any artistic genes from my grandfather. He was no black sheep...he was beloved by all...but my father (his son) on the other hand, is the epitome of black sheep.

A neat story about my grandfather. He was a big supporter of his local college football team...Butte college in northern California. Long story but the athletic grounds and stadium were named after him a long time ago. When he died this fall, they had a ceremony and gave the family a game ball...and all the players put his initials on their helmets for the rest of the year. Anyway, the cool part is that they managed to go undefeated this year and were crowned National Champs in the Jr college division.

Here is his book...[ame="http://www.amazon.com/jewel-Pacific-Flyway-story-Wildlife/dp/0971300003"]A Jewel in the Pacific Flyway[/ame].

 

[abraxas]

Great cover image on that book. He appears to have been an excellent photographer. Cool story tribute to your grandfather too. I did nothing but argue with my paternal grandfather- we did mend things up before he passed away. My maternal grandmother gave me my love for the outdoors. She thought it was important and took me places and told me stuff. She passed away before I started making a living off of the outside. I've tried to pass on the things she gave me to my kids and grandkids.

From what I heard my grandfather was a pretty good guy, just went his own way- and if my Mom's brother (my money-sucking uncle) was anything like the rest of his family, I would have stayed away too. Now my Mom's uncle was quite a painter. She met him years later when she visited him in Indiana. He gave her one of his pieces called, 'Indiana Autumn.' We had it hanging in our living room. I spent many hours studying it, wondering what Indiana and inside the beautiful forest he had made was like.