Ansel Adams

Ansel Adams

On February 20, 1902 Ansel Easton Adams was born in San Francisco, California. He was the only child of Charles and Olive Adams. Ansel, originally trained as a classic pianist, would later abandon his first love, music, for photography. Ansel Adams became America's most talented and beloved landscape photographer.

In 1908, Ansel started school. He was a poor student and hated going to school. In 1915, Charles Adams took his son out of school and had him privately tutored. Charles also bought Ansel a year pass to the Panama Pacific International Exposition. The Exposition included exhibits on painters, science, machinery, and photography. "It was also the first time that he encountered photography as an art form in three prints exhibited by photographer Edward Weston, with whom he was much later to collaborate in the f/64 Group project and who became a great friend"(1).

During his unconventional education, Ansel became interested in music, particularly, the piano. He began to

teach himself how to play. He was very serious about his music. Later, recognizing his son's talent, Charles hired Marie Butler, who was piano tutor, for his son. She tutored Ansel for three years. Ansel seriously considered becoming a concert pianist.

Then, in 1916, Ansel took his first trip to Yosemite while on vacation with his family. Ansel became interested in photography on this trip and took his first photos on his first camera. "With his first camera, a Kodak Box Brownie, Ansel's life as a photographer began - an interest which was to endure for the rest of his life. With his first attempts at committing the magic of Yosemite to film, he demonstrated the beginnings of an immense talent which was to make him a world-class photographer". (2)

Ansel was persuaded by his parents to attend school again and he went to Mrs. Kate Wilkins' private school. In 1917, he graduated from the eighth grade at Mrs. Wilkins' school. His graduation marked the end of Ansel's Academic Career. Ansel continued to pursue his first loves, the piano and music, as well as his new found interest in photography after his graduation.

Ansel began teaching himself the basic principles of photography. He got a job working part-time for a photo

finisher, Fred Dittman, in San Francisco. This is where Ansel had his first dark room experience. A neighbor, Will Dassonville, was a technician and manufacturer of photographic papers. "It was Will Dassonville who was Ansel's true inspiration and who brought to his attention the true extent to which photography could be developed into and art form". (3)

Over the years Ansel continued his interest in photography and continued to teach himself while still pursuing the piano. He also became very interested in nature and the environment. In 1919 he took a position as Custodian for the Sierra Club. Ansel was passionate about protecting the environment and became a life-long member of The Sierra Club.

"The Sierra Club's members are more than 750,000 of your friends and neighbors. Inspired by nature, we work together to protect our communities and the planet. The Club is America's oldest, largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization.

Our Mission Statement:

1. Explore, enjoy and protect the wild places of the earth.

2. Practice and promote the responsible use of the earth's ecosystems and resources.

3. Educate and enlist humanity to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment.

4. Use all lawful means to carry out these objectives". (4)

During this time, Ansel was still considered to be a pianist. He continued to practice his piano at Best's Studio. This is where he met his wife, Virginia Best in 1921. Virginia was a classical singing student at the time. Best's Studio was actually a gift shop in Yosemite that sold books, carvings, paintings, and photographs. A piano was kept in the shop, and Ansel was allowed to practice there. Virginia's father, Harry Best, owned the shop. Virginia and Ansel shared many common interests such as nature and classical music. They became engaged and where married nearly seven years later on January 2, 1928.

It was in Yosemite that Ansel's love of nature grew. He led many expeditions to the Yosemite for The Sierra Club in the mid 20's and also went on many excursions there by himself. Ansel love taking pictures of the mountains in this area. He also began writing articles for the Sierra Club Bulletin which he illustrated with his own photos.

Ansel began to experiment more with different types of photography at this time. "He developed a way of producing images resembling charcoal drawings. These images