Each of Adams 40 photographs presented here is accompanied by an engaging narrative that explores the technical and aesthetic problems presented by the subject and includes reminiscences of the places and people involved.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
Review
Adams explains the why and how some of his most famous photographs. Reading the book is like taking a short intensive course with Ansel himself. NEW YORK TIMES ... this is the one we've all been waiting for... Whether you're a professional photographer, an advanced amateur or simply an appreciator of fine art, EXAMPLES is a must. SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS As he talks about his work, you'll find Ansel the most informative and entertaining of guides... POPULAR PHOTOGRAPHY
About the Author
Ansel Adams (1902-1984) is one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century. In a career spanning more than 60 years, he made many photographs that became icons in the history of photography. He was honoured with exhibitions of virtually every major museum in the world.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Ansel Adams (1902 - 1984) was the most honored American photographer of the twentieth century. Through his exhibitions and publication of his work, his writings, and his leadership in the Sierra Club, Adams was also a prescient and highly effective voice in the fight to preserve America's remaining wilderness.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
147 of 150 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
An essential book for all photography fans!
In 1983, Ansel Adams picked 40 of his most memorable and diverse black and white photographs as examples of his work. For each one he wrote a brief essay that described the circumstances of deciding to photograph the subject, how he came to prepare for the photography, his companions, special challenges that occurred along the way, how he selected the composition, tricky light and shadow conditions encountered, technical details of how the image was captured (equipment, film speeds, settings, filters, lenses, etc.), technical details of printing the image, and the surprises he experienced.
In the midst of all this, he shares his philosophy of life, nature, and the art of photography. It's like attending a master class with a genius. Even if you know nothing about photography, this book will open your eyes to new ways of seeing and experiencing the world around you.
For those who love these images, the stories that accompany them will broaden and deepen your appreciation of what Mr. Adams accomplished. If you are not a technically-oriented photographer or fan, realize that only about 20 percent of the material is primarily technical. The technical parts are very interesting, but the rest of the material is even better.
Mr. Adams did draw the line at one point though. "Absent from these pages [is] a statement of what the photograph 'means.'" His reason: "Only the print contains the artist's meaning and message." In other words, the work should speak to you for itself.
He does point out some limits to his essays that you should keep in mind. He often doesn't remember when he made a particular photograph. Friends would remind him that a certain print was published in a certain publication in 1934 and he had dated it as 1936 elsewhere. He also did not keep notes of how he made the image after the negative was developed. So all of the technical notes and dates are probably off a little. That's all right in many cases. You are not a historian, and you are probably not going to use glass plates. Modern equipment is much different from what Adams used, so you will be making major adjustments anyway.
His style of photography was one adventure after another. You'll be climbing with him through snow-clad forests in freezing weather, and suddenly he's down to his last exposure. Which filter should he use?
In fact, in many cases, Adams was gambling on how the image would turn out because he would not get a second chance. It's like reading a detective story, in which the story begins with a flashback sequence of how the mystery ends, like Sunset Boulevard, because the finished image is there is its duotone beauty.
In other cases, the experiences of Edward Weston helped him avoid mistakes. As a result, you get to see his delightful, dramatic images of dunes in Death Valley.
As usual, the Little, Brown pages are often too small for the images. Despite my annoyance at this limitation, I did not grade the book down since the essays are so wonderful (of more than five-star interest) and are the real reason for reading and examining this book.
I would suggest that you read The American Wilderness before reading this book. That will give you a context for understanding what Mr. Adams is talking about in these essays. The essays assume a certain level of familiarity with the people, philosophies, and locations involved. The American Wilderness can provide that background for you.
After you have swum in these wonderful stories, I suggest that you write an essay about something you have done that contains high drama and meaning. Then share that essay with someone who would appreciate know the whole story. How can others learn as rapidly and as well as possible if your experiences (successful and unsuccessful) are lost?
Keep your mind open for opportunity! It's all around you!
39 of 40 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Forget "...every photographers library..." This should be in every library. It's one of the ten best books I've ever read. Yes, I'm an amateur photographer but this book is way deeper and of so much more value than just knowing which f-stop he used.
This is a beautifully illustrated book of short stories chronicling the adventures of a master as he passionately pursues his craft. It's a love story with nature. If this book doesn't inspire you to climb a mountain or to sit beside a stream for a few hours, I don't know what will. If it also inspires you to photograph your little corner of creation, there's plenty of insight in these pages as well.
42 of 44 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
If you want to learn photography and you would prefer to learn (or supplement your learning) by intensive case study, this is the book for you. Ansel Adams is a master at controlling composition, light and perspective, and he conveys his unique methodology admirably in this book. This book covers much more than his epic landscapes -- there are a lot of still life, portrait and architectural case studies. And he's not just discussing the zone system, but also everything else involved, including packing the right equipment, leaving at the right time, and hunting down the right subject. And above all, patience and persistence. The photos themselves are reproduced with admirable tone, sharpness, and contrast, as they are in all the books in this series. And although there are only forty of them, each case study runs two or three pages in addition to a full page photo. And if you like this, check out Ansel Adams' classic three part intensive introduction to photography, in the same series as this book: The Camera, The Print, and The Negative.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Excellent for the intuitive side
The photograhy technology in this book is really really old-school stuff. I'm sure it was pertainent to the day it was written, however there is no digital discussion a'tall. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Whitjr
Excellent Resource into the Mind of a Master
This is truly a fantastic resource for those who want to "step into" the mind of a master photographer. Read more
Published 21 months ago by AJT
A fascinating insight into the mind of a mater photographer
This is a fascinating of how Ansel Adams came to make 40 of his photographs. Some of them are well known ("Monolith, The Face of the half Dome", "Clearing Winter Storm", "Moonrise... Read more
Published on April 25, 2010 by Andrew Roos
Go behind the scenes with a master
I found this book very revealing and compelling, not to mention inspiring. You get to go on a journey with a master of photography and learn about how he approached each of these... Read more
Published on March 26, 2010 by J. C. Labozzetta
Not for digital.
I thought this book would be great, and I saw that it had rave reviews so I got it. I must say I was fairly disappointed. Read more
Published on January 1, 2010 by Julian Velasco
Historica
A detailed explanation of how America's most famous photographer worked to produce his greatest photographs.
Published on May 11, 2009 by N. Richard Schopp Pa
Excellent study
Don't mistake this for some coffee table book. Examples: The Making of 40 Photographs is a rich study into the lighting, problem solving, development and other technical data... Read more
Published on February 27, 2009 by Anthony Zinnanti
Learn from the bests.
Buy it for the stunning photo, the excellence description and the passion for the live that you can read in this book.
Published on January 11, 2009 by Nico
Black & White from the pro
It is always great to have the chance to glimpse the work process of the masters in photography. This book provides enough information for anyone wanting to better their work in... Read more
Published on March 26, 2008 by Stephane J. Johnson
adams ansel examples
Inspiring, fascinating, revealing. Ansel Adams writes "the story
behind the pictures", the why, the how. Read more
behind the pictures", the why, the how. Read more
Published on December 6, 2007 by C. Rudlin
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
