Product Description

The Photographs of Ansel Adams with the Writings of John Muir

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Ansel Adams whose landmark early photographs of wild America, originally taken for the Works Progress Administration, fill the pages of this splendid volume. Adams' breathtaking images are accompanied by excerpts from the writings of Sierra Club founder John Muir, the renowned conservationist who devoted his life to celebrating and preserving the American wilderness.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #249919 in Books
• Published on: 2002-07-04
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 128 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780762413904
• Condition: USED - VERY GOOD
• Notes:
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From the Publisher
Through the lens of Ansel Adams, America saw itself clearly for the first time. With more than 100 of his stunning photographs, AMERICA'S WILDERNESS pays tribute to the dedication, work, and vision of Ansel Adams. here with the eloquent writings of John Muir are the images that opened the eyes of a nation.

About the Author
JOHN MUIR (1838-1914), naturalist and writer, was born in Scotland and emigrated to the United States with his family in 1848. Muir dedicated his life to the preservation of the American wilderness, campaigning strongly for the establishment of Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks, which Congress approved in 1890. His work played a key role in President Theodore Roosevelt's acts to preserve 148 million acres of American forest. Muir founded the Sierra Club in 1892. He wrote dozens of magazine articles advocating a national conservation policy and published several books including The Mountains of California (1894), The Yosemite (1912),and Travels in Alaska (1915).

Customer Reviews

Pretty nice - not Adams best
America's Wilderness is a nice book with huge size. However, seen as a novice photographer who has studied hundreds of photo books, this book do not contain the best photos of Ansel Adams large production. The best of Ansel Adams photos can be find in the books where photos are selected by Ansel Adams himself. The books representing Ansel Adams best master pieces are for example Yosemite, Classic Images, Examples: The Making of 40 photograps and The American Wilderness (not same book as this one). However this book is a beaty, too.

Are we looking at the same book?
Many of Ansel Adams' exquisite photographs call out for large reproductions, and this book displays them in a decent size format. But what a waste. The reproductions are nearly all flat and murky, with little detail in the shadow. If I had read far enough down into the customer reviews, I would have been warned; but the reviews at the top of the stack were quite favorable. Which leads me to wonder: Are we looking at the same book? I advise readers to purchase Adams books published by Little, Brown, and Company (aka "Bulfinch"). Even at smaller sizes their books display much more detail and clarity than does this disappointing edition.

Adams wouldn't have approved
While some photos are reasonable, most are seriously flawed. Some are flat, some are excessively contrasty, others seem murky and indistinct. Some of the photos need cleaning to remove dust spots, etc. Even the title is wrong , as the book includes photos of dams and sheep. There are many other excellent books, which have been prepared from Adams prints and produced with much more care. Buy one of those.