Half Dome, Evening, From Olmsted Point (c. 1959)

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In the high country of Yosemite, the high-altitude Tioga Pass is Yosemite’s gateway to the East, winding amongst some of the country’s most spectacular alpine scenery.

Ansel Adams, in the beginning

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A short Q and A with the author of a new book that explores the little-known early career of one of America’s most celebrated and beloved photographer. From Yale University Press Blog
Nevade Fall Rainbow

Nevada Fall, Rainbow

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When Ansel Adams set out to photograph Nevada Fall in the spring of 1947, the Mist Trail was an obvious no-go. The trail, so named for the heavy mists that roll off Vernal Fall, would be impossible to travail without soaking his camera equipment.

Story Behind the Image: Monolith, The Face of Half Dome

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On the chilly spring morning of April 10th, 1927, Ansel Adams set out along Yosemite’s LeConte Gully to capture an image of the striking sheer face of Half Dome, one of Yosemite National Park’s most iconic natural features. Though Ansel knew the route well, having spent four teenage summers as the keeper of the Sierra Club’s nearby lodge in Yosemite Valley, his companions—his fiancée Virginia Best and three close friends, including his lifetime friend and fellow wilderness photographer Cedric Wright—picked carefully along the steep gully in the icy shadow of nearby Grizzly Peak.

Canyon de Chelly from White House Overlook, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona, 1942

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On first traveling to Canyon de Chelly in 1937, only six years after its establishment as a national monument, Ansel Adams thought it to be the most beautiful place on earth. Astonished by the “beautiful, flowing patterns” of the sand dunes, he wrote to his wife, Virginia Best:
Dogwood Blossoms, 1938, by Ansel Adams

Dogwood Blossoms

Each year, for about three weeks in April or May, the blooming of Yosemite’s famous dogwood trees turns the Merced River Valley into a kaleidoscope of brilliant white blossoms and tiny yellow buds. This awe-inspiring scene would inspire one of the few still-life images of Ansel Adams’s career, “Dogwood Blossoms.”
Ansel Adams, “Chinese Baptist Kindergarten”

Ansel Adams’ Most Famous Rookie Mistake

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Today, it’s hard to imagine that one of America’s most celebrated photographers ever struggled to find work shooting photographs. But in the beginning, Ansel Adams was, like most young photographers, unknown, and in order to support himself as a photographer, he took on work as a commercial photographer.

Mount Ansel Adams, Lyell Fork

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This branch of the Merced River, the Lyell Fork, is one of the most far-flung regions of Yosemite National Park. To reach this secluded spot, intrepid hikers must traverse many miles of trail before veering off to bushwhack down an exposed ridgeline to grasslands below...
Ansel Adams, “Unicorn Peak, Thunderclouds”

“Unicorn Peak, Thunderclouds” by Ansel Adams

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Ansel Adams captured this phenomenal image of “Unicorn Peak, Thunderclouds” with his medium format camera around 1967 in late spring or early summer. He was sixty-five at the time, and was hiking across Tuolumne Meadows with his Hasselblad when he discovered this view.

Mt. McKinley Bears Invade Ranger Cabin

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Ansel and his son Michael arrived at Mt. McKinley National Park on the infamous "Moose Gooser", the Alaska Railroad that ran from Fairbanks...