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Ask Jimmy Chin a Question
Jimmy Chin is a world renowned photographer, climber and…
UPCOMING EXHIBIT: Vagabonds to Icons: Photographs of Yosemite’s Climbing Revolution
The Ansel Adams Gallery will be hosting our new exhibition “Vagabonds to Icons: Photographs of Yosemite’s Climbing Revolution” in Yosemite Village from May 24th to July 11th with works by Ansel Adams, Glen Denny, Tom Frost, Dean Fidelman, Corey Rich and Jimmy Chin among others on display.
The Environmentalist Photographer Meets the Conservation President
While legendary photographer Ansel Adams is best known for his dramatic landscapes, he made images in many genres, including portraiture. On November 5-6, 1979, President Jimmy Carter, First Lady Rosalynn Carter, and Vice President Walter Mondale had portraits made by Adams for the National Portrait Gallery, and today they are part of that collection.
Half Dome, Evening, From Olmsted Point (c. 1959)
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.
Conserving the Spirit of Yosemite: Ansel Adams’ Early Years in the Sierra Club
There is perhaps no photographer in American history who stood for the ethos of stewardship for our shared environment as much as Ansel Adams, who over the course of his decades-long career did more than just introduce Americans to their wild places, but encouraged them to protect them.
(Ansel Adams) Remarks Before the Platform Committee on the Democratic National Convention, Chicago, Illinois, August 24, 1968
My name is Ansel Adams–photographer, writer and conservationist–of Carmel, California. l am a Director of the Sierra Club and a member of many conservation organizations, but the opinions I express are my own and do not necessarily represent the views of any organization with which I am associated.
Ansel Adams, in the beginning
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
Ansel Before Ansel – April 2020
The Early Works of Ansel Adams: Travel back in time to pure and pristine wilderness with this collection of Ansel Adams' vintage photographs.
Waterfalls and Rapids | April 2020
Experience the power and grace of rushing water with Ansel Adams' images of thundering falls, dancing rapids, and explosive geyers.
Nevada Fall, Rainbow
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.
Snow & Ice | January 2020
Ansel Adams began the Yosemite Special Edition Photograph series in 1958 to offer beautiful works of art as an affordable alternative to original photographs. Each 8x10 inch silver photograph is hand-crafted from the artist's original negative by a master photographer according to Ansel's guidance. Exclusive to The Ansel Adams Gallery, Special Edition Photographs celebrate Ansel's tribute to Yosemite's grandeur.
The Quiet Beauty of Photographing Yosemite Valley in Winter
Gone are the back to back crowds of the summer months, leaving you and your creative eye with the freedom to explore, often uninterrupted. We interviewed Ansel Adams Gallery Staff photographer Mike Reeves on some of his favorite spots to capture the wonders of winter in Yosemite, as well as insider tips that will keep you dry, your equipment safe, and the way back to a warm fire and meal at the end of the day.
Story Behind the Image: Monolith, The Face of Half Dome
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.
Yosemite Reverence: New Paintings by James McGrew
Canyon de Chelly from White House Overlook, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona, 1942
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
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.”
Yosemite Valley: As Photographed by Ansel Adams
Yosemite Valley
"That first impression of the valley - white water, azaleas, cool fir cavners, tall pine and stolid oakes, cliffs rising to undreamed-of-hights, the poignant sound and smells of the Sierra - was culmination of experiences so intense as to be almost painful" - Ansel Adams
"That first impression of the valley - white water, azaleas, cool fir cavners, tall pine and stolid oakes, cliffs rising to undreamed-of-hights, the poignant sound and smells of the Sierra - was culmination of experiences so intense as to be almost painful" - Ansel Adams
Ansel Adams’ Most Famous Rookie Mistake
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
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...
Artist Reception with Painter James McGrew
Recently, our Gallery celebrated a new exhibition of paintings by artist James McGrew. Members of our Yosemite community and park visitors joined together to experience James’ luminous works up close and learn more about the artist’s creative process and affiliation to Yosemite National Park
“Unicorn Peak, Thunderclouds” by Ansel Adams
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.