Ode to Ansel Adams

Update: More on our trip with Ansel Adam's son Michael here: thomashawk.com/2008/04/scobleizer-on-our-two-days-with-mi...

I'm currently up in Yosemite Valley with my wife spending two days interviewing Michael Adams, Ansel Adams' son. The interviews are being done as part of a new video show called PhotoCycle that I'm working on with Robert Scoble and professional photographer Marc Silber. Rocky Barbanica who is executive producer of the new show is also up here with us.

In about an hour we are going to be given a guided tour up on a closed road to Glacier Point to shoot photographs from more of the places that Ansel Adams shot over the years. Yesterday we spent most of our time driving around Yosemite Valley to many of the most famous spots where Adams first shot some of the world's most iconic images of nature.

Michael Adams is such a kind and generous man. When I have more time after I'm back I'll do a much more detailed write up. He has so many amazing stories about his father Ansel and the beautiful photographs that Ansel provided the world with.

The photograph above was taken in the same meadow where Ansel Adams shot Moon and Half Dome, one of his most famous and spectacular images.

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Comments

miquelet says:

Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Blanc i Negre, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

;-) !
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

` ®© ROBERTO CARBONI says:

EXCELLENT CAPTURE IN BnW.CONGRATS
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

seawallrunner says:

beautiful.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

CC Chapman says:

Beautiful shot. Thanks for sharing via Twitter or I might have missed it
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

m1ke_pearce says:

Great ode! Thanks for tweeting this.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

wellerb says:

Thanks for the twitter share! Great shot.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Scott O. Smith says:

This is awesome, Thomas. I'm excited to hear and see more of your trip.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

jkhendricks says:

Powerful!
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

DuckBrown says:

nice shot. Can't wait to watch the show.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Sea Lion says:

You really did the spot justice. It's lovely, especially large. The tones in the rock on the left are nice. Well done.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Greg Gladman says:

Wow, no pressure...isn't that a little like being invited to sketch the Picasso family portrait? It looks like you were up to it, though...beautiful work, Thomas.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

kreg.steppe says:

Wow...Beautiful. I'm Jealous.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

MOVED TO PIXELENS FOLLOW ME THERE! says:

Hi, I'm an admin for a group called You've been Expl(wh)ored!, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

--
Seen on your photo stream. (?)
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

eddhead says:

K i l l e r.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Love Of Carnage! says:

lovely.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Mr. Wizzard says:

Gorgeous.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

j@ys0n says:

Great and what a neat trip. (jays0n from zooomr BTW, followed the link from your blog)
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

susan.beebe says:

~~~~~ AWESOME !!! ~~~~~~

breathless... the peaceful stillness captured here is soo serene!

nice work! I can't wait to see your entire Yosemite collection and the interview with Adam's son...cool idea!

thanks!!
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

with regards says:

Hi, I'd love to see this in our group. There are a few other Ansel Adams tributes there...
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

JeremyHall says:

Now this one truly is ansel-esque. Beautiful.
--
Seen on friendfeed.com
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

tysonwilliams.com says:

Spectacular job!
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Schmeesy says:

Thanks for sharing these amazing moments with us!! SO JEALOUS!! I've read and re-read a collection of letters to and from Ansel Adams to and from others, including his son. He had so many amazing insights into art and creativity and the world. I'm not obsessed, but I'm close. Glad that you guys are working on this project. I'll be the first to obsess over it when you're done. ;-) Incredible to be following along on your journey - Qik/scobleizer.com
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Creativity+ Timothy K Hamilton says:

Proof that digital is surpassing film in photo quality -- amazing full sized.
Browsing your steam from "recent items from my contacts"
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

subjective_reality says:

Thanks for Sharing! what a great shot!
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Rhett Redelings says:

Is it the medium (film vs. digital), the optics or the photographer that makes this so satisfying full sized? I wonder. It will haunt me, the not knowing. Great shot.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Pacdog says:

Ansel Adams is one of my fav photographers!
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

ShawnXian (Busy trying to Heal) says:

I'm excited to hear about your endeavors with Ansel's son, etc. What a great experience for you, and vicariously, if we are so lucky, us!

Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

unintelligiBill says:

Excellent !!!
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

davidlepnyc (on a break) says:

Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Totally Awesome Pictures, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

winston.1 in & out!!!...very busy till Sept. says:

Really nice shot.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Carmelo Aquilina says:

when I saw the thumbnail I thought -"so like Ansel Adams" and when I clicked through I found that it was so- very good shot !
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

marc silber says:

Thomas, thanks for telling folks about our show. That had to be the most amazing 24 hours in my photo career, walking with Michael Adams through all parts of Yosemite and hearing stories about his dad brought me closer to Ansel than I've ever been. I feel so fortunate to be able to help other photographers live these moments with our show PhotoCycle, stay tuned for more news silberstudios.com/blog/
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

roy_mac_an_iarla says:

Very evocative of the master.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Kris Kros says:

Great tribute to the master.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Miguel Nunez Photography says:

This awesome picture deserves a GOLD AWARD. Please join our group and add your ***GOLD AWARD*** picture to our pool. Also tag your picture with " GOLD WILDLIFE " www.flickr.com/groups/contests
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

craig24 says:

Cool. It was fun chatting with you on Qik.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Raymond Larose says:

This is a truly fantastic photo.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

_lmc says:

it is. perfect.
Posted 15 months ago. ( permalink )

Farl says:

even before I read the title, I saw Ansel Adams all over the thumbnail.

I hope you'll write more on your interview. there's a lot that we can learn.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

Susan_Dennis says:

Seriously gorgeous work.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

saccman says:

no offense folks, its a good photo, but honestly, how you not take a good photo in this park in black and white. It's harder to shoot a bad photo in Yellowstone then a good one. And unless you've been there, you won't realize this.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

Rhett Redelings says:

I disagree. Seeing beauty worth photographing in Yosemite is no trick but the lighting is tricky and knowing what to include in the image and what not to, that's also a challenge.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

ndnbrunei says:

Fine work.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

jalalspages says:

Please tag your photo "jalalspages nature album"
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

B2 Photography says:

Half Dome always looks great ! Thanks for sharing.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

Jeff Sullivan (Oregon Coast today) says:

You've inspired me to determine when we can next witness the same lunar and sun shadow alignment that Ansel captured at 4:14pm on December 28, 1960 in his "Moon and Half Dome" image. That will next occur in late December 2017. See you there?

Now I just need to figure out the conversion from the lens on Ansel's camera to its 35mm equivalent to figure out what lens to use with APS-C "crop factor" digital sensors... not for 2017 of course, so I can go on a practice run this December.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

Thomas Hawk says:

Jeff, sounds awesome. Looking forward to it!
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

darkenergy777 says:

Wonderful image.
Posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

Jeff Sullivan (Oregon Coast today) says:

Just a quick update... if you want to join me for the "practice retake" in December, drop me a line. If that trip, the lunar and solar alignment, and the shoot and image turn out well, I may even return in January for another attempt (with the sun and moon in a slightly less close match to the light angles that Ansel witnessed).
www.activesole.blogspot.com

I can go into detail on how I select dates and times, but for the moment I don't want to create a rush of competing tripods to a small patch of dirt at the same moment. (As a similar winter event data point, the annual Horsetail Falls sunset shots can be frustratingly crowded, and that's an event where the photographer demand is spread out over multiple weeks.)
Posted 7 months ago. ( permalink )

Andreas Blixt says:

I like this photo, it's got great detail and is nicely bright. The pine forest looks like an audience, watching the very long thriller, Mountain Erosion.

-Voted 'save' (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group) using photoratr
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

MeckiM@c says:

I like the dark treeline at the bottom but the boring sky takes up too much space in an otherwise great picture

-Voted 'delete' (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group) using photoratr
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

Ryan Holloway Photography says:

pretty, the sky is a bit distracting with it's noise level though

-Voted 'delete2' (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group) using photoratr
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

Ryan Dearth says:

i like how black the trees are but there is no separation fom half dome to the sky. The black and white conversion could be better. And any time you reference ansel adams the shot better be fucking incredible - scratch that, you should never reference ansel adams in a title of a photograph.

-Voted 'delete3' (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group) using photoratr
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

blakophoto says:

Agree with ^^. I'd like more contrast, and the sky/rock separation seems forced by post-processing.

delete4
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

Crick3 says:

The detail and tones in the rock are superb, but the sky reminds me of a film shot that has uneven development due to heavy agitation. There is a lack of detail in the trees.

--
Seen next to a fellow photo of the group "DeleteMe Uncensored--Apply for Your Matching TARP Funds Here". (?)

-Voted "delete5" (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group)
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

cca_jai says:

great pic.. i like your sky also.. think its pretty balancing.. save 2
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

adameros says:

No sense of depth, and the sky is pretty boring.

-Voted 'delete6' (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group) using photoratr
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

mbshane says:

I like it. But I have to wonder why you chose an ISO of 640 when you could have gone lower, gotten a bit less noise, and still had a shutter spend that would have been pretty fast.

-Voted "save3" (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group)
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

Ivan Makarov says:

Ansel Adams wouldn't frame it this way if the sky was empty. In fact, I don't remember a single Yosemite image without the clouds. If he's be out shooting at all, it wouldn't include the sky. Also, the rocks are lacking visual contrast. Consider tweaking levels in the image.

-Voted 'delete7' (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group) using photoratr
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

uʌ says:

nice. ansel would have climbed the mountain to the right though.

-Voted "delete8" (by the Delete Me Uncensored Group)
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

shimsD700 says:

If you are going to evoke Ansel - you better have detail across your range, sky interest, and tighter composition

delete9
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

+Eric+ says:

Yeah this looks like crap. Ansel is WAY Overrated anyway. It was his personality that sold his crap, not his photos.

Any dick, tom, or mo can reproduce his large format crap with a Canon 350D.

Did you use a cell phone for this?

delete10
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

Therrr says:

lucky duck!

The idea of going to yosimite and staying tethered to the internet is kind of obscene...its is supposed to be a wilderness experience.

I kind of like the photo...its different from what I would associate with Adams but the lack of extreme whites draws my eye to the delicate snow patches on the ridges.

too late save 4
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

+Eric+ says:

hahah Theresa said Obscene!

Theresa said Obscene!

That's damn right. This photo is obscene. It's disgusting on so many levels. The utter nerve!

Obama is a great president Thomas, how dare you say he's not.

I don't know what you're trying to pull here, but I don't like it.

Stop it!
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

Therrr says:

Eric you totally missed the way I spelled Yosemite
Posted 3 months ago. ( permalink )

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Ode to Ansel Adams

Comments

miquelet says:

` ®© ROBERTO CARBONI says:

seawallrunner says:

CC Chapman says:

m1ke_pearce says:

wellerb says:

Scott O. Smith says:

jkhendricks says:

DuckBrown says:

Sea Lion says:

Greg Gladman says:

kreg.steppe says:

MOVED TO PIXELENS FOLLOW ME THERE! says:

eddhead says:

Love Of Carnage! says:

Mr. Wizzard says:

j@ys0n says:

susan.beebe says:

with regards says:

JeremyHall says:

tysonwilliams.com says:

Schmeesy says:

Creativity+ Timothy K Hamilton says:

subjective_reality says:

Rhett Redelings says:

Pacdog says:

ShawnXian (Busy trying to Heal) says:

unintelligiBill says:

davidlepnyc (on a break) says:

winston.1 in & out!!!...very busy till Sept. says:

Carmelo Aquilina says:

marc silber says:

roy_mac_an_iarla says:

Kris Kros says:

Miguel Nunez Photography says:

craig24 says:

Raymond Larose says:

_lmc says:

Farl says:

Susan_Dennis says:

saccman says:

Rhett Redelings says:

ndnbrunei says:

jalalspages says:

B2 Photography says:

Jeff Sullivan (Oregon Coast today) says:

Thomas Hawk says:

darkenergy777 says:

Jeff Sullivan (Oregon Coast today) says:

Andreas Blixt says:

MeckiM@c says:

Ryan Holloway Photography says:

Ryan Dearth says:

blakophoto says:

Crick3 says:

cca_jai says:

adameros says:

mbshane says:

Ivan Makarov says:

uʌ says:

shimsD700 says:

+Eric+ says:

Therrr says:

+Eric+ says:

Therrr says:

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