Reposting the wisdom of the great master photographer Ansel Adams
Image by aliceinthepoetsheartland
“The only things in my life that compatibly exists with this grand universe are the creative works of the human spirit.”
~Ansel Adams
Most of the time when I read good books, I instinctively ferret around synopsis hoping to get more acquainted with the author by the trend of his thoughts in his story; and then I Google his biographical sketch hoping to find his soul in his most intimate quotations.
In my Facebook wall on a regular basis I am gifted with a cornucopia of poetic images that speak to me in figurative languages I can only begin to understand, remembering T.S. Elliot when he said: “Genuine Poetry can communicate before it is understood.”
In like manner, the photographed images communicate in languages I am able to understand, with the poetry of each contained in images that talk to me, some of the latest I received I share with you here to make the points of Ansel Adams more clearly understood.
The wisdom of Ansel Adams best explains the influence of the art in photography that one who appreciates the beauty of it can easily relate to.
“A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed.
A photograph is usually looked at – seldom looked into.
No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.”
~Ansel Adams
My background in Fine Arts makes it virtually easy for me to relate to visual arts so then I have through all the years nurtured this ability by reading up on developments in art and visiting galleries. I have noticed that art galleries even in malls with the heavier foot traffic so to speak, do not call as much attention as I had hoped; and often I wondered just how much of the art’s accessibility persuade an individual to begin developing the interest for it. And then photography came along, I suppose when Ansel Adams said:
“Not everybody trusts paintings but people believe photographs,” he meant people can relate to the reality of images captured by an instrument than that by the hand of an artist. Herein, rests the graphic accounts in photojournalism that I will soon feature in Facebook.
“Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas. It is a creative art.
Photography, as a powerful medium of expression and communications, offers an infinite variety of perception, interpretation and execution.
Some photographers take reality… and impose the domination of their own thought and spirit. Others come before reality more tenderly and a photograph to them is an instrument of love and revelation.
Sometimes I do get to places just when God’s ready to have somebody click the shutter.”
There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer. There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs.
There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept.”
~Ansel Adams
Photographs are timeless memories encrypted in images that can remarkably be deciphered by a viewer at any given time; this is why Ansel Adams said:
“These people live again in print as intensely as when their images were captured on old dry plates of sixty years ago… I am walking in their alleys, standing in their rooms and sheds and workshops, looking in and out of their windows. And they in turn seem to be aware of me.
To photograph truthfully and effectively is to see beneath the surfaces and record the qualities of nature and humanity which live or are latent in all things.”
Just how much does a good photographer have to produce to showcase his talent?
The great photo master Ansel Adams succinctly states:
“Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop.”
I intuit poetry in all well-composed photographs I am tagged in Facebook I am privileged to view that has me now restructuring composition of the words of wisdom of this true artist in the acclaimed photographer- Ansel Adams into his own free verse, much of which are evident in his prodigious photographs.
“When I’m ready to make a photograph,
I think I quite obviously see
in my mind’s eye something
that is not literally there
in the true meaning of the word.
I’m interested in something
which is built up from within,
rather than just extracted from without.
When words become unclear,
I shall focus with photographs.
When images become inadequate,
I shall be content with silence.
You don’t take a photograph, you make it.”
~Ansel Adams
Reposting the wisdom of the great master photographer Ansel Adams is a post from: Intervention Therapy