National Park Guide » Photography

Photo of the Day: Lembert Reflection by Robin Black

Loyd — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 21:08:42 +0000

I really don’t have much to say about this photo other than IT’S THE MOST INSANELY FREAKIN’ COOL PHOTO EVER!…and uh…yeah that pretty much sums it up. Don’t forget to visit Robin’s site, CaliforniaPhotogs.com.

Nice job, Robin.

Photo by Robin Black.

Meet William Neill at the Ansel Adams Gallery

Loyd — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 06:30:55 +0000

Misty by William Neill is just one of the many prints available at the Ansel Adams Gallery.

If you watch the show Pawn Stars on History Channel you know Rick Harrison says any art is worth more money if the artist to signed it. Same is true with photos and now is your chance to meet William Neill, one of Yosemite’s great photographers, and get him to sign a couple of prints for you.

On July 22nd the Ansel Adams Gallery will be hosting an opening reception for photographer William Neill between 4 and 6pm. This is a great opportunity to come check out some of Neill’s photos, buy a couple of prints and get him to sign them.

If you can’t make it out that night, don’t worry, William Neill’s photos are currently on exhibit at the Ansel Adams Gallery in Yosemite Village until August 17th.

You can find out more about William Neill and see his beautiful photographs by visiting his website WilliamNeill.com

A Look Into the Past

Loyd — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 17:14:56 +0000

O’Shaunessy Dam June 1st, 1948. Photo by Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences.

Charles Webber was a member of the California Academy of Sciences and the Sierra Club. He was an amateur botanist and photographer who took pictures of California flora from the 1930s to the 1960s. What makes his photos special is that they are part of the Manzanita Image Project at the California Academy of Sciences.

Visitors listen to a park ranger during a sunset presentation at Glacier Point. Date unknown. Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences

The Manzanita Image Project is a collection of photos donated to the California Academy of Sciences, digitally scanned and stored on the University of Berkley Digital Library Project where everyone can see them. What’s great about the collection is that most of the photos are from the last century and give us the unique opportunity to see Yosemite before the environmental movement of the 1960’s changed the way we think about our planet and how our National Parks have changed.

A family having breakfast in Yosemite. Date unknown. Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences.

Take for instance the top image of O’Shaunessy Dam taken in June 1948. The photo clearly shows the overflow spillway in use. Something I’ve never seen. Not even during the 1997 floods which destroyed the road into Yosemite Valley and flooded most of the Valley.

Or this very rare image of Ansel Adams from 1932.

Ansel Adams on a Sierra Club pack trip, 1932. Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences

All of the photos by Charles Webber courtesy California Academy of Sciences Manzanita Project used by permission.

Ansel Adams: The Mural Project Finally Comes Home

Loyd — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 15:20:16 +0000

Ansel Adams iconic photo of Canyon de Chelly, part of The Mural Project. Photo courtesy Department of the Interior.

After 68 Years Ansel Adams: The Mural Project has finally been given a home and is on display for viewing by the general public at the U.S. Department of the Interior Museum.

The Mural Project was a series of images commissioned by Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes in 1941 to represent the Departments mission to manage and conserve the nation’s vast resource. Ansel’s photos were to be placed on the wall so that visitors and employees would be able to see the beautiful areas the Department of the Interior was responsible for managing, the way the resources were being developed and the people of those areas.

Unfortunately the attack on Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entry into World War II brought Adams to a stop not long after his work began. Nonetheless, he was able to take more than 200 photographs, which were eventually sent to the National Archives where they have been housed ever since.

Now you can finally see them as Ickes and Adams intended, on the walls of the Department of the Interior building in Washington D.C.

The U.S. Department of the Interior Museum exhibition Ansel Adams: The Mural Project 1941-1942 is open to the public by appointment only. Reservations for a guided tour should be made a month in advance by calling the Museum at 202-208-4743. Adult visitors must present photo identification.

The Department of the Interior Museum is located at 1849 C Street, NW Washington, DC 20240.

Ansel Adams at Manzanar

Loyd — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 23:49:24 +0000

Working in the fields with Mount Williamson in the background.

Everyone is familiar with Ansel Adams’ great landscape photographs but in 1943 Ansel traveled to Independence California at to document the Manzanar War Relocation Center and the Japanese Americans interned there during World War II. The photos he took are now part of the Library of Congress’ Ansel Adams collection documenting Manzanar.

“The purpose of my work was to show how these people, suffering under a great injustice, and loss of property, businesses and professions, had overcome the sense of defeat and dispair by building for themselves a vital community in an arid (but magnificent) environment…All in all, I think this Manzanar Collection is an important historical document, and I trust it can be put to good use.” ~Ansel Adams

Football practice.

What really makes this collection rare is that Ansel focused on the people taking many portrait and daily life shots. The collection features not only scans of the prints Ansel made but the original black and white negatives as well to give viewers an idea of the technique involved in making the final prints.

Sam Bozono, Policeman.

Take a look at the whole collection on the Library of Congress website and if you get a chance head over to Manzanar.

Monument in cemetery at Manzanar.

Photo by Ansel Adams courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Photo of the Day: Room with a View by Joshua Cripps

Loyd — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 17:23:15 +0000

Today’s Photo of the Day is a great shot by Joshua Cripps (www.joshuacripps.com). I like posting photos where the photographer writes a nice long caption. It not only makes my job easier but you get to learn a little bit about what it took to make the photo. Here’s what Joshua had to say about his photo:

Spent last Saturday in Yosemite teaching a one-day workshop in Hetch Hetchy. The rest of the weekend I tooled around the Valley trying to find unique viewpoints (something which is difficult in a park which receives over 3 million annual visitors). A video of Upper Yosemite Falls I watched earlier in the week gave me an idea for a shot which included the Falls as well as Half Dome.

I didn’t know exactly where to shoot from so at about 6:00 pm I headed out along the Upper Yosemite Falls trail to try to find a spot. After two miles or so I got my first glimpse of the upper falls. And while the view was both impressive and amazing, I realized I need to get much higher for the shot I wanted. Up and up I continued.

I quickly realized that the trail was taking me way too close to the falls and that there was no way I was going to find the vantage point I needed before the light failed. Seeing that an opportunity for a different photo lay before me, I climbed about 50 feet up the rock wall opposite the falls in order to get out of the bushes. It was a little sketchy climbing with all my camera gear, but I eventually made it up to a small ledge where I could get a clear composition.

Then I fired off a few quick shots and climbed back down the cliffs before the light disappeared. And boy does that sound a lot easier than it was … Then it was just a three mile hike in the dark back down to the Valley.

So anyway, this isn’t the exact shot I had envisioned and would like to go back to try achieve something closer to my vision, but I worked hard enough to get this image that I figured it was worth posting.

If you like Joshua’s photo be sure to check out his website for other great photos and his blog for what he’s been up to (he’s got some really awesome ocean shots on both.)

Photo by Joshua Cripps

Focusing on Wonder Lake in Denali National Park And Preserve

qtluong — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 07:33:44 +0000

[i]Editor's note: Most, if not all, national park visitors carry a camera or two with them. QT Luong has at least two in his job as a professional photographer. Not all of us, though, are as dedicated as he is to reach a specific location for a specific shot at a specific time of day.

Abstract:

Autumn comes to Denali National Park and Preserve between the last week of August and the first week of September. During this time, the entire tundra floor (almost the whole landscape) turns shades of yellow and red. This is my favorite time to be in the Alaska interior (except for high-altitude mountaineering where conditions are better in the spring), with changing weather and the mosquitoes gone.

Primary Photo:

Photo of the Day: Winter Sunrise by John O’Connor

Loyd — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 06:08:56 +0000

John O’Connor was kind enough to send me this awesome black and white of Yosemite after he put it up on Flickr and I asked him about it. He said:

“This is an older scan from velvia, I believe. I don’t know, it’s been a while since I’ve looked at the chrome. There’s one MAJOR problem I have with this image, but I’m putting it out there any ways.”

I think it’s pretty awesome and would look great matted and framed.

If you like John’s photo be sure to check out more of his stuff over on his website, JohnOConnorPhoto.com, and read his blog MeditationsOnAMoment.com where you can find out more on what went into making his beautiful photos.

Don’t forget you can always buy a print from John. Buying photos and art from local artists helps them out so they can continue make beautiful pictures and art.

Thanks for sharing, John.

William Neill Exhibit Scheduled at Ansel Adams Gallery

Loyd — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 04:04:53 +0000

I’ve been into photography since I was 8 years old and I’ve taken thousands of pictures of Yosemite with many of them suitable for framing. It’s not one of my photos that hangs above my desk in my office though, it’s a print by William Neill.

I love Bill’s work. He’s a great photographer and his photos of Yosemite are fantastic. That’s why I recommend not missing his upcoming show at the Ansel Adams Gallery. The show starts on July 7 and runs through August 17. The above photo and the post thumbnail are both photos that will be available at the show as well as some of his other works.

You can see more of Bill’s works over at his website and blog WilliamNeill.com and to find out more about the exhibit visit the Ansel Adams Gallery’s Exhibits page.

Photos courtesy of William Neill.

Photo of the Day: Top of the World by Cameron Grant

Loyd — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 06:29:39 +0000

I’ve always loved the view from Sentinel Dome and sunset is one of my favorite times to be up there. This great photo from Cameron Grant is a perfect example why.

Nice shot, Cameron.

Photo by Cameron Grant.