Wow, September is here already?
Summer always goes by too quickly and, as usual, I didn’t visit nearly enough of California’s natural wonders.
Speaking of California’s natural beauty, this week our beard of history is Ansel Adams, noted photographer and environmentalist.
He is most known for his black and white landscape photographs of the American West, particularly in Yosemite National Park.
Adams was active in the mid-1900s, recording images of what many National Parks looked like before tourism impacted and changed them.
His work was used to promote environmental protections and to expand the National Park system.
Adams saw the effects of the dust bowl and advocated for balanced growth and protection of wild places.
This dude and his beard were so influential that the photograph “The Tetons and the Snake River” was included on the Voyager Golden record, selected to convey information about humans and planet earth to an alien civilization.
In addition to his work aiding in the environmental cause, Adams also helped to elevate photography to an art that is on par with painting and music, equally capable of expressing beauty.
He died in 1984 from cardiovascular disease in California. After his death, his legacy continues and his work is even more valuable today.
In 2010, one of his prints sold for $722,500, the highest price ever paid for an Adams photo.
RIP Ansel Adams, may your beard grow forever
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