Ansel Adams is widely regarded as an exceptional photographer especially in reference to his photographs of the American wilderness. Adams photographed the Yosemite Valley extensively in order to save the natural habitat from the exploitation of development. Adams is also credited with developing the ‘Zone System’ to determine proper exposure and adjust the contrast of the final print.
Ansel Adams has a lot of work to his credit and this is one of his most iconic photographs. It shows the meandering Snake River against the backdrop of the Tetons mountain range. This photograph has the distinction of being one of the 115 photographs to be part of the Voyager Golden Record on the Voyager spacecraft. The Voyager Golden Record consists images which were selected to convey information about humans, plants and animals, and geological features of the Earth to a possible alien civilization. This photograph was also part of the Mural Project in which Adams was commissioned by the US Govt to take photographs in National parks and other such places of natural beauty. His legacy helps to elevate photography to an art comparable with painting and music, and equally capable of expressing emotion and beauty. He told his students, “It is easy to take a photograph, but it is harder to make a masterpiece in photography than in any other art medium.”