Education & Training

Adams was home-schooled until he was nine. After he had difficulties in a string of San Francisco schools, Adams' parents decided enrolling him anywhere else would be futile. He received the rest of his education from his father, tutors, the Panama Pacific Exhibition, and the world around him.

Early Career

At the age of 12, He was serious about music and decided to pursue it as a career. But he was also interested in photography. A family trip to Yosemite National Park in 1916, where he made his first amateur photos, is said to have determined his direction in life. He then found a job as a photo technician for a commercial firm, which helped him learn more about his hobby. In 1919 he joined the Sierra Club, an organization devoted to protecting the wilderness of the Sierra Nevada. He spent the next few summers working as a caretaker in the organization's headquarters in Yosemite Valley. Later in life, from 1936 to 1970, Adams was president of the Sierra Club, one of the many distinguished positions that he held.

Later Career

Adams’ professional breakthrough followed the publication of his first portfolio, Parmelian Prints of the High Sierras, which included his famous image “Monolith, the Face of Half Dome.” The portfolio was a success, leading to a number of commercial assignments.

Between 1929 and 1942, Adams’ work and reputation developed. Adams expanded his repertoire, focusing on detailed close-ups as well as large forms, from mountains to factories. He spent time in New Mexico with artists including Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O’Keeffe and Paul Strand. He began to publish essays and instructional books on photography.

During this period, Adams joined photographers Dorothea Lange and Walker Evans in their commitment to affecting social and political change through art. Adams’ first cause was the protection of wilderness areas, including Yosemite. Adams also photographed life in the camps for a photo essay on wartime injustice during World War II.

Weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Adams shot a scene of the moon rising above a village. Adams re-interpreted the image—titled “Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico”—over nearly four decades, making over a thousand unique prints that helped him to achieve financial stability.

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Awards and Famous Photos

Adams has won multiple awards some such as : The Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1980, The Hasselblad Award in 1981, The Sierra Club John Muir Award in 1963, and The Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts in 1946. Some of his famous photos are above that most were taken in Yosemite National Park.