One of the premier photographers of the 20th century, Ansel Adams is best known for his black and white photographs of the national parks of the United States, particularly the mountainous far West. His landscapes are as eloquent in their use of texture, form and light as nature itself. Adams photographs evolved out of an interplay between his own imagination and the influences that chance and choice brought to bear upon him.

As a youth, he was trained as a concert pianist, but chose to follow his passion for photography instead. In 1930, he met photographer Paul Strand and saw for himself images that wove "light and substance...into an intense incandescence."

In a career that spanned more than 60 years, Adams became a technical innovator in his field. He was also one of the original crusaders in the environmentalist and conservationist movements. He held many positions of distinction in his efforts to promote his photographic and environmental causes, including Director of the Sierra Club, California, from 1934 to 1971 and President of the Trustees for Conservation from 1956 to 1957. He was a member of the Photographic Society of America, as well as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In addition, he was founder of the Friends of Photography and served as chairman from 1967 to 1984.

His works were exhibited at nearly every major museum, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art, whose Department of Photography he helped found. He is the author of over thirty books and seven portfolios of original prints and was awarded his country's Medal of Freedom in 1980.

BIRTHPLACE: San Francisco, CA EDUCATION: Honorary Degrees from:

University of California, Berkeley

Yale University

University of Massachusetts

University of Arizona

Harvard University