Photography: The Incisive Art; Photography as an Art

KQED-TV (Television station : San Francisco, Calif.) · June 2, 1960

To introduce the series, we travel with photographer Adams to the places he particularly admires: Yosemite National Park, the high Sierras, San Francisco, his birthplace. "Other people," remarks Mr. Adams, "bypass their natural environment to take photographs of the rare or exotic." He does not, he declares, because his life and career have been formed around a return to the manifestation of nature which he has always known and loved. In this episode, Adams is seen photographing Yosemite Park, conveying through his pictures a sense of discovery and rediscovery. Also seen is a collection of his photographs which extends back through the past thirty years, each a restatement of his basic philosophy. It is during this episode that Adams acknowledges his debt to other photographers and explains his methods of teaching. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche) From station KQED in San Francisco comes a series of 5 episodes designed to increase the viewers appreciation of the art of photography. Featuring one of Americas greatest photographers, Ansel Adams, the series is an exploration of the techniques and philosophy which can transform photography from a mechanical record to a delicate and sensitive art. Because television is a medium which appeals to the eye as well as to the ear of the audience, it is a particularly appropriate means of explaining photographic theory, of illustrating techniques as they are being used, and of showing the results of these techniques at the same time. Producer: Robert Katz. Guitar: Joseph Bacon Piano: LeRoy Miller, Ansel Adams (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)