George,
I agree with much of what you say, but not necessarily with your conclusion.
Ansel Adams would probably agree as well. He saw himself as an artistry that
used
a camera, rather than a brush, as his main tool. Adams was one of the first
influential photographers to reject the concept of 'straight photography.' Many
photographic historians, in fact, credit AA as the person who "elevated mere
photography to a true art like painting or sculpting." Adams was always open
about his manipulation to achieve a mood or make a print that showed the
original
scene as he saw it, both with his eyes and with his heart. Ansel used filters,
and much darkroom technique to achieve his end goal of a print that conveyed a
sense of place and mood. I think people get so hung up on the zone system and
Adam's insistence on getting the most information on the film at the time of
exposure that they miss much of the rest of what Ansel was talking about. If you
read his books he talks extensively about filters, processing manipulation, and
darkroom/printing manipulation.
Ultimately I suppose it all depends on what you believe photography to be. If
you
believe that photography is about reproducing a scene 'as shot' then you
probably
won't have as much admiration for Adams as someone who feels photography is
about
reproducing the scene 'as you saw it.' Adams was a craftsman that used every
tool
available to him to make his fine prints.
Personally I don't think that because he (or any other person) is an artist,
that
that makes them any less a photographer.
Jim Couch
ClassicVW@xxxxxxx wrote:
> Look, maybe I don't take 14 paragraphs to explain my feelings and that is
> part of my problem, but I feel AA was more of an artist than a photographer
> because of all the 'artistry" that went into the job after the photo was
> taken. The final print was _not_ the accurate depiction of the scene as shot.
> The camera was just the _first_ tool he employed in getting to the final
> result.
>
SNIP
> George S.
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