"THE MOST IMPORTANT LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE 20TH CENTURY": ANSEL ADAMS' OUTSTANDING THREE-VOLUME SERIES: THE CAMERA, THE NEGATIVE, AND THE PRINT, EACH SIGNED BY HIM

ADAMS, Ansel, and BAKER, Robert. The Camera. WITH: The Negative. WITH: The Print. Boston: New York Graphic Society, (1982), (1983), (1983). Together, three volumes. Large octavo, original black cloth, original dust jackets. $2400.

First and early printings of the New Ansel Adams Photography Series, each volume boldly signed on the half title by Ansel Adams, a monumental figure whose influence "on photography is immeasurable," this three-volume series profusely illustrated with hundreds of examples of his own work, a beautiful set.

Adams, who died in in 1984, remains "the most important landscape photographer of the 20th century" (John Szarkowski in Encyclopedia Britannica). His influence "on photography is immeasurable, and his long career as photographer, teacher, conservationist and writer is legendary" (International Center of Photography). "Adams combined a passion for natural landscape, meticulous craftsmanship as a printmaker and a missionary's zeal for his medium… Like Ralph Waldo Emerson, Adams experienced a heightened spirituality in the wilderness that spoke to a longing for the beauties, peace and spectacle of untrammeled nature… He was 14 when he first visited Yosemite. He quickly took his Kodak into that stupendous valley and was so moved by the experience that it changed his life… In addition to being acclaimed for his dramatic landscapes of the American West, he was held in esteem for his contributions to photographic technology and to the recognition of photography as an art form" (New York Times).

In this exceptional series Adams explains and illustrates his philosophy and technique of "visualization"—imagining the final photograph in advance—as it relates to the entire process of crafting a black-and-white image. These three volumes were originally published as Adams' 1948 'Basic Photo Series' (The Camera was originally issued as The Camera and the Lens); these new revised editions "contain a wealth of new information, and all the volumes [have been] completely reorganized and rewritten." New advances in photographic technology, such as the 35mm and medium-format cameras and the growing popularity of the hand-held camera, have also been incorporated into this new edition. The Camera is a first edition, third printing, originally published in 1980; The Negative is a first edition, third printing, originally published in 1981; The Print is a first edition, first printing.

A fine signed set.