ANSEL ADAMS (1902–1984)

'While on that 1932 outing, we hiked over Kaweah Gap, where I was struck by the still, icy beauty of partially frozen Precipice Lake and its background, the black base of Eagle Scout Peak. I saw several images quite clearly in my mind and made five variations. The best of the resultant photographs, Frozen Lake and Cliffs, is still very satisfying to me. It has been termed “abstract,” but I do not think any photograph can really be abstract. I prefer the term extract for I cannot change the optical realities, but only manage them in relation to themselves and the format' (Ansel Adams and Mary Street Alinder, Ansel Adams: An Autobiography, Little, Brown and Co., New York, 1985, p. 377, p. 145).