Final Photography Project

Jake Poxon                                               

            Ansel Adams is a famous American Photographer who is well-known for his stunning black and white photographs of Yellowstone. Adams’ ability to capture beautiful and natural scenery inspired me to take landscape photos that encapsulate the natural beauty of Tucson. In today’s times there seems to be an emphasis on technology and expansion. We as individuals are rarely exposed to mother nature because we are constantly surrounded by infrastructure and concerned with facebook notifications and text messages.  I was thrilled to simply escape the buildings, my cell phone, and my computer for an hour, and was able to free my mind and wander through the Sonoran Desert without any distractions. There is a hiking trail approximately two miles south from my apartment complex that guides you through the Sonoran Desert and intricately intertwines up the side of the Tucson Mountains, which are covered and surrounded by Saguaro cactuses. I wanted to capture the natural landscape while using Adams’ signature Black and white effects. My main goal is that I want people to see the beautiful nature that exists in this city and almost forget about the expansionary chaos that is occurring in Tucson. I really feel as though I capture the feeling of being in the wilderness because there is nothing surrounding these mountains. Your on your own in the middle of the desert and in essence, one with nature. Three out of the 6 pictures are in black and white and therefore represent photographic ideas that are primarily present in Adams’ photography. The other three photos are different from Adams’ work because I have added my own effects to reflect my own individual creativity. I really enjoyed wandering through the mountains and was blown away by the landscape Tucson had to offer. I plan on discovering new landscapes in the future and will use Adams’ techniques to capture a photograph that I can show my friends and family so that they can experience the beauty of nature.

This photo is taken from a unique perspective because I wanted to capture this exotic plant in front of the mountain to show some creativity and originality. This plant and the mountain are obviously not typical in a city and allows the person viewing the photograph to feel secluded from daily life in a busy and bustling city.

For this photo I wanted to capture the abundant amount of cactuses that exist on the backside of these mountains. I blurred the edges of the photo to give it a interesting and eerie vibe. Once again the fact that there is no infrastructure captured in the image makes it feel as though we are removed from the city.

This photo captures three distinct mountains as well as numerous cactuses. The contents of the photo combined with the black and white effects makes it appear as though this photo was taken during the old western times.

In this photo there are unique plants that you otherwise wouldn't normally see in the city and are accompanied by cactuses in the background. For this photo, I combined a boost in color with a fade in color and the end result was that the landscape appears a mossy green.

This photo is was taken in black and white and is inspired by Ansel Adams' classic black and white style. In the photo there is a large mountain covered in cactuses and because there is a lack of infrastructure, you almost feel as though you are in the middle of nowhere, free from civilization.

In this photo I added my own personal touch. I boosted the color and therefore the dirt appears red and it almost feels like this photo was taken on Mars. The sky has two different color shades. The upper left appears almost purple while the rest of the sky has different shades of blue.