PASSAGES OF LIGHT - Photographs by William Neill -
The Ansel Adams Gallery | Yosemite National Park, CA
Sunrise over Sand Dunes, Death Valley National Park, California 1989
ARTIST STATEMENT Light is magical. Photographs record light. A camera is directed towards a subject or scene. The shutter opens for a fraction of a second, or sometimes minutes long, and an image is recorded. On film or a sensor. This passage of light provides a simple recording of information. After the light is captured, how does an image become a work of art? Ansel Adams says this: “A great photograph is a full expression of what one feels about what is being photographed in the deepest sense, and is, thereby, a true expression of what one feels about life in its entirety.” To create a work of art out of a simple recording of light requires the photographer’s heart and mind. The artist places a frame around that which moves her or him. Lines, shapes, and contrast between shadow and light form the graphic design. The lighting and weather at the moment of exposure determine the mood, whether subtle or dramatic. The making of a strong photograph is a highly selective process. However, the magic element is the emotion within the photographer. Photographs have the wonderful ability to reconnect us with emotions beyond the physical content of a scene or the feelings it evokes. An important aspect of being an artist is the ability and willingness to express and share emotions. Although working in the field is often a quiet, meditative, solo activity for me, I am invariably entranced and thrilled with what I have discovered. From capture through final processing, I interpret and refine many aspects of each photograph, including contrast, color, and brightness, while enhancing the subtleties of shadow and highlight until the image rings true to my emotional experience and intent. Beyond light passing through the shutter for each image, a more significant passage occurs for artists over time, including for this artist. I began this journey in 1974 with my first camera. “Passages of Light” alludes to the long and winding road I’ve traveled: evolving, exploring, experimenting, succeeding and failing, creative bursts and lulls. By following my instincts, persisting through the ups and downs of a long career, and by engaging with nature intensely for these four decades. Passages of time. Passages in a life. The photographs shown here represent my journey, each a sublime experience expressing awe and love for the beauty of nature.
Dawn Mist and Upper Yosemite Fall, Yosemite National Park, California 2021 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Giant Sequoia and Fir Tree in the Fog, Sequoia National Park, California, 1993 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Petrified Sand Dune Formations, Paria Canyon-Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness Area, Arizona 2002 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Mudcracks, Zion National Park, Utah 1983 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Chromogenic pigment or negative photograph depending upon size Multiple sizes available
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Lava flow entering the sea at twilight, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii 1994 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Sunrise over Sand Dunes, Death Valley National Park, California 1989 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Cloud reflections and Mt Moran at the Oxbow Bend on the Snake River, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming 1990
Cloud reflections and Mt Moran at the Oxbow Bend on the Snake River, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming 1990 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Corn Lily Leaves, Yosemite National Park, California 2013 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Dawn, Lake Louise, Banff Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Yellow Aspen, Lee Vining Canyon, Inyo National Forest, California 1983 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Red Maple Leaves and Mud Patterns, Zion Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Alder, Dogwood and the Merced River, Yosemite National Park, California 2021 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Cedars and Rock Circle, Merced River, Yosemite National Park, California 1986 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Chromogenic pigment or negative photograph depending upon sizing Multiple sizes available
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Jeffrey Pine and Moon Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Jeffrey Pine and Moon
Half Dome, Elm and Sunbeams, Yosemite National Park, California 2016 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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Half Dome and Tenaya Canyon at sunset from Washburn Point, Yosemite National Park, California 1996 Original photograph, signed and numbered by artist Archival pigment print Multiple sizes available
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William Neill, a resident of the Yosemite National Park area since 1977, is a landscape photographer concerned with conveying the deep, spiritual beauty he sees and feels in Nature. Neill’s award-winning photography has been widely published in books, magazines, calendars, posters, and his limited-edition prints have been collected and exhibited in museums and galleries nationally, including the Museum of Fine Art Boston, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, The Vernon Collection, and The Polaroid Collection. Neill received a BA degree in Environmental Conservation at the University of Colorado. In 1995, Neill received the Sierra Club’s Ansel Adams Award for conservation photography.
Neill’s assignment and published credits include National Geographic, Smithsonian, Natural History, National Wildlife, Conde Nast Traveler, Gentlemen’s Quarterly, Travel and Leisure, Wilderness, Sunset, Sierra and Outside magazines. Also, he writes a regular column, On Landscape, for Outdoor Photographer magazine. Feature articles about his work have appeared in Life, Camera and Darkroom, Outdoor Photographer and Communication Arts, from whom he has also received five Awards of Excellence. His work was chosen to illustrate two special edition books published by The Nature Company, Rachel Carson’s The Sense of Wonder and John Fowles’s The Tree. His photographs were also published in a three book series on the art and science of natural process in collaboration with the Exploratorium Museum of San Francisco: By Nature’s Design (Exploratorium / Chronicle Books, 1993), The Color of Nature (Exploratorium/Chronicle Books, 1996) and Traces of Time (Chronicle Books/Exploratorium, Fall 2000). A portfolio of his Yosemite photographs has been published entitled Yosemite: The Promise of Wildness (Yosemite Association, 1994) for which he received The Director’s Award from the National Park Service. A monograph of his landscape photography entitled Landscapes Of The Spirit (Bulfinch Press/Little, Brown, 1997) relates his beliefs in the healing power of nature. Neill’s most recent book, William Neill–Photographer, A Retrospective (Triplekite Publishing, 2017) is a collection of his photographs taken over the past forty years. His latest book is Light on the Landscape (Rocky Nook, 2020), a collection of essays and images from his On Landscape column for Outdoor Photographer magazine. and the latest, The Photographer’s Portfolio Development Workshop.
FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT EVAN@ANSELADAMS.COM OR CALL 209.372.4413
THE ANSEL ADAMS GALLERY VILLAGE MALL YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, CA 95389