Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico

Ansel Adams was known for printing numerous unique prints from the same negative. He made at least nine hundred prints of this image, his most familiar, each with dramatically different tonality and contrast, over many decades. A master of the western American landscape, Adams extensively photographed places such as Yosemite Valley, the Sierra Nevada, the Tetons, Yellowstone, and other national parks. A committed outdoorsman and conservationist, he was long associated with the Sierra Club and its efforts to protect the environment. Adams captured this moment while returning to Santa Fe, New Mexico, after an unrewarding day photographing for the U.S. Department of the Interior. A masterpiece in the history of American photography, Moonrise combines the grandeur of the American West with the mundane appeal of rural life, illuminated by a nearly full moon.