Adirondacks Through a Lens

 My first real visit to the Adirondacks was seen behind the lens of a camera. Sure, I have spent time in the wilderness, been on camping trips and overnights, but this was the first time I was getting the full “picture” of the park. On our field trip, I captured a wolf, the first I had every seen, as it stuck its nose between the bars of its enclosure. I documented our adventures at Essex farm as we sprinted around the grounds, laid in the grass and interacted with the landscape. I even photographed the very unusual tourist shop filled to the brim with stuffed animals and various survival necessities. It is very common to find a visitor with a camera in hand, documenting their experience in a new place. Photo-tourism is actually a popular business in the Adirondacks. However, I wondered for awhile after our trip how seeing the park through this filter may have influenced my own experience; how what we choose to photograph influences our own perceptions about the place we are documenting.


http://alloveralbany.com/archive/2012/08/06/how-to-hike-the-high-peaks----and-not-be-that-guy

http://s.ngm.com/2011/09/adirondack-park/img/algonquin-wright-peaks-615.jpg 

These are many kinds of photographs ranging from fine art to commercial, amateur to professional. While my photographs were for an academic project documenting observations about a specific place, most of the photographs taken in the Adirondacks today are for pleasure and play a role in tourism. Most Adirondack photos are taken with iphones on top mountains or are instagramed shots of the seemingly perfect woods, wildlife and lakes. In addition, Photo tours are offered by professional photographers in nicer weather and often focus on landscape imagery and wildlife. In both cases, the act of documenting these subjects creates a refined and un-holistic picture of the park. In our attempts to possess a beautiful moment, we promote nostalgia and give a false image to others and ourselves of what the Adirondacks really is.