“When Ansel made Moonrise in the late afternoon of October 31, 1941, he immediately knew he possessed an important negative. He could not have guessed, of course, that it would become the best-known image in the art of photography. It was the first of his photographs to take on a life of its own, as masterpieces do. Moonrise is spiritual, redemptory of man and earth. It visualizes the basics of existence, ideas that are rural and in touch with the earth. The print is physically dominated by a black sky in an unusual use of space, but one essential to its spirit. The light of the crosses, critical to the image, disappeared as the sun set seconds after his exposure was made.”
—James Alinder, Ansel Adams: Classic Images
