Gezicht op de Bridalveilwaterval in de Yosemite Valley before 1868

This photograph of the Bridalveil Fall in Yosemite Valley was made by Carleton Watkins sometime in the second half of the 19th Century. Watkins was one of a number of photographers who turned their cameras on the landscape of the American West, and in doing so played a crucial role in the development of an environmental consciousness. During the 1860s, Watkins made a series of photographs of Yosemite that were presented to members of Congress. These images shaped the debate about preserving the natural landscape for future generations. The act of photographing the landscape turned it into something worth preserving, a place for leisure, and for communion with nature. The image flattens the landscape, making it reproducible and easily transported. As a result, Watkins’ images played a significant role in the designation of Yosemite as a National Park in 1890. Art historians consult institutional archives, private papers, and government documents in order to properly understand the context of photographs like these. This kind of research allows us to understand more deeply the role played by photography in shaping national parks and wilderness areas.