First published in 1996, Mary Street Alinder's biography of Ansel Adams remains the only full biography of one of the greatest American photographers. Alinder is a respected scholar, and also had a close connection to Adams, serving as his chief assistant in the last five years of his life. The portrait she creates of him is intimate and affectionate; it is also clear-eyed. She takes on his difficult childhood in San Francisco, the friendships and rivalries within his circle of photographers, his leadership in America's environmental movement, his marriage, his affairs, and his...