Altered Landscapes

Capturing the beauty of unspoiled places can bring dwindling wilderness areas into the public eye, so environmental protection organizations use professional and amateur photographers' work to further the cause. Notable landscape photographers include Ansel Adams, Galen Rowell and Edward Weston.
Landscape comprises the visible features of an area of land, including the physical elements of landforms, water bodies such as rivers, lakes and the sea, living elements of land cover including indigenous vegetation, human elements including land uses, buildings and structures, and transitory elements such as lighting and weather conditions.
Combining both their physical origins and the cultural overlay of human presence, often created over millennia, landscapes reflect the living synthesis of people and place vital to local and national identity. Landscapes, their character and quality, help define the self image of a region, its sense of place that differentiates it from other regions. It is the dynamic backdrop to people’s lives.