DAVID MUENCHLandscape Photographer

JEFRI SUTISNO / 13234 / ANN3A

NAME : David Muench D.O.B. : June 25, 1936 in Santa Barbara, California He is an American landscape and nature photographer known for portraying the American western landscape. 

He is the primary photographer for more

than 50 books and his work appears in

many magazines, posters, and private

collections.

Specific information about the photographer’s style of

photography. Has their style (or subject matter) change over

the course of their career?

He has lately been experimenting with digital cameras as a

result of his work photographing World Heritage Sites for

UNESCO and Panasonic. But his style of works remain

constant throughout the year.

Contribution to the field of photography? Muench’s work has been exhibited in numerous museums and galleries,

including the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, and Mountain Light Gallery in

Bishop, California.  A shared exhibit with Ansel Adams and Jack Dykinga

was mounted at the Phoenix Art Museum, The Center for Creative

Photography, and the Museum of Northern Arizona.  He was commissioned

by the National Park Service to provide 33 photographic murals presenting

the landscapes of the Lewis and Clark expedition.  These are on

permanent display at the Jefferson Expansion Memorial under the Arch in

St. Louis.  Monumental in concept, the 15 foot tall panels extend more

than 350 feet along their wall.  His work also hangs in numerous private

collections.  He has published over 50 exhibit format books.

How has his/her work influence or make a positive change?

Inventor of original and oft-imitated approaches to the landscape, Muench brings

his own idea of geography into both his spectacular color and black and white

images.  For him, the craft and the art of photography are paramount, yet

nothing is more important than presenting his beloved wilderness to viewers so

that they might be moved to act on its behalf.  For him, all of nature is a context,

each tiny element of critical importance to the magnificence of the whole.  It is

this connectedness he seeks, an idea he presents in the book, Plateau Light.

“When photographing, I tune in to the natural rhythms and pulse of the land . . .

to communicate and champion the stark beauty that is nature – its wildness, its

opposites. . .”  As James Lawrence wrote in the text for Plateau Light, “Muench’s

international reputation derives from an unflinching embrace of nature’s

nuances.  He engages the primal landscape across all the human fronts:  as

thinker, dreamer, seeker, lover, lifelong friend.”

How does he/she make a living? (assignment, stock photo, prints, workshops, etc)

In 1964 Muench made the commitment and started contributing landscape

shots to magazines, calendars, and books.  At the time he was one of few

landscape photographers so he found himself in demand for the type of

work he produced.

In 1975 Muench was commissioned to photograph 33 large murals and 350

smaller photos on the Lewis and Clark Expedition for the Jefferson National

Expansion Memorial in St. Louis, Missouri.  To date his photos have been

found in close to 100 books, posters, magazines and private collections. 

One of the main reasons Muench continually photographed nature is due to

his true love of it and a desire to introduce the beauty to the world so they

will work to help save and protect the beauty of the United States. 

Any special techniques used ( like lighting, perspective, color, b/w, etc.)

Much of David Muench’s photographs were taken with a

large format 4 x 5 camera, but has more recently added a

35 mm camera format to his equipment list.  Part of the

beauty of his photographs come with time.  He often has

to wait for hours for the light to be perfect in order for him

to produce the photo he desires.  He hosts photo

workshops teaching aspiring nature photographers to see

the world the way he does, teaching them that often great

photos will take time.

How to distinguish his/her work from others?

 Muench’s work has often been compared to that of Ansel Adams with one main

difference, his work is done in color.  He utilizes light in such a way that it paints a

picture with the natural landscape.   Much of the beauty of his work is based on

the fact that he pays close attention to detail, highlighting even small elements

such as the texture of stones.  Muench accomplished most of his photos utilizing

color slide film, but has found over the years that slides often fade and the

images do not remain consistent over time. His predecessors, Ansel Adams and

Eliot Porter, did their work in black and white which lasted much longer.  To help

avoid this problem Muench began to scan his images into his computer and

restoring some of the images that have faded over time.  He is careful not to

manipulate the results beyond the original color and quality of the images he

recorded.  Muench has stated, “It is important not to have the images disappear

faster than the landscape does.”

How do you respond to the photographer’s work? What did you learn or look up to him/her as role model?

From my point of view, i find his style very unique – for

example the way he fills the frame completely with a

subject – his ability to make stunning photograph in

completely benign weather or the way he seems to let

the terra firma dictate the photograph and the sky ends

up wherever it ends up – you often see a thin sliver of

sky which is so close to the top of the frame you would

think it would make compositional sense to crop out

completely!

1 & 2 images :  I like this piece of work because  the opening shot with the low sun

and large boulders is fantastic. Some of his photos appear to be too dark and the sun

is shining off the the canyons and it makes the entire canyon a bright orange color. He

really pay attention into the smallest details to make his photo looks perfect, such as

the arrangement that used to guide the viewers eye to the vocal point.

3 image : On the 3rd picture He also used the same method, but for this one he pay

attention more on the flower and the cold mood. The end result makes the viewer feel

that he/she is belong there and they can feel the breeze just by looking at the picture.

4 & 5 :  Spectacular beauty of our natural

landscapes and created from the use of

silhoutte, object frame and arrangement

of the trees and mountain. Cool Mood

colour to envoke strong and steadfast or

light and friendly and sometimes calming

feeling

Thank You For Watching !!!!