Sam Abell (born 1945 in Sylvania,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

) is an American photographer known for his frequent publication of photographs in ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

''. Sam Abell's love of photography began due to the influence of his father who was a

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

teacher who ran a photography club. In his book ''The Photographic Life'', Abell mentions a photograph he made while on an outing with his father, a photograph that subsequently won a small prize in a photo contest. He credits that prize as being a major influence on the direction his life would take. Abell was the photographer and co-editor for his high school yearbook and newspaper. Abell graduated from the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...

in Lexington where he majored in English, minored in Journalism, and was the editor of the Kentuckian Yearbook. He is also a teacher, an artist and an author. Abell received an honorary

Doctor of Letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...

degree from the

University of Toledo The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a public research university in Toledo, Ohio. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, which includes the University of T ...

in 2009. Sam Abell's book ''The Life of a Photograph'' is one of three volumes begun in 2000 with ''Seeing Gardens''. It was followed in 2002 with ''The Photographic Life''.

Publications

Publications by Sam Abell

*''Amazonia'', Sam Abell, 2010 *''The Life of A Photograph'', Sam Abell, 2008 *''Seeing Gardens (National Geographic)'', Sam Abell, 2000

Collaborative Publications

*''Stay This Moment: Photographs of Sam Abell'', Sam Abell and Robert E. Gilka, 1990

References

* Jeffrey, Ian ''et al.'' (1997). ''The Photography Book''. London:Phaidon Press Limited.

External links

Sam Abell's website

National Geographic Biography
Landscape photographers 1945 births Living people 20th-century American photographers 21st-century American photographers University of Kentucky alumni People from Sylvania, Ohio {{US-photographer-stub