George’s story.
George F. Anderson
It started with a camera…
George Anderson was a professional portrait photographer, photojournalist and documentary film maker.
His true passion was creating images of the natural beauty in California’s mountains and deserts and beyond.
He was born in 1916 in Gooding, Idaho. At the age of seven he traveled by car with his family to Los Angeles.
This would be George’s introduction to the magnificent mountains and deserts of the west. Growing up in Pasadena,
George and his brothers explored the foothills, Angeles Crest Mountains, and Mojave Desert.
“George was never without a still camera – often several strapped on him at once.”
On family trips we were accustomed to dad abruptly pulling over to the side of the road when he “saw” a photograph. Often we would take long detours down dirt roads to find the right angle, and then wait (and wait) for the light to be just right.
In the 1930’s, George attended the University of California, Berkeley, where he was a noted sprinter in track and field. In fact, George and his two brothers, Don and Mick were listed in “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” as the world’s “fastest family”. After marrying Eleanor Campbell in 1941, and at the close of World War II, George brought his family home to California, where he started his portrait studio. In the 1960’s he gave up the studio and began making travelogues depicting camping trips in Europe, as well as documentary films for organizations such as California Audubon.
George was never without a still camera – often several strapped on him at once. On family trips we were accustomed to dad abruptly pulling over to the side of the road when he ‘saw’ a photograph. Often we would take long detours down dirt roads to find the right angle, and then wait (and wait) for the light to be just right.
An avid conservationist, George lent his support to several organizations, including Sierra Club, Nature Conservancy, and Audubon. Wisely he realized people could not be ‘lectured’ into saving endangered wildlife or habitats, but needed to feel a connection with nature. George expressed his passion for wilderness through his photographs and so hoped to inspire all who viewed his work.
