News History From a Different Perspective

History From a Different Perspective

A black and white photo of a man and woman in uniform leaning over a desk. The woman stands with the man seated to her right. The desk is covered with maps, boxes and aerial photos. A 2nd uniformed woman sits at a 2nd desk, comparing a map and photo.

Kick off the new year by exploring some of the many videos available online that dive into the past, present and future of historic aerial photography.

 

Historic environment scotland

The images in the National Collection of Aerial Photography (NCAP) capture historic events and places from a unique perspective. Our fantastic colleagues at Historic Environment Scotland (HES) have produced this video, which demonstrates how we're using cutting-edge technology like robots to bring previously secret photographs to a wider public audience. If you want more of the robots, we also have a whole video just of them!

 

US National Archives and records administration

Our partners at the US National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) have some fascinating historical footage relating to aerial photography during the Second World War. As well as training films like this one, they also hold dramatisations which bring to life the experiences of capturing aerial photography. Reconnaissance Pilot was produced by the First Motion Picture Unit of the Army Air Services. It tells the story of a pilot flying missions in the Pacific Theatre, and emphasises the importance of aerial reconnaissance to the war effort. You can find aerial photographic imagery from the Pacific Theatre in the NARA Collection digitised through our partnership.

 

Target for Tonight

Along similar lines to Reconnaissance Pilot is Target for Tonight, a well-known Second World War propaganda film. The film provides a fascinating insight into a British bombing raid, and features serving personnel alongside professional actors. Among these are Constance Babington Smith and Peter Riddell, photographic interpreters working for the Central Interpretation Unit (later the Allied Central Interpretation Unit) at RAF Medmenham.

Target for Tonight proved to be a significant success both commercially and critically - it won an Academy Honorary Award at the 1942 Oscars. You can find out more about the work of photographic interpreters during the Second World War from the British Ministry of Information film Raid Report, and discover the 5.5 million images in the ACIU Collection that are at the heart of the NCAP Collection.

 

British Pathé

As well as imagery from the Second World War, the NCAP Collection contains significant holdings from post-war aerial survey work. Through the second half of the twentieth century, government agencies like the Department of Overseas Surveys operated alongside private companies to survey the United Kingdom, Commonwealth countries and beyond, for planning and mapping purposes.

Although these surveys were no longer being captured under combat conditions, they often made use of planes and pilots who had flown reconnaissance missions during the war, as the film makes clear. Other videos on the British Pathé website demonstrate the process of turning aerial photographs into usable maps for motorway planners.

Together, these videos provide a valuable insight into aspects of almost the entire history of the NCAP Collection, as well as our future.

 

Ben Reiss, NCAP Collections Manager

 

Find out more about the collections featured in this article.

British Survey Firms Directorate of Overseas Surveys NARA Allied Central Interpretation Unit