What is aerial photography?

What is aerial photography
(Image credit: Digital Camera World)

What is aerial photography? Put simply, it's imagery that's taken from the air, usually from an aircraft. Which has historically made it both expensive and difficult. However, with the advent of new technology, the genre has completely transformed. 

Once upon a time the answer to 'what is aerial photography' was 'photography captured from a plane or helicopter', making it the preserve of a very exclusive cabal of specialists. Thanks to the proliferation of camera drones, though, the genre has been radically democratized in recent years.

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James Artaius
Editor

James has 22 years experience as a journalist, serving as editor of Digital Camera World for 6 of them. He started working in the photography industry in 2014, product testing and shooting ad campaigns for Olympus, as well as clients like Aston Martin Racing, Elinchrom and L'Oréal. An Olympus / OM System, Canon and Hasselblad shooter, he has a wealth of knowledge on cameras of all makes – and he loves instant cameras, too.