Robert Cameron (2) (1911–2009)

One of a series by Robert Cameron in which, long before the invention of Google Earth and the transfer of satellite imagery from secret defence to public use, he took a helicopter aloft and produced high quality photographs of cities and other locations from the air.

This edition dates from 1984 and shows us Paris and its environs in that year. There is a short and informative introduction from Pierre Salinger who describes how he worked contacts in the conservative French bureaucracy to get show more permission for Cameron to take the shots.

The result is excellent with very short historical introductions to each photograph although perhaps the non-Parisian could have done with a map to show the locations of each photograph in relation to each other - but this is a quibble.

It's not my City though I have visited it more than once, usually on business, and, of course, the photographs have to be biaised towards the 'sights' in order to be an attractive publishing opportunity but I recommend the book for its accidental insights into French culture.

There is ample evidence of the weight of history on France. Above all, that its revolution was built on the foundations of the alliance of Church and State - the 'sights' are a complex of churches, palaces (converted to modern use) and republican attempts to seize the space defined by these.

One also reflects on the French commitment to try and 'trump' the past and pay it homage at the same time with the commitment to modern architecture for public buildings - we British seem to do such things rarely and look for utility first and aesthetics second.

The strength and distinctiveness of French elite culture centred on Paris (France is not Paris) comes across in these photographs of public space - great footprints of power surounded by a sea of ordinary residence and business. The artists get Montmartre, Pere Lachaise and a village or two.

The final section is largely of the surviving great palaces and the traces of abbeys that did not survive. There is an irony that the country of revolutions seems to be more culturally coherent than the United Kingdom where multiplicities and ambiguities have created a capital city of villages. show less

Sometimes aerial photography over cities bores me. It tends to look the same. Not the photos in this book. It's like taking an air cruise over D.C., the cities bordering D.C., and some countryside in Maryland and Virginia. Many featured buildings and parks are understated--I certainly didn't know Mormons built such regal temples. This makes for a great display book for a living room.

This is a beautiful coffee table book. I found it at a book fair and what I like about it is that the photos are from the 70s and some of those buildings are no longer there.

SF and the surrounding area is one my favorite areas of the country to visit. The various aerial photos provide some very nice views of the city. Excellent book to browse through. Published in the late 60's it is kind of nostalgic.