When we think of the First World War, images of life in the trenches and warfare conducted in the mud of Vimy or at the Somme readily come to mind. The image of a leather-helmeted boy leaning a camera on the edge of an open cockpit does not. These fliers from a hundred years ago first brought aerial reconnaissance into prominence as a military tactic. In a surprisingly short time, military commanders took advantage of new airplane technology and photographic equipment to develop a system of charting the view from above, thanks to remarkable pilots and mapmakers.
Join featured speaker Gordon Beck, Maps Speacialist at McMaster University Library, for Lens Above Lens: Aerial Photography in World War I as he discusses this important innovation and shows some of the myriad ways it was used during the war. The approaches and techniques for creating usable maps from aerial photography developed by 1918 continue to influence modern cartography. Beck works with the second largest collection of First World War military maps and aerial photographs in Canada, the Lloyd Reeds Map Collection in Mills Library at McMaster University.
When: Saturday, November 7, 2015 @ 8:00 p.m.
Where: Rm. 1A1, Ewart Angus Centre, McMaster University Medical Centre
(map and parking advice at www.haalsa.org)
The talk is being offered as part of the Hamilton Association for the Advancement of Literature, Science and Art's series of free public lectures.
Beck was recently featured in an article about the Lloyd Reeds map collection in the October issue of Canadian Geographic magazine. Read full article.
With Beck's assistance, the Canadian Geographic Society has also produced documentary which will air in late November based on the collection called "Drawn to Victory." View trailer.
