Above Washington: A Collection of Nostalgic and Contemporary Aerial Photographs of the District of Columbia [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

Robert Cameron (Photographer), Alistair Cooke (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1979

Above Washington. The Nation's capitol is here celebrated with the eye of history and a elan of today's headlines Never before have America's monuments been so dramatically and lovingly displayed, as shown by Robert Cameron's aerial views and introduction by Alistaie Cooke.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert Cameron has been a photographer since 1921 when his father gave him a "Brownie" camera and encouraged him to use it. Cameron is now in his 90's and has published 16 of his "Above" books. He was a photographer for the Des Moines Register in the 1930's. Cameron learned the art of aerial photography during World War II, while shooting pictures of militaly installations for the War Department.

Cameron is a member of the Royal Photographic Society and a member of the Presidents Council of the International Center of Photography. His work has been exhibited in Paris at La Bibliotheque Historique and the Foundation Mona Bismarck. In New York at the International Center of Photography, the New York City Municipal Arts Foundation. In San Francisco at the Vision Gallery, City Hall and the Pacific Center for Photographic Arts. In Chicago's O'Hare airport. In China at the New Gallery of Art in Shanghai and at the Forbidden City. Cameron is currently working on his highly anticipated new book "Above Mexico City".

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Cameron & Company; Twelfth Printing edition (August 1, 1979)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0918684080
• ISBN-13: 978-0918684080
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 14.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #618,112 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Star That Fell From The Sky - A Little Too Long Ago, January 2, 2000

By 

J. Mendelsohn (Palo Alto, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Above Washington: A Collection of Nostalgic and Contemporary Aerial Photographs of the District of Columbia (Hardcover)

Above Washington, - like all of Robert Cameron's Above books - is a superb collection of historical to present day comparison photographs. The picture quality and composition is bar-none, especially for aerial photography. Any city planning or Washington D.C. buff will enjoy this book immensely. Please be advised, though: this book has not been updated in quite a while eventhough it has been reprinted many times. The most recent photographs are late 1970-`80s era pictures. Above Washington could definitely use an update. Nevertheless, it's a great D.C. history lesson and has many unique photographs of places such as the U.S. Naval Observatory where the Vice President lives, as well as an aerial view of Marine Ones parked like ducks in a row. Need good pictures for a project - Cameron's Above Washington is the way to go. Want a current picture or coffee table book - you better reevaluate.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A nice pictorial - with dated pictures, December 20, 2002

By 

Matthew J. Fery (Dayton, OH USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Above Washington: A Collection of Nostalgic and Contemporary Aerial Photographs of the District of Columbia (Hardcover)

Robert Cameron is undoubtedly one of the best urban aerial photographers in the country. However, the landscape of Washington has changed so dramatically in the twenty years since this book was released that anyone with a lot of knowledge about the area will be disappointed by what's missing.
It does contain a wide breadth of pictures, some which are definitely extraordinary. However, the book needs to be updated in order to capture the modernization in architecture and planning that has proliferated in Washington D.C. and the surrounding area since its initial publication.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dazzling D.C., May 16, 2005

By 

Shannon Deason (Houston) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Above Washington: A Collection of Nostalgic and Contemporary Aerial Photographs of the District of Columbia (Hardcover)

I have always had a major appreciation of Robert Carmeron's work and this is one of his best. Granted it's hard to make Washington look bad, it's is so wonderfully laid out, but in this book she never looked better. Though the pictures are from the early 80's, most of the momuments are present and the city is timeless anyway. Mr. Carmeron is such a talent and the angles he gets are just amazing. If you love Washington, or just like great photography quite frankly, you will love this book.