Aerial photography is mainly taking photographs of objects on the ground, or the ground itself from a raised up position. The term is mainly used for referring to images that are clicked with cameras, where the cameras are place on ground level, but is placed somewhere higher like on top of a building, or observation point. There are various ways of taking aerial photographs, but the most widely used technique is to employ a fixed wing aircraft, which is controlled by a remote control. Other devices are also used such as the remote controlled devices like the quads, rockets, kites, and the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), which is mainly used by the military for reconnaissance purposes. The cameras are either fixed on the devices, or are mounted in a place designed to hold the camera. The cameras can be triggered by using a remote control device, or the cameras can be programmed to start taking photographs after a certain time has elapsed. Aerial photography can also be done from high altitude planes or drones with high resolution cameras.
There are a lot of uses, and applications of aerial photography. Some of the most important uses of this type of photography are land-use planning, cartography, which is mainly used for topographical maps, archaeology, environmental studies, movie production, surveillance, conveyancing, commercial advertising, and on artistic projects. Using aerial photography, governments can plan land usage, and how to develop a given area of land. A detailed study of the pictures of the land would be necessary in this cases, as the geographical feature of the land need to be known by the authorities involved. In archaeology, this type of photography is used by taking pictures of the land, and distinguishing various features, and then cross referencing those features with the known data to come to conclusions.
