Arthur Batut
Encyclopedia
Arthur Batut was a French photographer and pioneer of aerial photography
.
Batut, born 1846 in Castres
, was interested in history, archeology and photography. His book on kite aerial photography
appeared in 1890 and contained an aerial photograph taken in 1889 from a kite over Labruguière
, where he spent most his life until he died there in 1918. It is believed that in 1887 or 1888 he was the first to use this method successfully.
At the time, kite aerial photography had potential applications for aerial reconnaissance
, but also for agriculture and archeology. The first aerial photographs had been taken by Nadar
from a balloon in 1858. The use of unmanned kites promised obvious advantages in a military setting.
Inspired by Francis Galton
, he also produced composite photographs combining portraits of multiple people onto one plate.
Aerial photography
Aerial photography is the taking of photographs of the ground from an elevated position. The term usually refers to images in which the camera is not supported by a ground-based structure. Cameras may be hand held or mounted, and photographs may be taken by a photographer, triggered remotely or...
.
Life
Castres
Castres is a commune, and arrondissement capital in the Tarn department and Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France. It lies in the former French province of Languedoc....
, was interested in history, archeology and photography. His book on kite aerial photography
Kite aerial photography
Kite aerial photography is a hobby and a type of photography. A camera is lifted using a kite and is triggered either remotely or automatically to take aerial photographs. The camera rigs can range from the extremely simple, consisting of a trigger mechanism with a disposable camera, to complex...
appeared in 1890 and contained an aerial photograph taken in 1889 from a kite over Labruguière
Labruguière
Labruguière is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France.-Geography:The Thoré forms part of the commune's eastern border, flows north-northwestward through the northern part of the commune, crosses the village, then forms part of its northern border.-References:*...
, where he spent most his life until he died there in 1918. It is believed that in 1887 or 1888 he was the first to use this method successfully.
At the time, kite aerial photography had potential applications for aerial reconnaissance
Aerial reconnaissance
Aerial reconnaissance is reconnaissance that is conducted using unmanned aerial vehicles or reconnaissance aircraft. Their roles are to collect imagery intelligence, signals intelligence and measurement and signature intelligence...
, but also for agriculture and archeology. The first aerial photographs had been taken by Nadar
Nadar (photographer)
Félix Nadar was the pseudonym of Gaspard-Félix Tournachon , a French photographer, caricaturist, journalist, novelist and balloonist. Some photographs by Nadar are marked "P. Nadar" for "Photographie Nadar" .-Life: born in April 1820 in Paris...
from a balloon in 1858. The use of unmanned kites promised obvious advantages in a military setting.
Inspired by Francis Galton
Francis Galton
Sir Francis Galton /ˈfrɑːnsɪs ˈgɔːltn̩/ FRS , cousin of Douglas Strutt Galton, half-cousin of Charles Darwin, was an English Victorian polymath: anthropologist, eugenicist, tropical explorer, geographer, inventor, meteorologist, proto-geneticist, psychometrician, and statistician...
, he also produced composite photographs combining portraits of multiple people onto one plate.