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National Association of Aerial Photographic Libraries
SIG Summary
NAPLIB is an independent organisation whose aim is to promote the use and preservation of aerial photography. Aerial photographs of the landscape are an important part of the record of our heritage. The photographs contain a wealth of precisely datable information that is of value to a wide range of users, including engineers, archaeologists, foresters, agriculturalists and lawyers.
Note: From 2008, NAPLIB is no longer an active SIG of RSPSoc.
SIG Activities
The combination of the discovery of the photographic process and the advent of balloon flight in the mid-nineteenth century heralded the development of aerial photography. The application and development of aerial photography was accelerated during World War I. From that time, the use of the aerial image for military and civilian purposes has become commonplace.
Often originated for purposes unrelated to its subsequent historic and archival value, aerial photography provides a unique and vulnerable record of the natural and man-made landscape. The accumulation of comparative aerial photography over the last eighty years or so has greatly enhanced the value of any component part of this record.
In response to the perceived need for a voluntary association of aerial photographic libraries to address the problems of conservation and preservation, the inaugural meeting of the National Association of Aerial Photographic Libraries (NAPLIB) was held on 27 February 1989. This meeting, which was sponsored by the Photogrammetric Society, was held at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
At the inaugural meeting an Executive Committee was appointed and charged with the aim of ensuring five principles:
- Ensure the preservation of the greatest number of aerial photographs of the United Kingdom
- Increase public awareness of the existence of these photographs and to facilitate access to them
- Encourage the interchange of ideas and expertise
- Aid the development of appropriate storage and indexing procedures
- Liaise with other professional organisations active in the field
The Association is now known as ‘NAPLIB: an independent organisation promoting the use and preservation of aerial photographs’, or more briefly ‘NAPLIB’
In pursuance of its aims and ideals, NAPLIB publishes a regular newsletter: the ‘NAPLIB Flyer’. NAPLIB also organises a series of Annual Conferences and field visits for its membership.
With the successful completion of three major publishing projects, the Executive Committee of the Association is now evaluating the problem of collections deemed to be ‘at risk’.
In order to increase it’s sphere of influence, and to meet the future demands on its expertise and resources, NAPLIB is actively seeking to expand the its membership so as to include more of the commercial sector
NAPLIB’s affiliation with RSPSoc
The RSPSoc’s Special Interests in Aerial Photographic Libraries are now pursued through NAPLIB, which has recently been affiliated as an RSPSoc Special Interest Group.
SIG Convenor
Kevin McLaren -
