29/03/2025 09:00 - 29/03/2025 17:00
A day conference focussing on two significant aerial photographers, and the evolving aerial archaeology techniques and research inspired by them.
The programme for the day is intended to give the audience a real sense of the importance of the aerial photographic collections now being catalogued in Sheffield and also housed in a number of archives. In particular we focus on those of pioneer Derrick Riley who lived and worked in Sheffield, and flew over large parts of Yorkshire and north eastern counties as well as overseas, and William Arnold Baker who concentrated on the west Midlands. Riley learned his flying skills as a pilot in WW2, while Baker worked with radar and learnt to fly later; both developed a fascination for the landscape they saw below.
Other speakers, some trained on Riley’s MA course, some being trained today, outline their work, refining skills and techniques that build on Riley and Baker’s foundations. From current research by Historic England and commercial providers in reconnaissance, air photo interpretation and mapping, to the SLAP project cataloguing and archiving the photographs, to some case studies around Derbyshire and Yorkshire – the whole range of this legacy is covered.
Posters, displays and demonstrations will accompany the talks programme, with tables staffed by experts and local societies. Alongside the conference, the Young Archaeologists Club will be holding an event learning more about how the landscape can be studied from the air.
The conference is organised by the Hunter Archaeological Society, the University of Sheffield and the Yorkshire Archaeological and Historical Society, supported by a grant from their Aerial Archaeology Fund.
The Creative Lounge
The Workstation
Paternoster Row
Sheffield
S1 2BX
