Books

London at Night is a fascinating tour of the city as seen through the lens of award-winning aerial photographer Jason Hawkes. Taken from a helicopter, the images offer a fresh perspective on such familiar landmarks as the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Paul s Cathedral and the Gherkin, as well as unexpected views of daily life in the capital: office blocks are deserted as commuters make their way home through busy traffic, shoppers crowd a festively lit Regent Street, and tourists and revellers head for the bars and theatres of the West End. By night even the sweeping, illuminated curves of a junction on the M25 have a certain beauty. Accompanied by informative captions and an introduction by Kenneth Powell, Hawkes s photographs bring the city to life and make a captivating book that will appeal to anyone interested in London s ever-changing landscape.

"A wide range of historians, archaeologists, scientists, geologists, amateur sleuths, sportsmen, city planners, transport experts and others have willingly given their time and knowledge to unpick what the rest of us would certainly miss. Time and again, I have been taken aback by how much I simply did not see, however hard I looked." Andrew Marr (excerpt from foreword). "Britain From Above" is the official book accompanying the BBC's landmark television series of the same name airing in 2008 and will be presented by Andrew Marr. The centrepiece of the schedules, "Britain From Above" will air on BBC1, BBC2 and BBC4. The book features exclusive, awe-inspiring photography and satellite images from the programmes as well as computer simulations, charting Britain's natural history, its industry and transport systems, its natural heritage and archaeology. "Britain From Above" promises to capture the country's imagination as never before.

This work features stunning aerial photography from Britain's leading aerial photographer, Jason Hawkes, accompanied by text from award-winning travel writer, Mike Gerrard. Jason Hawkes, Britain's leading aerial photographer, has been taking to the skies with his camera for more than fifteen years. In this, his latest collection of aerial photographs, he has trained his camera on the fields of Hampshire, the beaches of Norfolk, the Cardiff skyline and the oil rigs of the North Sea. Familiar parts of the country take on a new dimension when viewed from above, and this book lets you see landmarks as you've never seen them before. Photographs are accompanied by informative text from award-winning travel author Mike Gerrard, which tells you more about the subject you can see in the picture. Five features give greater detail about certain aspects of the British landscape. These include Britain's coastline, cathedrals and castles, industrial heritage, maritime Britain and literary landscapes.

This work features stunning aerial photography from Britain's leading aerial photographer, Jason Hawkes, accompanied by text from award-winning travel writer, Mike Gerrard. Jason Hawkes, Britain's leading aerial photographer, has been taking to the skies with his camera for more than fifteen years. In this, his latest collection of aerial photographs, he has trained his camera on the fields of Hampshire, the beaches of Norfolk, the Cardiff skyline and the oil rigs of the North Sea. Familiar parts of the country take on a new dimension when viewed from above, and this book lets you see landmarks as you've never seen them before. Photographs are accompanied by informative text from award-winning travel author Mike Gerrard, which tells you more about the subject you can see in the picture. Five features give greater detail about certain aspects of the British landscape. These include Britain's coastline, cathedrals and castles, industrial heritage, maritime Britain and literary landscapes.

I first picked up this book in a bookstore on a cold, uninspiring day, and from the cover shot alone, I knew there were some magical images to come. Jason Hawkes is a very daring and talented photographer, with many images published in various books, magazines and adverts- the stories about each picture in this book tell of his inspiration for each one, and sometimes the slightly illegal and life-threatening helicopter rides involved in capturing them. There are aerial shots from around the world, some that make you stop ant think 'what the **** is that?' until you read the text, like the one of London's Waterloo station in the snow, which looks a lot like a knot of white serpents at first glance. The shots are very detailed, which is guaranteed to keep you busy for a while, like with all aerail photography- there are endless things to discover. This is really a beautifully presented book which makes you think about the technical side of photography, through Hawkes' explanation of his technique, as well as the art of it. Jason Hawkes gives us a peek at something most of us will never see, something reserved for those madmen who hire helicopters for thousands of pounds per hour, just to get that perfect shot of a car park from above. Defintely buy it, it's spectacular.

Hawkes is famous for his aerial photographs of European capitals and landscapes. Over a two year period, he brought his camera to the skies over the Lowcountry. This book features the Carolina Lowcountry as never seen before.

The Scots are not alone in thinking Scotland the most beautiful part of the British Isles, from the cosy, domesticated Lowlands to the rugged Highlands and Islands, from its vibrant and cosmopolitan cities to its great castles and stately homes. Jason Hawkes' breathtaking photographs capture from a unique angle the huge variety Scotland has to offer, with dramatic views of landscape, moorland, forests and lakes, as well as the glories of Edinburgh and Glasgow, and historic sites like Traquair House, the standing stones of Callanish, and Cawdor Castle

A fascinating aerial overview of just how much London has changed since the 1920s. Jason Hawkes is the most successful aerial photographer working in Britain today, while the most extensive aerial archive in the country is that of Aerofilms, with a huge number of pictures that date back to just after the First World War. The concept behind this fascinating new book is a simple one -- to show the enormous changes that have taken place in London over the past 75 years or so by juxtaposing around 85 archive pictures from Aerofilms with 85 contemporary pictures by Jason Hawkes. Jason's shots will be as near as possible from the same perspective and with the same crop as the earlier ones. It will be an extraordinary record of how some parts of London are changed in minor details only, whereas others, such as the City and Docklands, are barely recognizable.

Publishers Weekly: In a magnificent and captivating album, Mayle, author of bestsellers on Provencal life and manners (Toujours Provence), teams with British aerial photographer Hawkes to capture the quirks and flavor of Provence, France's lush Mediterranean south. Writing with comic insight and loving familiarity, Mayle takes us to Roman amphitheaters, pristine hilltop towns, the bustling port of Marseille-bastion of bouillabaisse and the French mafia-and the flat, swampy Camargue, home to cowboys, wild horses, flamingoes and lethal mosquitoes. He sprinkles his narrative with historical asides as well as the doings of Henry James, Gerard Depardieu and others whose lives have been touched by the region. Hawkes's breathtaking photographs transform the seemingly commonplace into visual feasts of pattern and color. His pictures, themselves works of art, enable us to see why Cezanne, Matisse, Van Gogh, Picasso and other painters have been enamored of this region.

The landscape of the British Isles is one of the most diverse in the world. Within these islands there is everything from wild mountains, coasts and moorlands to gentle farmland, forests and meandering rivers. Imprinted over this diversity is a rich history, visible as much in the buildings as in the shape of the landscape itself. From prehistoric monuments like Stonehenge to the vast modern motorways which sweep across the land, Britain is marked indelibly by the works of man. In this book Jason Hawkes has spent the last year covering Britain by helicopter taking photographs of oblique and unfamiliar approaches to famous landmarks and buildings and sweeping long views which capture the character of specific regions.