After more than 30 years of bird's eye views under his belt, Cameron Davidson is considered not only a veteran of the industry but a genuine master of aerial photography. Davidson has shot on location in more than 30 countries and has captured some of the world's most unique landscapes, natural disasters, and interactions between humans and nature – all from the cockpit of helicopters and airplanes. Davidson gives his audience a panoramic view of the world from above and captures the warmth and intimacy of the human race through the portraits he shoots on location.

Cameron Davidson puts the needs of his clients before his own. Known for his long-term client relationships, Davidson's work has been printed in top publications such as Vanity Fair, Smithsonian, National Geographic, and Wired and has been used in numerous advertising projects for clients that include Dominion, Service Employees Union International (SEIU), Virginia Tourism and Verizon. While Davidson is known as an easygoing guy, his captivating images are proof that he doesn't stop until the shot is just right. For these reasons and more, Davidson has relationships of 20+ years with many of his clients.

Davidson's work can also be seen in his collection of books – four that cover his aerial work and one that focuses on his images of Arlington National Cemetery in the form of landscapes, aerials and portraits. Further, Davidson's images have appeared in many well-respected creative arts magazines; his accolades include appearances in Communication Arts and Graphis' photography annuals, as well as Print Design's Pictures of the Year competition and annual edition.

Based in Arlington, Virginia, Davidson's love of photography began at the age of 16 and has since grown from a hobby into a successful career.

"It all began when I discovered an old camera buried in my closet," recalled Davidson, who later explained that he was given guidance and encouragement from a family friend, Richard Zamsky, a professional photographer from Philadelphia.

It was Davidson's mother, America's first female helicopter traffic reporter, who instilled in him the importance of knowledge, safety and instinct when flying. It wasn't until a local farmer took him up in a plane did he realize the power of capturing images from above.

"Early on in my career I had a love for shooting birds and landscapes," said Davidson. "A local farm owner took me up in his plane and then I realized I was able to capture those graphic patterns of landscapes that I adored so much."

Influences
Early in his career, it was Jon Schneeberger, a photography editor at National Geographic, who influenced Davidson's work. The advice and guidance Schneeberger gave Davidson helped shape him professionally and personally.

Throughout his career as an aerial photographer, Davidson has been inspired by the work of William Garnett, whose work defines the stereotype of aerial photography.

"With every aerial shoot I aspire to portray the level of abstract and strength of that of William Garnett's work," said Davidson. "The ability to pull the viewer to an image is essential and defines a great aerial shot."

Perhaps more critical than any other is the inspiration Davidson receives from friends and colleagues. It is these colleagues who push Davidson, open his eyes to new techniques and, most importantly, critique his work – actions he feels make him a better photographer.

"As a photographer you are constantly learning from and influenced by your peers," said Davidson. "Although his work is polar opposite of mine, Brian Skerry, who specializes in underwater photography, has influenced me greatly and is perhaps the bravest photographer I know."

A Unique Perspective
Determined to create photographs that capture a unique perspective of the subject at hand, Davidson focuses on varying textures, angles and focal points.

"It is important to recognize and focus on the gifts that are right in front of you," said Davidson. "Often the images I capture are not planned but rather come to me while I am in flight."

For Davidson, the work he has done shooting natural disasters and depleting environmental habitats for National Geographic and Audobon have been the most professionally rewarding.

"As an aerial photographer I have the ability to demonstrate the striking power of nature over man," explained Davidson. "The ability to show the scale of such devastation proves what an impact aerial photography makes and gives readers a unique view point and a powerful perspective of the situation at hand."

Most recently Davidson's aerials depicted the devastated Appalachian landscape, damage caused by mountaintop coal mining a process in which all trees are cleared, topsoil is removed and miners use explosives to blast away the land, ultimately revealing the coal. This process is leaving landscapes such as the Appalachian's destroyed, with no water, no trees, no wildlife habitats or any economic prospects for the future.

"The images added power to the words in the story," said Davidson. "Being able to show the affects mountaintop coal mining is having on the ancient topography of such landscapes is important. These photographs helped educate people and create awareness of the increasingly growing problem of mountain top removal."

When asked which of his work has most affected him, Davidson quickly responded, "My work in Haiti."

Davidson, who sits on the board of directors at a hospital in central Haiti, visits the Caribbean island yearly. It is during this time that Davidson says he is able to photograph what pleases him.

"I am able to photograph for myself and not for a client, capturing images I may not have captured had I been on assignment," said Davidson. "The ability to freely photograph what grabs my attention is inspirational and comes through in the work I've done there."

Managing the Images
The work Davidson has done in Haiti has not only impacted him personally but has also impacted his career. The opportunity to capture moments such as those seen in his Haiti images is rare, and often clients are simply blown away by the results. It is for this reason and others that it is important for Davidson to be able to easily upload images on location, safely store them and, if need be, share them with clients. For protective storing capabilities Davidson turns to PhotoShelter.

Unlike the traditional PhotoShelter subscriber, Davidson, who has been a PhotoShelter member for two years, does not focus on generating sales through PhotoShelter, although he welcomes any purchase that comes his way through the site. For Davidson, PhotoShelter provides peace of mind, a safe and secure place for storing precious images, and a cost-effective solution for powering his website, http://www.aerialstock.com.

Prior to PhotoShelter Davidson ran his stock site through IPN, where he paid upwards of $200 per month. By switching to PhotoShelter, Davidson was able to lower his monthly fee to $29.99 and enjoy the benefits of significant cost savings. In addition, by switching to PhotoShelter he has enjoyed a significantly lower transaction fee. While he faced transaction fees of 25-50% as an IPN member, he pays only 10% as a PhotoShelter subscriber.

"PhotoShelter provided me with excellent resources at a fair price," said Davidson. "The seamless integration with my website allows me to keep the branding I have worked hard to establish while utilizing the benefits of PhotoShelter's services such as integration with fotoQuote pricing, Photo Mechanic and Apple Aperture plug-ins, and greater storage space."

Perhaps most valuable to Davidson is PhotoShelter's redundant, automatically backed up storage offering. With mirrored data centers on the East and West Coasts of the United States, each employing RAID technology, PhotoShelter provides photographers with disaster-proof storage that is both locally and geographically redundant. This not only reassures Davidson that his images are safe but also allows him the ability to upload his images to his PhotoShelter archive no matter what his geographical location.

"PhotoShelter's archive capabilities are first-class and provide peace of mind for myself and my clients," he said. "Safety of back up is integral to any photographer who is serious about their business and values their images."

With PhotoShelter, Davidson is able to easily upload images from anywhere in the world (essential for a traveling photographer) and quickly create galleries to share with his current clients, prospective clients and the general public alike. Davidson updates his PhotoShelter account frequently to allow viewers to gain a greater understanding of his work. By creating an unlimited number of galleries that he may update at any time, Davidson is able to share the highlights of the work he has done.

To Davidson, the launch of PhotoShelter's fotoQuote-powered rights-managed pricing module is "a big deal." Seeing as how Davidson is a 13-year user of fotoQuote, the industry-standard pricing guide for stock and assignment photography, Davidson is highly enthusiastic about PhotoShelter's recent integration of the trusted fotoQuote calculator.

"PhotoShelter has really taken its services to a whole new level, above those of its competitors, with the addition of fotoQuote," Davidson exclaimed. "The seamless integration with PhotoShelter's pricing module is essential for photographers looking to easily sell images online to image buyers at appropriate prices."

"As with most photographers, I am not always readily accessible to photo buyers while shooting on location, which makes it hard to complete sales immediately," said Davidson. "Due to the recent integration with fotoQuote this is no longer a problem; photo buyers are able to license images without having to speak with me. When I'm on location, image licenses are no longer on hold – it's a seamless transaction for both parties."

"The integration with fotoQuote is only one example of how PhotoShelter is doing everything right. Being photographers themselves, they understand what we need to successfully do our job and it is for this reason and others that I am a PhotoShelter subscriber. I can't wait to see what they have planned next."