salientpoints Posted 16 March , 2005 Share Posted 16 March , 2005 I was privileged enough to view a mock up and samples with the editor of the new book 'Battlefields Of The First World War' yesterday. This is an IWM in conjunction with Constable Robinson publication and is coming out 17th Nov. It will be a £50 hardback slipcase book and cd pack that has been compiled by Peter Barton & Peter Doyle. It is based on the panaoramic photographs (one or two I have seen about) taken during WW1 (they are something like 4ft or more wide) and have now been all painstakingly rescanned from the glass negatvies found in the IWM archives. The photos have then had all the connotations re-added as per the original photos and also linked to trenchmaps of the time. It all looked very exciting and not only did the book contain these fold out images, illustrated with trenchmaps (of the time the photo was taken) to show orientation, but at the back 2 CD's are provided with 250 panoramic photos at high resolution you can zoom in on. Stories about people in the area of the photos are also included to give a personal experience of what you can see at the time the photo was taken. I sat with the editor and he showed me some sample copy and finished images on his laptop. It was quite a piece of work. I am sure you will all want this!!! If I get any more info news I'll post it up. Cheers Ryan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawson Posted 16 March , 2005 Share Posted 16 March , 2005 Sounds fantastic. I best start saving up! The baby will have to wait for her first pair of shoes Ian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gem22 Posted 16 March , 2005 Share Posted 16 March , 2005 The baby will have to wait for her first pair of shoes Ian. What's wrong with rags tied round her feet? Thanks for the news. It saves my wife racking her brains on what to get me for Christmas. Garth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisharley9 Posted 16 March , 2005 Share Posted 16 March , 2005 Looks like my family are not going to eating for some time All The Best Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 16 March , 2005 Share Posted 16 March , 2005 It's not listed on Amazon as yet. I guess it is rather early though. Thanks for the heads up. Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spike10764 Posted 17 March , 2005 Share Posted 17 March , 2005 17th November eh, just in time for Xmas. Let us know if you hear anything more beforehand, Ryan. Sounds like a good book to have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salientpoints Posted 17 March , 2005 Author Share Posted 17 March , 2005 I was privileged enough to view a mock up and samples with the editor of the new book 'Battlefields Of The First World War' yesterday. This is an IWM in conjunction with Constable Robinson publication and is coming out 17th Nov. It will be a £50 hardback slipcase book and cd pack that has been compiled by Peter Barton & Peter Doyle. It is based on the panaoramic photographs (one or two I have seen about) taken during WW1 (they are something like 4ft or more wide) and have now been all painstakingly rescanned from the glass negatvies found in the IWM archives. The photos have then had all the connotations re-added as per the original photos and also linked to trenchmaps of the time. It all looked very exciting and not only did the book contain these fold out images, illustrated with trenchmaps (of the time the photo was taken) to show orientation, but at the back 2 CD's are provided with 250 panoramic photos at high resolution you can zoom in on. Stories about people in the area of the photos are also included to give a personal experience of what you can see at the time the photo was taken. I sat with the editor and he showed me some sample copy and finished images on his laptop. It was quite a piece of work. I am sure you will all want this!!! If I get any more info news I'll post it up. Cheers Ryan Here is an update from the publisher: The first publication of a unique, unseen collection of over 500 panoramic photographs of the Western Front. Here are the great battlegrounds of the First World War as you have never seen them before, from the First Battle of Ypres where gallant men on horseback find things do not go to plan to the closing horror of the mud at Passchendaele. The book showcases the most eye-opening panoramas, along with poignant personal photographs and the recollections of the soldiers caught in action in the battles shown. These panoramic photographs were the nearest thing to satellite mapping in their day, taken by the British Royal Engineers for intelligence purposes thoughout the war. The photographers had to spend tens of minutes with their head above the parapet - a view normally seen by the troops only through a trench periscope. Many of the images give a field of view of up to 160 degrees, and so sharp that individual figures - a soldier picking lice on his shirt, a sniper lying in wait - can be made out. The images cover the whole of the Western Front, end to end. For the general buyer they have an impact unlike anything seen before. For the specialist, they document a lost world, putting other forms of archive into temporal, topographical and geographical context. What they reveal challenges existing perceptions of the First World War. As well as tortured landscapes of featureless mud, they also show fields of flowers, beaches, churches still standing. There are desperate scenes for sure, but an important lesson is that much of the war was fought in a real, recognizable landscape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spike10764 Posted 17 March , 2005 Share Posted 17 March , 2005 Thanks Ryan Makes it sound even more of a "must have". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisharley9 Posted 18 March , 2005 Share Posted 18 March , 2005 I was privileged enough to view a mock up and samples with the editor of the new book 'Battlefields Of The First World War' yesterday. This is an IWM in conjunction with Constable Robinson publication and is coming out 17th Nov. It will be a £50 hardback slipcase book and cd pack that has been compiled by Peter Barton & Peter Doyle. It is based on the panaoramic photographs (one or two I have seen about) taken during WW1 (they are something like 4ft or more wide) and have now been all painstakingly rescanned from the glass negatvies found in the IWM archives. The photos have then had all the connotations re-added as per the original photos and also linked to trenchmaps of the time. It all looked very exciting and not only did the book contain these fold out images, illustrated with trenchmaps (of the time the photo was taken) to show orientation, but at the back 2 CD's are provided with 250 panoramic photos at high resolution you can zoom in on. Stories about people in the area of the photos are also included to give a personal experience of what you can see at the time the photo was taken. I sat with the editor and he showed me some sample copy and finished images on his laptop. It was quite a piece of work. I am sure you will all want this!!! If I get any more info news I'll post it up. Cheers Ryan Here is an update from the publisher: The first publication of a unique, unseen collection of over 500 panoramic photographs of the Western Front. Here are the great battlegrounds of the First World War as you have never seen them before, from the First Battle of Ypres where gallant men on horseback find things do not go to plan to the closing horror of the mud at Passchendaele. The book showcases the most eye-opening panoramas, along with poignant personal photographs and the recollections of the soldiers caught in action in the battles shown. These panoramic photographs were the nearest thing to satellite mapping in their day, taken by the British Royal Engineers for intelligence purposes thoughout the war. The photographers had to spend tens of minutes with their head above the parapet - a view normally seen by the troops only through a trench periscope. Many of the images give a field of view of up to 160 degrees, and so sharp that individual figures - a soldier picking lice on his shirt, a sniper lying in wait - can be made out. The images cover the whole of the Western Front, end to end. For the general buyer they have an impact unlike anything seen before. For the specialist, they document a lost world, putting other forms of archive into temporal, topographical and geographical context. What they reveal challenges existing perceptions of the First World War. As well as tortured landscapes of featureless mud, they also show fields of flowers, beaches, churches still standing. There are desperate scenes for sure, but an important lesson is that much of the war was fought in a real, recognizable landscape. MUST HAVE -Already on the Xmas list for the next Century All The Best Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianw Posted 22 March , 2005 Share Posted 22 March , 2005 Worth joining the "Friends of the IWM" organisation to get the discount on this beauty - although I assume it will eventually be discounted via the normal sales outlets. Sounds a great book to take out into the field for comparison purposes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salientpoints Posted 23 March , 2005 Author Share Posted 23 March , 2005 Worth joining the "Friends of the IWM" organisation to get the discount on this beauty - although I assume it will eventually be discounted via the normal sales outlets. Sounds a great book to take out into the field for comparison purposes. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> They only offer 20% discount. No doubt some online retailer will be offering the same if not more than this. However, I have been assured from the publisher that they will not be going down the route of 'Sussex Stationers / British Bookshops' this also means it should not be available from people like 'The Book People' so don't think you'll be getting a copy for £25 in November! I made a point that although it should be widely available from a sales & marketing point of view there is no point devaluing what is so obviously as serious 'work of art' in technical & publishing terms as well as being of historical significance. How long the book will stay clear of these outlets though I don't know. Cheers Ryan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Banning Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Just to let all know that Peter Bartons's book is due out next week. Amazon have it on for £35 which is a real bargain (RRP is £50). The website of the publisher gives some really interesting info and a sales brochure well worth viewing (for those who can read pdf files). Link below: http://www.constablerobinson.com/edition.aspx?id=15350 pdf file link: http://www.constablerobinson.com/content/battlefields.pdf I am sure I will not be alone in buying this book asap. It looks absolutely amazing stuff. The sales brochure has really whetted my appetite! Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyHollinger Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 US availability? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Banning Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 US availability? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Andy, I know it is being distributed by Osprey Publishing in the USA, Random House in Australia and Vanwell in Canada. Had a look on US Amazon and found it: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai...=glance&s=books Best of luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Thanks for tis. Did UK members notice that Amazon have it listed as an AUDIOBOOK in the title, but listed as hardcover in the publishing details further down the page. Not sure I want an audiobook. http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1...3040012-2125460 Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Poilu Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 In a local auction a few years ago was an incredible lot containing many rare original Great War notebooks, trench maps and a whole series of these panoramas. Unfortunately for me Turner Donovan were there and outbid me. They have been selling the panoramas in their catalogue ever since. Some are still available so if anyone wants an original: (Type 'panorama' into Quick Word Search) http://www.turnerdonovan.com/ASP/frIndex.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianw Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Irritating that it's cheaper in the US than UK. £35 is a fair bit of cash. Hopefully will see it in the flesh soon - but it looks like a "must buy". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 from the First Battle of Ypres where gallant men on horseback find things do not go to plan to the closing horror of the mud at Passchendaele<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Ah yes, book blurb writers, accurate as ever. The "closing horror"...why, did the war end in early November 1917? Funny, I could have sworn it went on longer than that. "Gallant men on horseback", at First Ypres? Who was that, exactly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Irritating that it's cheaper in the US than UK. £35 is a fair bit of cash. Hopefully will see it in the flesh soon. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Not much though, Ian. Less than £5. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilB Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Am I right in thinking that the book consists basically of a collection of views from virtually ground level looking out front? Phil B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Banning Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Am I right in thinking that the book consists basically of a collection of views from virtually ground level looking out front? Phil B <{POST_SNAPBACK}> In answer to all points raised today: Robbie - the book is not an audiobook. Mistake on Amazon's part. Chris - agree fully with your comments. Seems that the person who does their publicity has no real idea of the facts and trots out the same old stuff. FYI - there are actually panoramas from throughout the war up to September 1918. Phil - Most are from ground level, many taken from the front or support lines and there are some taken from higher vantage points behind the lines. The panoramas, both German and British are fascinating and give you a real idea of what the view from the front line was like. I would suggest you read the blurb on the publishers website as well as my comments to get a better idea of what it is all about. http://www.constablerobinson.com/edition.aspx?id=15350 By the way, Ryan's original post which started all topic mentions that there are two CD Roms which contain 230 panoramas. These are in interactive, zoomable form and have overlay mapping. Some panoramas are up to four metres long and the only way you could get these to be seen was to put them onto these two discs. Can you imagine the size of the book otherwise? Hefty bedtime reading! The book contains personal photographs and extracts from diaries and letters of men who fought in each sector. Personally I don't think that £35 for a research tool of this depth seems to be expensive and have pre-ordered mine already. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Smith Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Just been onto that website from Ralph B's link Lifted the following off the author Peter Barton: I first came across the unseen collection of panoramas in 1997. There were a few panoramic images in the Photograph Archive albums of the Imperial War Museum, and I noticed that one of them - a picture of the Hooge sector in September 1915 - was marked 2nd Army Panorama number 86. If this was number 86, where were the previous 85? If it was taken in 1915, were there more for 1914, 1916, 1917 and 1918? And did the other four armies of the British Expeditionary Force also have them? There was an old card index marked WW1 Panoramas - but it carried little or no indication of year, location, use, subject - just catalogue numbers. A lot of catalogue numbers. So where were the corresponding pictures? The IWM staff then found forty boxes of original prints in the stores at Duxford. The dates ranged from September 1914 to September 1918, and every sector and every battlefield of the British Western Front was represented. The collection consisted of over a thousand examples, and there were many more still in original glass plate negative form. The pictures instantly put every other Great War photograph we had ever seen, and every word of text we had ever read, into context. For the first time these most symbolic of battlegrounds could be viewed in their entirety and very few resembled mental images built up from many years of research. If that second paragraph doesn't make the hairs stand up on the back of your neck then you best get off to the doctors. Its a must have Right then, Dear Father Christmas I have been good this year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisharley9 Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Off to Amazon with my credit card Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CROONAERT Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Off to Amazon with my credit card <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Before you rush off to Amazon with your CC and fork out £50 for it, I'd better let you know that I've just got it from the Military and Aviation book soc. for £35 (with free P&P). Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianw Posted 19 October , 2005 Share Posted 19 October , 2005 Dave - same £35 free p&p deal on Amazon . Can anyone find it for £30 - other than the other side of the pond ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now