The early 1900's saw flying and photography both in their infancy, with few skilled or formally trained people. However, during the run up and commencement of hostilities in World War One, the benefits and value of aerial photography were quickly recognised. In the summer of 1915, under the umbrella of the Royal Flying Corps, the first School of Photography (SOP) was founded, later to be assimilated into the Royal Air Force (RAF).
Improvements in photographic technology, for example the introduction of roll film, enabled photography to be utilised in the map-making processes and also as the source of effective aerial reconnaissance; the real value of which became apparent during the Second World War. Millions of vital pictures were produced by military trained photographers. The best known publicly were the post strike pictures of the Dam Busters raid and the ultimate discovery of V1 and V2 rocket sites at Peenemunde.
Over the post war years, the School of Photography relocated a number of times, but still managed to train hundreds of RAF photographers and darkroom technicians, to provide support in countering threats during the Cold War era. In 1963, the school moved to its present location at RAF Cosford and in 1972 it became the training centre for all HM Forces photographers; the school was then renamed the Joint School of Photography (JSOP).
While maintaining a strong aerial photographic capability for the RAF into the 1980’s, changes within the photographic requirements of the Services towards the end of the century, necessitated a transition into the digital era. At the beginning of 2000, JSOP started to integrate digital concepts with traditional image capture and by 2004 the photographic training delivery became completely digitally orientated; fully meeting the demands across a wide spectrum of Defence centric customers. As a result of this increased activity, the JSOP once again assumed a new title and on the 6th June 2003 the school became the Defence School of Photography (DSOP).