MANASSAS — Roger Snyder has been Prince William County’s eye in the sky.
He’s been photographing the land from his Cessna airplane, at an altitude of 1,500 feet, for the past 20 years. He’s photographed land on which Potomac Mills mall sits before the mall was built, to an ever-expanding number of data centers dotting the western portion of the county today.
“Those data centers look like porcupines from above, with so many HVAC units on the roofs,” he said.
Next month, Snyder will take his final flight. He’s retiring from aerial photography. “I’ll be turning 76 years old and it’s becoming harder to climb in an out of an airplane,” he said.
Snyder started taking aerial photos when he was an employee of the Prince William County Government. He started in a Bell Helicopter, flown by the Virginia State Police.
“It was a free ride,” he said. “They loved to fly and I loved to take pictures.”
Those pictures tell the story of a fast-developing county. The old Woodbridge Airport, a small airstrip that used to sit behind where the Festival at Old Bridge Shopping Center is today in Lake Ridge, is where Snyder used to take off.
His photos show the old airport, and the homes that eventually replaced them. The photos also show what life was like near the Manassas Campus of Northern Virginia Community College, when there was only one restaurant, a dinner theatre, and a hotel.
The view from above today shows an expanded college campus surrounded by a bustling commercial corridor, where Interstate 66 meets Sudley Road.
Snyder compiled his most recent aerial images — about 80 of them — for a recent hour-long presentation for the Extended Learning Institute at Northern Virginia Community College. He made an encore presentation Wednesday at the Prince William Chamber of Commerce.
It was his final presentation and served as a chance to comment on how his home county has changed over the years.
“I’m always surprised at how much open land there still is in Prince William County when you view it from the air,” said Snyder. “It doesn’t seem like that when you’re driving around and the view is blocked by trees.”
Hanging up his flight suit will come easy to Snyder. In the past, he’s given up riding a motorcycle and traveling across the country and trailer camping.
“There have been things that I have done in life that when I decide to stop them, that’s it. Turn the page. It’s just something you say, ‘this part of my life is over,” said Snyder.
Snyder has worked for both the county and Manassas City governments. He began shooting photos for “a little bit of beer money,” he said, for businesses and local governments.
It’s unclear if anyone will fill his shoes. Snyder said he’s considering selling his book of business to another pilot or photographer who loves to shoot the land as much as he did.
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