His photographs have portrayed the history and evolution of the land from vast agricultural patterns to city grids, recording changes brought about by human intervention and natural processes.
[1] He became interested in aerial scenery while he studied community planning and by 1975, MacLean received his commercial pilot license.
He is the author of ten books and has won many awards, including the 2009 Corine International Book Prize, the American Institute of Architects’ award for Excellence in International Architecture Book Publishing, and the American Academy of Rome’s Prix de Rome in Landscape Architecture for 2003–2004.
[citation needed] His photographs have been exhibited in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia and are found in private, public and university collections.
[citation needed] MacLean flies a highly fuel-efficient carbon-fiber airplane out of Bedford, Massachusetts.