A picture of the Tongzhou district section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal taken by photographer Ma Wenxiao in June. [Photo provided to China Daily]

An aerial photographer with a head for heights has spent years documenting Beijing's development, Fang Aiqing reports.

Photographer Ma Wenxiao has been recording Beijing's metamorphosis from the sky for the past 18 years, rediscovering the city's classical appeal accumulated over 3,000 years of history while documenting the capital as it grows bigger, higher and greener.

There was a period of rapid construction in the city as preparations for the 2008 Beijing Olympics got into full swing nearly two decades ago, and another wave of development began to usher in the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing and nearby Hebei province.

The newly-completed Beijing Daxing International Airport, designed by the late Pritzker Prizewinning architect Zaha Hadid, opened its doors on Sept 25.

And it is hoped that the central axis-a 7.8-kilometer-long notional line along the city's historical center-will be included in UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage, even as it continues to extend to the north and south.

These radical transformations have all been captured by Ma's lens.

Every time he leans out of a helicopter, the rush of wind seems determined to pin him back. If he wasn't able to rest his feet on the footplate outside the aircraft, his legs would be blown around like blades of grass.