GPS World

Tag: aerial photography

  • Phase One offers 3 high-performance, high-altitude lenses

    Photo: Phase One Industrial
    Photo: Phase One Industrial

    Phase One Industrial has expanded its RS and RSM lens offering with three new high performance lenses for high-altitude aerial photography and long-range aerial and ground inspection applications.

    The 300mm AF, 180mm, and 150mm MK II lenses are designed to enhance the performance and flexibility of Phase One Industrial’s iXM-RS and iXM aerial camera series. Each offers precision imagery, taking advantage of the cameras’ ultra-high resolution backside-illuminated (BSI) CMOS sensors, to maintain a smaller ground sample distance (GSD) while flying at higher altitudes, the company said.

    Phase One RSM 300mmAF. With the longest focal length in the line-up, this lens offers a 5 cm GSD from 13,000 feet. It fits both iXM and iXM-RS camera models and produces superb image quality by enhancing the cameras’ ultra-high resolution BSI CMOS sensors (3.76 µm pixels).

    The lens is designed for both high-altitude 2D and 3D mapping and long-range ground inspection. The motorized lens offers a focus range of 10 m to infinity within which a predefined distance can be set remotely. A self-locking mechanism is built in to secure the focus position against vibrations.

    • 5 cm GSD from 13,000 feet
    • 10 m to infinity focusing range
    • f/8 – f/32 aperture range
    • 1/2000 sec exposure time
    • RS Shutter reliability – 500,000 actuations

    Rodenstock RS 180mm. Specified by Phase One and built by Rodenstock Photo Optics, Germany, this lens reaches a 5 cm GSD from 8,000 feet when used with the iXM-RS150F camera. The lens supports the camera’s ultra-high resolution BSI sensor for greater image quality and is integrated with a Phase One RS reliance shutter for speed and reliability. The RS 180mm enhances high-altitude aerial 2D and 3D mapping and improves efficiency in oblique configurations.

    • 5 cm GSD from 8,000 feet
    • f/6.3 – f/22 aperture range
    • 1/2000 sec exposure time
    • RS Shutter reliability – 500,000 actuations

    Phase One RS 150mm MK II. A 5 cm GSD from 6,500 feet is achievable with the RS 150mm MK II lens. It complements the iXM-RS150F camera’s ultra-high 150-megapixel resolution BSI CMOS sensor for acquiring quality images for high-altitude aerial 2D and 3D mapping.

    • 5 cm GSD from 6,500 feet
    • f/5.6 – f/22 aperture range
    • 1/2500 sec exposure time
    • RS Shutter reliability – 500,000 actuations

    Every Phase One Industrial lens is rigidly built for robustness against vibrations and shocks to meet RTCA DO160G standards, and is individually tested for performance and high-modulation across the whole image area.

  • SkyPixel Announces Drone Photography Competition

    SkyPixel

    SkyPixel, an aerial photography community run in cooperation with DJI, has announced a drone photography competition. The 2015 SkyPixel Photo Contest is accepting entries starting Monday, Oct. 26, at 00:00 Hong Kong time (GMT+8). Prizes include cash and DJI drones and related equipment.

    The contest invites both budding and professional aerial photographers to enter a selection of their best work. The competition is split into two groups, Professional and Enthusiast, each with their own awards for the following categories: Beauty, Unique Dronies, and Drones in Use (aimed at showcasing drones in the air), in addition to an overall Grand Prize.

    To celebrate the rise and popularity of aerial photography, the Popular Award will be given to the contest’s 10 most popular photos, based on number of likes received on SkyPixel. Winners will be announced on Jan. 7, 2016.

    SkyPixel users can submit their entries at the competition page.

     

  • New California Legislation Limits Paparazzi’s Use of Drones

    Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Tuesday to expand privacy protections to prevent paparazzi from flying drones over private property, reports sUAS news.

    The bill, AB 856, changes the definition of a “physical invasion of privacy” to include sending a drone into the airspace above someone’s land to make a recording or take a photo.

    Brown previously vetoed in September a proposal that would have made flying a drone above someone’s property without permission a trespassing violation, writing in a veto message, “While well-intentioned, [the bill] could expose the occasional hobbyist and the FAA-approved commercial user alike to burdensome litigation and new causes of action.”

    The governor also rejected three bills that would have prohibited civilians from flying aerial drones over wildfires, schools, prisons and jails. Some of the proposals were intended to prevent interference with firefighting aircraft — a recurring problem, according to fire officials — and prevent inmates from receiving airborne contraband. Brown rejected the bills because they would create new crimes.

  • Avenza Releases Geographic Imager 5.0 for Adobe Photoshop

    Avenza Systems Inc., producers of MAPublisher cartographic software for Adobe Illustrator and the PDF Maps mobile app, has released Geographic Imager 5.0 for Adobe Photoshop. This latest release is compatible with Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 2015 for both Windows and Mac.

    Among the new features, the Georeference tool has been redesigned to provide more flexibility and interactivity when referencing and rectifying images. This release also introduces map package export compatible with the PDF Maps mobile app and the upload of map packages directly to the PDF Maps digital map store.

    “We’ve been working diligently on this release of Geographic Imager to allow users to work with their spatial imagery and data in Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 2015,” said Ted Florence, president of Avenza. “Geographic Imager is an excellent add-on to Photoshop and proves to be a competitive geospatial image editing platform for many GIS professionals in the industry. We’re looking forward to continuing to develop new tools for the Creative Cloud platform to improve productivity and to streamline workflows.”

    Additional Geographic Imager 5.0 Features

    • Fully compatible with Adobe Photoshop CC 2015
    • Redesigned Georeference tool: reference with online maps, coordinate system detection, and improved rectification process
    • New export DEM formats: ArcInfo ASCII Grid and BIL
    • New online help and help integrated into dialogs
    • New ability to export a PDF Maps package and upload it directly to the PDF Maps digital map store
    • New ability to record operations, errors, and messages to event log
    • New mosaic options including ability to apply blending mode and place mosaic layers above destination layer
    • Optimized Export to Web Tiles and now includes image interpolation methods and support for OpenStreetMap and TileMill
    • Enhanced scripting support now includes WMS import
    • New Preferences interface and options
    • Various other bug fixes and user experience enhancements

    Geographic Imager software for Adobe Photoshop leverages the superior image editing capabilities of the world’s premier raster-based image editing software and transforms it into a powerful geospatial production tool. Work with satellite imagery, aerial photography, orthophotos, and DEMs in GeoTIFF and other major GIS image formats using Adobe Photoshop features such as transparencies, filters, and image adjustments while maintaining georeferencing and support for hundreds of coordinate systems and projections.

    Geographic Imager 5.0 is immediately available and free of charge to all current Geographic Imager Maintenance Program members and at US$319 for non-maintenance upgrades. New fixed licenses start at US$699. Geographic Imager Basic licenses start at US$99. Academic, floating and volume license pricing are also available. Geographic Imager 5.0 is compatible with Adobe Photoshop CS6, CC 2014 and CC 2015. Adobe Photoshop CS5 and CC are supported but deprecated in this release.

  • Phase One Releases iX Capture 2.0 Software for Aerial Photography

    Phase One Industrial, a manufacturer of medium format aerial photography equipment and software solutions, has released Phase One iX Capture 2.0, a control, capture and RAW conversion application designed specifically for aerial photography.

    Features include:

    • Support for up to six cameras. iX Capture 2.0 can support full oblique/nadir arrays with multiple Phase One aerial cameras or dual-camera arrays, such as RGB/NIR or arrays to capture wide swaths.
    • Auto Exposure mode. After a user selects a priority with specific ranges set for each parameter, the camera can evaluate the current image and adjust the ISO, aperture and shutter speed for subsequent captures. Auto exposure mode helps operators avoid post flight adjustments in exposure when light conditions change.
    • Offline processing of files and complete folders. iX Capture can now process images post flight, enabling users to process files previously captured or even process the same files, but with different settings applied. With a choice of three offline processing recipes, individual images or folders can be processed individually or simultaneously.

    Learn more at the Phase One website.