A Picture is Worth 1,000 Words
The old saying “A picture is worth 1,000 words” has rung true since the invention of cameras in the late 1800’s. Today’s technological advances in image analysis and data capture suggest this saying needs to be changed to “A picture is worth 1,000,000 words”. Think about the information passed along in a typical 2 dimensional color photo: faces, attitudes, places, time of day, age, height, weight, color, and clothing styles, among others. Several technological advances in recent years have multiplied the information conveyed in photographs 100 fold, they include:
New ways to capture photographs from different locations/perspectives
Unmanned Aerial Systems (drones)
Vehicle Mounted Cameras with 360 degree views
People mounted cameras
Vehicle dash mounted cameras
Cell phone cameras
Photographic analysis
“Stitching” multiple photos together into a single overall picture
Panoramic photo tools
Automated depth mapping from high resolution photographs
Some of the things we use photographs for today blow the mind of most people. For instance, we can estimate the volume of a stockpile of stone by simply flying over it with a UAS (drone). A 3 dimensional model of buildings can be developed by stitching together 100’s of photos taken around the building into a single “model”. The model can then be used to design building additions or renovations. We can monitor crop health in the middle of a 300 acre farm field at peak growing season by flying a UAS over the area to capture infrared and color photos. The photos can be combined to produce a map upon which a “health index” is calculated, based simply upon the colors on the map. Construction progress photos taken from the same location over a period of time record much of the daily log information that site superintendents have recorded manually for decades.
With today’s advances in photographic technology, we’re taking the same information that has elicited valuable emotional responses for over a 100 years and turning it into usable data for multiple industries. With a variety of services available, knowledge on the current laws, and operational experience, everything is lined up for you to FlyWeihe. This is the technological future of our world, and Weihe Engineers Inc. is proud to be at the forefront. If you’d like to discuss UAS services available from Weihe Engineers, please contact our Vice President of Surveying, Brady Kuhn, P.S. at (800) 452-6408.