Morning Folks,

Dont know if anyone can offer some advice please. I have been using my inspire for commercial (Liscensed) aerial photogrpahy , which is going well. However I really want to have a look at mapping , Ie being able to survey a building site for example and produce either a 2d or 3d map.

I really dont want to start spending a lot of money on this , especailly if the need for the serivce isnt there at the moment. Does anyone have any ideas regarding software etc?

Thanks in advance.

Jim

edit. seems they use Autodesk Recap

Jim... This thread covered the topic fairly well.

Hi Jim,

The best mapping tool I use right now for my DJI kit is Map Pilot, I think it is >$15 right now.  It is only for IOS devices right now though.  If your an android guy, check out Drone Deploy.  Both of these apps allow you to easily collect the images needed for producing a map.

Both Maps Made Easy and Drone Deploy have reasonable online processing options that are free if the survey is fairly small.  If the quality of their output maps and elevation data is not as high as what you need, you can get a trial of Agisoft Photoscan Pro or Pix4d and process it yourself.



hope this helps

Most of you're GIS  projects will require ground control or an RTK capable drone such as Trimble's Ebee. Either Way you're going to need a Survey Grade GPS.  Somthing capable of  real time  ground corrections.  So depending on the GPS  set up .....the hardware alone starts at 10k and a good set up is closer to 30k

The consumer grade Gps In  You're drone won't even get you remotely close to professional GIS solution.

All clients are different and require a different product... You need to know what tool to use and when Lidar vs photogrammetry . Then you have to be able to process the data to provide you're client with the appropriate product.

You need to understand map projections , geoid  models and You must basically have a good handle and most likely a Licence to land survey / engineer and estimate pay Quanities.

There is money it...  But most clients willing to pay that kinda money are looking to hire a licensed engineer or surveyor. As they have very specific engineering and GIS needs.

For a quick and cool answer to give to farmer Jim to monitor his crops .... Pix 4D or Drones made easy should suffice.