Geotagging images.

[Codebreaker]

I'm interested in Geotagging my images and would like to know if anyone is already doing this. If so how are you doing this and what image format are you using. I shoot in RAW so any process would need to be able to provide the location for me to enter - or is there some other way?

Thanks in advance

Colin

[Lynn Dryer]

Hi Colin - I am not at the present but I think it would be great if the cameras had a GPS builtin. I have the new Delorme PN20 and will be in Alaska this spring and plan to use that. I will try tracking and then where critical I will add a way point to get the exact location. I tried when I was in South America and was mildly successful in recording my locations.

In most cases I had to make an additional note on paper as to the significance of the specific waypoint. I am going to continue to tweak the process but only use it when I am in areas that I am not familiar with.

The PN 20 has a world base map so it does get me close in countries I am not familiar with. In the case of Alaska I have full GPS coverage so it should work better. It would be nice if I could hook the PN20 to my camera or use blue tooth. Someday . . .

I do most of my photography in Oregon, Nevada and Washington and Canada, Mexico so I have those states covered.

Lynn

[dj_paige]

Originally Posted by Codebreaker

I'm interested in Geotagging my images and would like to know if anyone is already doing this. If so how are you doing this and what image format are you using. I shoot in RAW so any process would need to be able to provide the location for me to enter - or is there some other way?

In Photoshop Elements, you could select a photo(s), right click and say "Place on Map". Type in the location (example: 37 Main Street, Palmyra, NY) and then click OK. Your images are now geo-tagged for use in Photoshop Elements, and can be found on the Map viewer in the PSE Organizer. I do this with virtually all of my photos. You can also select "Write Tag and File Property Info to Files" and now your images have the GPS info stored with the image as well (but caution, as this thread shows, there seems to be a bug with some types of Raw photos and the GPS info does not get written to some types of Raw photos, even if you convert the Raw to .jpg; working with .jpg originals does not have this bug as far as I can see) for use in external applications, like Flickr.

[TonyW]

Colin: I've done a bit of geotagging using various methods (but not on RAW files). I think the easiest way is using Picasa 2.7 - you just select the image (images) and Tools>Geotag>Geotag with Google Earth. Google Earth opens up (assuming you have it installed) and plop the photo on the location. Very quick and simple as long as you know where you took the pic. Elements Organizer recognizes a Picasa geotagged file. I'll have try try my RAW (NEF) files.

I've also tried various programs for directly entering GPS determined lat and long data to the file (again just JPEG). Can't remember which worked best but I think doing it the Google Earth way is just as good (and you can upload GPS waypoints to Google Earth if you want to be precise about where you drop the photos,

Tony

[kImages]

Colin, I was reading the D300 manual yesterday (yeah nerd girl!) and found that you can connect a GPS directly to the 10 pin connector on the camera. I understood that it writes the GPS coordinates to the metadata. I thought to myself "gee that's cool they did that for the National Geographic writers!"

[dj_paige]

TonyW: Picasa is easier than PSE? In PSE you can simply drag the thumbnail onto the map (which seems like it is the same number of mouse actions as your description of Picasa), or you type in the street and city address.

[mike_v]

The easiest way to do it (IMHO) is to use a GPS that records a track. Download and save the track file as a *.gpx file (gpx is the common GPS data exchange format). Then download (for free) WWMX Location Stamper form Microsoft.

http://research.microsoft.com/resear...f/Details.aspx

Load the track file and the images and, using the track and image time stamps, the images are automatically placed on the map. You will have to adjust the image time stamps to GMT to coincide with the times in the track file.

I have found that the Elements Editor occaisionally wipes out some of the GPS info and I have opened a case with Adobe. Please let me know if you have different results.

Cheers

Mike

[TonyW]

Paige: I guess it's relative to what you're used to using. I've used Google Earth and Maps more and don't much like Yahoo Maps. I find it a lot easier to drop a picture of Big Ben on top of the high res satellite imagery that Google Earth has of many areas (like London in this case).

I did try a NEF file and am having problems. It tagged in Picasa OK but in Elements the Organizer doesn't recognize the geotag. Does seem like there is a problem (at least with NEF files). Maybe related to that other problem we were seeing with RAW files.

Tony

[dj_paige]

mike_v: yes, please let us know exactly what Adobe says. Could you please be more specific when you say "I have found that the Elements Editor occaisionally wipes out some of the GPS info"? I have seen this particular problem only when I edit my Nikon Raw (.nef) files and save as .jpg or .psd. If I edit the Raw file and save as Raw, or edit as .jpg and save as .jpg, PSE has never lost GPS data (in my experience).

TonyW: Yahoo Maps has imagery, are you saying that Google Earth has higher-resolution imagery? At least when I look at maps on the web and compare Yahoo! Maps to Google Maps, I don't see the difference, but I admit that I haven't really done a careful side-by-side comparison. When you say:

I did try a NEF file and am having problems. It tagged in Picasa OK but in Elements the Organizer doesn't recognize the geotag

do you mean that the GPS information was properly written to the .xmp file by Picasa?

[TonyW]

Paige: I was using Google Earth and it does appear to have higher resolution or at least you can zoom right in on an individual car parked on the street - I can't seem to zoom that far in on Yahoo Maps. Also with Picasa you get to tag with a full screen satellite image which makes it easier. I don't know what Picasa did with the GPS data and the NEF file. I doubt that there's an xmp file and according to Capture NX it's not in the GPS field of the IPTC data. I'm still trying to find out where it gets stored.

Tony