Are you keen on learning about drones and aerial photography in India and filming? If yes, then you are sure to stumble across lots of new terms and axioms related to varied drone procedures. One of these is ‘orthomosaic’. An orthomosaic photo (also acknowledged as an orthophoto or orthoimage) refers to an aerial photograph that has been geometrically revised so that the scale is constant i.e. with the same dearth of distortion as a map.To put it simply, an orthomosaic is like Google Earth, but more sharper. It is a huge, map-quality image with high detail and resolution made by unitinga lot of smaller images called orthophotos. An orthophoto is an aerial shot that has been modified for lens distortion, camera tilt, viewpoint, and topographic relief i.e. variations in the elevation of the earth’s surface. These amended orthophotos have nil distortion whatsoever and a uniform scale across the image.Since orthomosaic maps offer a precise representation of the land, they can be used to measure accurate distances in the arena of drone photography in India.
What is the difference between a normal photo and an orthophoto?
The main difference between a normal aerial photo and an orthophoto is the perspective and precision. A normal aerial photograph has a perspective view. You can see the edges of buildings and other articles, and the perspective changes contingent on where the photograph was taken. An orthophoto, in contrast, is what is called “orthorectified”. It is geometrically modified for this perspective view, accompanied by lens distortion and camera angle, to generate an impeccably straight-down view of all things in the frame as you would see on Google Earth. The accuracy and exactitude of orthophotos means both orthophotos and orthomosaics have the same quality as maps and can be used to measure spot-on distances.
How are orthomosaics being used and why would you want one?
Get updated views of huge land regions
One of the chief use cases for an orthomosaic is simply to get an updated view of a bigzone of land. Google Earth is useful, but often the imagery is obsolete. Your new development venture could be completed, new construction projects could be in progress, or the landscape could have reformed from natural calamities. Real estate agents might also want an updated view of property to see if it is a good fit for their requirements. Whatsoever the reason is, orthomosaics are the paramount way to pool aerial imageries for an updated view of your land.
Use orthomosaics for precise measurements
Construction corporations also find orthomosaics predominantly advantageous. They can get updated views of their construction locations recurrently, and they can leverage the precision of the orthomosaics for accurate measurements. Software programs permit users to measure distance, area and volume. Construction companies can use these tools to compute the volume of supplies, estimate material overheads and gather other valuable data without essentially having to be at the construction location. Software programs can also use the raw data from the aerial pictures to create 3D models, which is another powerful tool for construction multinationals.
Monitor crop health
The agriculture industry is also seeing a colossal advantage from orthomosaics. Specialized drones have multi spectral cameras that collect data from particular bands of light, such as red, green, blue, red edge, and near-infrared. The additional data from multi spectral camera systems accompanied by the capability to make orthomosaic maps permit farmers to get an in-depth understanding of their vegetation healthiness with an NDVI index. They can use this data and treat regions that require instantaneous attention and have a more prosperous crop season.
Carry out inspections
Accompanied by inspecting crops, orthomosaics are phenomenal for carrying out aerial inspections of equipment and other services. They can be used for scrutinizing rooftops, solar installations, buildings that are falling apart, etc.
Legal proceedings and court cases
Orthomosaics are sometimes used in legal cases as well. Certain cases necessitate updated and precise images of a property in question. Orthomosaics offer the needed imagery required for the legal proceedings.
Count cattle, monitor supplies, measure roofs, etc.
You can use orthomosaics to count trees, monitor forest fitness, count cattle, conclude the number of cars in a parking lot, supervise the supplies on a construction location, measure rooftops, make remarks and a lot more,contingent on app or program you are using.