Readers Ask: Choosing a GPS-enabled camera

By On November 3, 2010 · 7 Comments

Readers Ask. Once or twice a month, a blog reader asks me a question about GIS, software, or schools. I’ll be relaying my responses and answers in this new column. This is the first entry.

Question

On Oct 29, 2010, J wrote:

I see from your blog that you use the Sony  DSC-HX5V camera to record the locations/photos, and that you also use ESRI software.  I am just about to buy that same camera for my work, and have been looking for information about if it is easy (or not) to upload the info in Arcinfo/ESRI software.  Would you mind letting me know?

Thanks,

J

Array

I used an external GPS logger to create the map of my bicycle trip around New York City.

Response

Hi J,

I have no experience with using the GPS in the camera. I believed that reception would be poor, especially in urban areas, like where I live – Chicago. I use an external GPS logger (in the same list as the camera) and external antenna. When I get back from a trip, I use software to link the GPS tracks with the photos. The software embeds the coordinates into the JPEG metadata.

I also have no experience using GPS with ArcInfo. I know that ArcExplorer Desktop allows you to import GPX (GPS XML files) but I don’t know what you can do with them in the program. I tried, but failed. I use Windows inside Parallels for Mac, so not everything works 100% of the time.

I did load a GPX file from my external GPS logger into QGIS using the GpsTools plugin. I can export a shapefile from it to work in ArcGIS just fine.

I looked at your organization’s website and it seems you work in the open country. I think you’ll have better GPS tracking results out there with the camera than I do in Chicago. Even with the external antenna, the results in Chicago can be weird – it seems the signals bounce off skyscrapers and trick the GPS receiver into thinking it’s in Lake Michigan.

Lastly, I do recommend the camera for its low-light capabilities, iSweep panorama mode, and 1080i60 HD movie mode.

Steve – contact me

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  • http://zolk.com Kevin Zolkiewicz

    I use a Panasonic DMC-ZS7, which I believe is fairly similar to the Sony DSC-HX5V. The GPS works well overall, but can be slow to acquire a signal, often taking minutes, rather than seconds like on my iPhone. The camera tries to get around the speed issue by acquiring its position even when it’s off. GPS data is retrieved every 15 minutes when the camera is off and every 5 minutes when the camera is on. But this solution still doesn’t work perfectly, as the camera only seems capable of acquiring a signal when the GPS chip is totally unobstructed.

    I find that if I throw the camera in my bag, leave home, and then spend 45 minutes commuting to another part of the city, the first few photos I take will still get geotagged to my apartment. This is also a problem when I’m “photowalking”, as the only way to better guarantee accurate GPS data is to keep the camera out of my bag and the GPS chip unobstructed. Otherwise I end up with photos that can be a few blocks off, requiring me to later adjust that information on my computer.

    • http://www.stevevance.net/planning Steven Vance

      I did not buy the Sony DSC-HX5V because of its GPS feature. I bought it because of its low-light features, iSweep panorama mode, wide angle lens, and 1080i HD video. I knew before hand that the built-in GPS would give poor performance – at least in urban areas. I also knew it would decrease battery life. I had some experience with a GPS logger in 2008, but I returned it because everytime I left the house, I would jump in the lake (at least that’s what the resulting map showed). I figured the next time I bought a GPS logger, I would use an external antenna. Since I bought the DG-100 and compatible external antenna, my results have been 99% perfect. The other 1% is when I don’t wait for the the GPS unit to acquire its signal lock.

      So I recommend to future camera buyers: Don’t rely on the internal GPS. If geotagging is very important to you, as is ease of doing so, then get an external GPS logger and antenna.

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