Photo Capturing - Best Practices

NADIR vs. Oblique

See our quick guide: What is the difference between NADIR Images and Oblique Images Oblique imagery is needed to 3D map vertical features. This is a major differentiator in making a good 3D model. Nadir imagery will produce a higher quality orthomosaic.

Overlap %

It is essential to fly with high image overlap, which means that each image has an “overlap” with of 70%-80% of the previous image. Each photo just moves a little further around the subject, which is what allows the software to re-create the scene in such great detail.

Point of Interest - "POI" - Orbit Flight

Several small radius (detail) Point of Interest flights are needed to capture small obstructions. This is the easiest way to get a bunch of photos of a single subject or structure from every possible angle. That way there is no detail that is missed in reconstruction. Example Residential Imagery Example Commercial Imagery

Average Number of Images

Residential and small commercial: 150-250 images. Anything less will usually result in poor model quality. Large commercial and utility scale: 250-700 images. Remember: you can always delete images after you have taken them, but you need to return to site to take more. So it is always best to take extra photos for reconstruction, just in case you need to remove when you get back to your office for the uploading stage to Scanifly.