How to Sync GPS data

February 9, 2008 2:43 PM

What is a simple straight forward way to gather gps data, and sync it with my digital camera/ Digital recorder? And possibly create a GIS database out of it?

Before we go too far: I understand there are classes for this and I will be taking one before my degree is done.

In the mean time, I got a case of mappies. So I figured, despite having no knowledge of how to create the maps the best way - I could start collecting the data I want for the maps in anyway possible.

My desire is to map sections of my new home town, coordinating location with description, picture, or audio clip - and have it all end up in a database that will be appropriate for future GIS tom-foolery. I have attempted this in the past with my GPS tracker, and an attempt sync the time stamps of everything - but I've only had mixed results, it wasn't in any sort of usable database format.

So any software, hardware, technique that can be suggested that can suit my need before the class would be great.

posted by mrgreyisyelling to technology (7 comments total)

Hi ... yeah - weirdly, I was just seriously considering the purchase of this camera, the Ricoh 500SE, which would sort of solve your problem. Good luck!
posted by Baby_Balrog at 2:53 PM on February 9, 2008

Sony makes a little GPS device that records GPS data as you carry it around with you. You then copy the data to your computer and use their software to add the data to all the photos, using the timecode in the EXIF data to sync it. I first saw it at DPReview.
posted by echo target at 3:16 PM on February 9, 2008

interesting, that sony device has me thinking... i own two GPS devices currently - the original basic garmin etrex and a garmin forerunner 301 (for running/cycling). i know how to pull the data off the units and get it into a format like a .GPX file - i wonder how hard it would be to make something to go thru a directory of photo's and pull the coordinates from the GPX file, add to the meta data in the photo so it will automatically be geotagged on flickr... basically exactly what i would assume the sony device does (or should do) but DIY... pardon me while i go dig into the file formats....
posted by joshgray at 3:40 PM on February 9, 2008

If you have Picasa and Google Earth you can point-and-click to tag your photos with lat/long (which gets embedded in the exif data of the photo)

Search on "geotagging" if you're looking for more information.
posted by blue_beetle at 3:41 PM on February 9, 2008

apparently this has been solved many times over: http://www.zackvision.com/weblog/2006/09/geotagging-photos.html
posted by joshgray at 3:46 PM on February 9, 2008

I highly reccomend the iBlue 747. Google it. I carry one everywhere... lasts more than 24 hours with 2 second updates.
posted by phrontist at 9:23 PM on February 9, 2008

You're not the first person to want to do this. Lots of people 'geotag' their photos by carrying around a cheap GPS receiver (the 'yellow' Garmin one is what I use), then downloading the track from it onto their computer at the end of the day, and then figuring out the position of each photo/video/whatever based on the timestamp on it, compared to the GPS track log.

There are several software packages for every major platform (Win, Mac, Linux) that do the GPS-tracklog to geotagged-photos business. The one I use for Mac is called "HoudaGeo" and it's designed mainly for use with still photos. I think there are pieces of Linux software that are more generic and will probably work on more types of media. You'd just need to get a 'time taken' for it.

The only weakness with this approach versus an integrated GPS device in your camera, is that it's an extra step and it depends on your camera's clock and the GPS clock being in sync. If your camera's clock is off by a few minutes, all of your photos will have slightly incorrect locations (they'll be on the track, but placed in the wrong position on it). So you need to carefully sync both before you head out, the more closely the better.

Since a basic Garmin receiver only costs about $90 and the serial cable interface only $10-15 or so, it's probably the cheapest way of getting into geolocated media.
posted by Kadin2048 at 1:27 PM on February 10, 2008