Photogrammetry:
DTM Extraction & Editing
How can one determine the x, y, and z of a location?
Approaches to DTM Extraction
• Ground surveying
• Digitized topographic maps
• Photogrammetry
– Hardcopy vs. softcopy approach
– Structure from Motion (SfM/PhoDAR)
• Radar (e.g., SRTM 2003 and eSRTM 2014)
• LIDAR
Photogrammetry
• The science of making reliable measurements by
the use of photographs and especially aerial
photographs.
• Challenges and solutions:
– Geometric distortions (transformation)
– Relief displacement (ortho-rectification)
– Obscured targets (true-orthorectification)
Distortion
• Distortion: shift in the position of an
image on a photograph that alters the
perspective characteristics of the image.
• Displacement: shift in the position of an
image on a photograph that does not
alter the perspective characteristics of
the photo
Types of Distortion
• Film and print Shrinkage
• Atmospheric Reaction of light rays (refraction)
• Image motion
• Lens Distortion
The effects of film shrinkage, atmospheric
refraction are usually negligible in most cases.
Geometric Distortions
Systematic errors
• External errors
– Altitude changes
– Attitude changes (roll, pitch, and yaw)
• Internal errors
– e.g., lens distortion, earth rotation
Methods of Correcting Geometric Distortion
• Affine Transformation (aka linear or first-order
transformation)
• Higher order polynomial transformation
Orthophoto & Ortho-rectification
Orthophotos - orthographic photographs
• Photographs that do not have
distortions nor displacements.
True orthophotos:
[Link]
Basic Aerial Photography Geometry
•Fiducial marks
•Principal point
•9” x 9” (or 228.6mm x 228.6mm)
Geometric Components of Relief Displacement
rh
(Exposure
d=
Station) H
dH
h=
r
1 f
=
S H
1/S: photo scale d = relief displacement
h = object height
f: focal length of camera
r = radial distance between location and PP on photo
H: flying height H = flying height
Calculating Relief Displacement
d = relief displacement
h = object height
r = radial distance between
location and PP on photo
H = flying height
d
r
h
D
R
Relief Displacement
RD changes the measured distances and angles on photos.
Correcting for Relief Displacement:
Orthorectification
rh
d=
H
d = relief displacement
h = object height
r = radial distance between location and PP on photo
H = flying height
Exercise
• Given a photo with known
rh
flight height (e.g., 1220 m) d=
• Demonstrate the steps to H
measure the height of a
building on the photo.
dH
h=
r
d = relief displacement
h = object height
r = radial distance between location and PP on photo
H = flying height
Image Parallax
• the apparent displacement or the
difference in apparent direction of
an object as seen from two
different points not on a straight
line with the object.
pa = xa – x’a
pa = parallax of point A
xa = x coor of a on left photo
x’a = x coor of a’ on right photo
x x’
pa = xa – x’a
Image Parallax
pa = xa – x’a
B B
1 2 1 2
f f
da d’a da d’a
h h
pa = da + d’a pa = da – d’a
Ground Target 1 Perspective center 1 2 Perspective center 2
Calculating Object Height & Location from Parallax
Parallax Equations:
B× f
hA = H −
pa
xa
XA = B
pa
ya
YA = B
pa
pa = parallax of A
xa = x coor of A on left photo
XA = ground coor of A
hA = height of A
B = air base
H = flying height
Values of Xa, Ya, and h?
f f
xa xa’ ya
H H
Xa Ya
h h
f H −h Xa x Ya y
= = a = a
xa + xa ' B H −h f H −h f
Measuring Parallax
Based on a stereopair of photos
• Floating half marks
• Parallax wedge
Digital Photogrammetry:
Softcopy Photogrammetric Systems
• Scanned stereopair photos
• Interior and exterior orientations
– Camera & photo parameters
– Flight parameters
– GCPs
• Image matching
– Tie points
– Algorithms
• Generate DEM and orthophotos
Collinearity Condition &
Equations
• Alignment of exposure station (O), object
location on the photo (p), and object
location on the ground (P).
• If collinearity condition is achieved on both
photos in a stereopair then the ground X, Y,
Z can be computed from x and y within the
image coordinate system on both photos.
• Six exterior orientation parameters
• Collinearity equations can be derived using
GCPs.
• Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)
Photogrammetry
/ Structure From Motion Software
• VisualSFM (open source) (web)
• Agisoft PhotoScan (web)
• Standard educational edition $59
• Professional educational edition $549
• PhotoModeler (web)
• PhotoModeler $1145
• PhotoModeler Scanner $2495
• PhotoModeler Motion $3495
[Link]