Hivemapper 101 Video Guide
Here are some tips for capturing drone videos that will make visually stunning Hivemapper 3D video maps.
1. Prep your drone
File type: either .MP4 or .MOV is acceptable.
Resolution: 1080 or higher is acceptable. Please do not use 720.
Frame rate: Any frame rate is acceptable.
Video Caption: Currently, a matching .SRT (video caption) file containing GPS coordinates is required with each video. DJI drones can easily be configured to generate these along with your video files:
a) Open the Go app
b) under the camera settings.
C) Enable “Video Caption”.
This setting will persist even using other apps to fly.
Each video clip will have a corresponding .SRT file
2. Capturing Video
Cover every surface multiple times. If a spot is not captured by the video from multiple perspectives, we can’t locate it in 3D space. You can think of the camera’s field of view as a paintbrush painting the world.
Keep the camera angled down. Great example of a drone video with the camera angled down. When the camera is pointing straight at the horizon, we can’t get useful 3D data from it. This will often it will cause processing to fail.
Avoid quick rotations. This is pretty similar to the horizon problem. If you rotate in place then you aren’t seeing the scene from multiple perspectives. Instead, fly forward while slowly turning.
Fly at any height. You model will have more detail the lower you fly. Optimum is 100' (30m) to 300' (90m). Of course, follow your local regulation and don’t fly more than 400' (120m) above the ground.
3. Upload to Hivemapper
Once you have videos with their .SRT files, you can upload them by logging in to hivemapper.com. You can upload multiple videos in one batch.
4. Try a few sample drone videos
Take Hivemapper for a quick spin with our free sample videos — click here.
Simply create a free account, upload a few of the sample videos provided, and watch the magic happen.
