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Author Topic: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos  (Read 45573 times)

solardarkroom.com

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #40 on: July 13, 2012, 12:23:11 pm »

Just in case this helps someone:

I searched this thread and see no mention of the free Garmin program called LoadMy Tracks which I use to pull tracks from my Garmin eTrex to my Mac. LR4 reads this and tags all the images in a few seconds. Prior to LR4 I had to use GPS Babel and all kinds of cumbersome methods and needed to tag the RAW files before importing. LR4 Map Module is the best solution yet, saves a great deal of time and I can tag the images whenever I want. It literally takes about 15 seconds from connecting the eTrex via USB. Hope this helps.

David
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Peter S

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #41 on: July 13, 2012, 04:05:35 pm »

Just in case this helps someone:

I searched this thread and see no mention of the free Garmin program called LoadMy Tracks which I use to pull tracks from my Garmin eTrex to my Mac. LR4 reads this and tags all the images in a few seconds. Prior to LR4 I had to use GPS Babel and all kinds of cumbersome methods and needed to tag the RAW files before importing. LR4 Map Module is the best solution yet, saves a great deal of time and I can tag the images whenever I want. It literally takes about 15 seconds from connecting the eTrex via USB. Hope this helps.

David

Helped me David, thanks.  Much simpler than going through Babel as you say.

I have a lot of old routes on my mapping system that consist of numerous waypoints.  I can turn these into gpx files but Lightroom will not read them.  I think I need to convert them into tracks rather than routes.  Does anyone know if this is possible?  It seems the only way I can geotag my older photos.
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Analog6

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #42 on: July 13, 2012, 04:21:59 pm »

Can yuo tell us the name of it, or post a link, or PM it to me, I'd like to try one but don't want to spend $$$$
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solardarkroom.com

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #43 on: July 13, 2012, 05:00:41 pm »

Helped me David, thanks.  Much simpler than going through Babel as you say.

I have a lot of old routes on my mapping system that consist of numerous waypoints.  I can turn these into gpx files but Lightroom will not read them.  I think I need to convert them into tracks rather than routes.  Does anyone know if this is possible?  It seems the only way I can geotag my older photos.

I'm thinking Babel would be your best bet to convert the data. I just did a search at the GPS Babel site with just the keywords 'convert, route, track' and found something close to what you're talking about. You might have to do some research, dig into the command line etc. Make a pot of coffee. Good Luck!

David
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Peter S

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #44 on: July 13, 2012, 05:16:02 pm »

I'm thinking Babel would be your best bet to convert the data. I just did a search at the GPS Babel site with just the keywords 'convert, route, track' and found something close to what you're talking about. You might have to do some research, dig into the command line etc. Make a pot of coffee. Good Luck!

David

Thanks David but I'm afraid all this command line stuff is a bit beyond me.  I'm a retired mechanical engineer and computing is not my forté.  I will however enjoy the coffee.  I was hoping I could just tick a few boxes in Babel.

Peter
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solardarkroom.com

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #45 on: July 13, 2012, 05:42:38 pm »

Thanks David but I'm afraid all this command line stuff is a bit beyond me.  I'm a retired mechanical engineer and computing is not my forté.  I will however enjoy the coffee.  I was hoping I could just tick a few boxes in Babel.

Peter

Peter,

I understand. I did a Google search and quickly found this free mac program that looks promising. I haven't tried it but it can't hurt to have a look... There are probably numerous solutions out there. If this one doesn't pan out you could post on a GPS forum. There are lots of folks out there that are seriously into GPS, well beyond the simple needs of photographers.

Then again if you've already lost interest I understand that too :)

David
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Peter S

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #46 on: July 13, 2012, 05:45:36 pm »

Peter,

I understand. I did a Google search and quickly found this free mac program that looks promising. I haven't tried it but it can't hurt to have a look... There are probably numerous solutions out there. If this one doesn't pan out you could post on a GPS forum. There are lots of folks out there that are seriously into GPS, well beyond the simple needs of photographers.

Then again if you've already lost interest I understand that too :)

David

I'll keep at it for a while.  I hate to give up but looking at the Babel site I'm not sure if it is possible to use the command line options on a Mac.  But as I said I don't understand this stuff too well.  I have had a go at asking the Babel community so it will be interesting to see if they reply as quickly as folk do here on LuLa.

Peter
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RzB

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #47 on: July 13, 2012, 06:11:20 pm »

I use one of these with reasonable success....

http://www.holux.com/JCore/en/products/products_content.jsp?pno=394

Read the track from device using the supplied software, point it at a folder of images and they will be geotaged based on the capture time. It's important to make sure the camera time is good. It uses Google Maps to view the tracks.

Rechargable battery lasts all day and it is small enough clip onto clothing/rucsac/belt.

Mine is very fast to find satellites and is very sensitive.

Only drawback is that the software only works with jpegs - so I now shoot with RAW + tiny Jpeg.

Attached are some images of the interface and details of a recent shoot for the Round the Island Race!

RzB
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jljonathan

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #48 on: July 14, 2012, 12:24:31 am »

Just in case this helps someone:
I searched this thread and see no mention of the free Garmin program called LoadMy Tracks which I use to pull tracks from my Garmin eTrex to my Mac.
David
Can you let me know which model eTrex you're using, and does it need a special adapter to connect to the Mac USB? I read that it has a serial output and needs something to connect. Do you have the problem? And, can you describe the series of steps you use to load into lightroom and sync with the import.
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solardarkroom.com

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #49 on: July 14, 2012, 01:00:37 pm »

Can you let me know which model eTrex you're using, and does it need a special adapter to connect to the Mac USB? I read that it has a serial output and needs something to connect. Do you have the problem? And, can you describe the series of steps you use to load into lightroom and sync with the import.

My LR4 Geotagging Workflow:
1. Garmin eTrex Legened HCX (hanging off photo-pack) turned on at location
2. Load photos into LR4
3. Connect Garmin eTrex to Mac via USB to Mini-USB cable.
4. Launch free Garmin 'LoadMy Tracks' application - select 'Tracks' and click on 'Acquire' button (I created a folder called 'GPS Tracks' in 'Documents' which it now remembers each time)
5. In LR4 Map Module click on the track icon and select 'Load Tracklog...' - direct it to the directory/file you chose above.
6. Select all your images - click on the track icon and select 'Auto-Tag Photos' - it will complete this in a few seconds as opposed to the 20 minutes it used to take with all the 3rd party solutions I tried before.

That's it!
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jljonathan

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #50 on: July 15, 2012, 09:15:43 pm »

Thanks for the very complete explanation. I just might try one of those Garmins, and follow your instructions. Do you think that one of the less costly eTrex models would work as well; like the venture hc? $230 was a little more than I wanted to spend.
« Last Edit: July 15, 2012, 09:19:01 pm by jljonathan »
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solardarkroom.com

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Re: Stand alone GPS tracker/tagger for photos
« Reply #51 on: July 15, 2012, 10:16:28 pm »

Thanks for the very complete explanation. I just might try one of those Garmins, and follow your instructions. Do you think that one of the less costly eTrex models would work as well; like the venture hc? $230 was a little more than I wanted to spend.

In short I'd say the answer is yes. I paid $130US in 2008 for my Garmin eTrex Legened HCX. It just hangs on my pack and I've never had a problem with it. I don't navigate with it other than to mark my car when I'm in unfamiliar wilderness. It's helped me a couple times. I believe the fancy hand-held models are popular with folks into Geocaching.

One last thing worth mentioning: When you use a GPS for geotagging it's a good idea to synchronize your camera clock to a time-server (which these days is every computer connected to the internet) regularly. The closer the camera clock is to the satellites the more accurate the coordinates. I do this with my Canons before each trip using EOS Utility. It only takes a few seconds. It's extremely important for what I'm shooting but for landscape or general photography maybe not so much. Just be aware of the variable:-)
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