Saving GPS data in K20dD files at time of capture: possible?

WMBP · 11-13-2009, 09:20 AM

Is there an accessory of some sort that I could use with my K20D (or K10D) to get GPS coordinates while shooting and store them directly and immediately in the images? I can't quite visualize how this would or could work, so perhaps it's crazy, like asking if there's an add-on that would allow me to float 2 ft above the ground (er, probably not unless I lose a lot more weight). But I thought I'd ask, as I've seen some things advertised for Canon cameras that appear to be GPS add-ons. I'm guessing that such a device would connect to the camera's PC port but that's where I get lost. Unless the camera's firmware has an API of some sort for this kind of thing, I don't know how plugging a device into the camera would necessarily make anything at all possible.

I expect the answer is "no" but thought I'd ask.

Will

p.s. Does the K-7 do GPS? I can't remember.

**Aristophanes** · 11-13-2009, 09:50 AM

GPS receivers are still fairly large, so few cameras have them built in. this might work for you:

Eye-Fi wireless memory card comparison chart | Eye-Fi

GiSTEQ and Sony amongst others offer GPS geotagging units that attach to the hotshoe or can be attached tot he camera strap.

Unless you are finnicky about the precise location of the photo, what I do is enter the basic data in Google Earth about where the photo was taken, then I copy the coordinates and batch enter them into the EXIF metadata of all files from that location. iPhoto then shows me on a map where all were taken. The cost to do that is zero, and takes maybe 15 seconds.

dragonfly · 11-13-2009, 09:53 AM

I think there is a program that will synch up your photo files with your pocket GPS unit.

Eruditass · 11-13-2009, 09:59 AM

I don't think its possible, but Zooomr seemed to boast something about geotagging pictures.

Alternatively, you can just save each GPS recording in your GPS every time you move locations

**Lowell Goudge** · 11-13-2009, 11:01 AM

pentax does not yet have a unit compatible with GPS or a gps built in to the camera, but if you have a GPS, you can download the track information and there are many geo tagging programs available.

I have a Garmin GPS-76CSx and I have it set to continually (every second) write the GPS location to the storage card.

I use a freeware program called GeoSetter to batch process the GPS data into my images.

It can be set to match any time offsets between your camera and GPS so that there is no issue of location and accuracy. Even if you don't record every second, it can be set to interpolate between points, for up to one hour

-Joe- · 11-13-2009, 11:09 AM

the eyefi cards use wifi.. Really doubt you could get wifi in some noncity locations.

You just need a gps capable of recording tracks and a program to match the date/time of the two.

I have an Etrex Venture HC and have done this.

You will to make sure both the camera and gps have the same date/time set. Turn the gps on with tracking enabled. Take your pictures. Then when you are done grab the tracklog from the gps and use whatever program you choose to sync the gps coords with the pictures. It will store it in th exif data of each picture.

There are some devices that will do this for you. You just turn it on while you are taking your pictures, then stick in your memory card and it will add the coords without the computer software part. Heres one.. Amazon.com: Geo Tagging for Your Pictures Atp Photo Finder Calc & Records: Electronics

WMBP · 11-13-2009, 11:22 AM

Thanks for the quick replies, folks! Very interesting.

I took at look at the Eye-Fi cards, which continue to intrigue me - just not enough to buy one. :-) But aside from the price tag, the problem with the gps-enabled card is that you have to be within reach of any wifi network.

But I discovered what might be a satisfactory solution for me - and it costs me nothing. I have a T-Mobile G1 (Google Android) smart phone. I found an app for it called GPS Status. Have installed and played with it for a few minutes and it will give me the GPS coordinates I need.

And I found a plug-in for Lightroom by Jeffrey Friedl that allows me to geoencode my photos. I've installed it now, too, and after struggling for a while I've figured it out enough to have geotagged a photo taken here at home, and I know I did it right because when I click on the "show in map" link, it shows my house on Google Maps. Success!

Finally, I was able to export my geotagged image from Lightroom with the geotag info embedded in the jpeg output file, and when I open the jpeg in Picasa, voila! it's there, with a location push-pin and a quick link to a map showing the location of my home.

Total success!

*

And I think the GPS Status app on the phone should work even if I'm out of the city. I'm pretty sure the GPS feature of the phone works even when there's no cell service. (Without cell service, I can't see the maps in Google Maps, but the GPS Status app doesn't show a map, just coordinates.) And the GPS Status app lets me email or text myself a message with the required coordinates. That should do. I'm not looking for anything too fancy right now - I don't need info that shows me a different set of coordinates a photo if I step 10 ft to the left. I just want a single location that shows me where the wedding was, where I was on vacation, etc.

Thanks!

Will

-Joe- · 11-13-2009, 11:54 AM

Benefit of the way I mentioned is that you wont need to do each file, it will do them all at once. No importing/exporting.. Will not even touch the image itself, only the exif data.

But whatever works!

I geocache from time to time and its easier to just have a real handheld gps.

WMBP · 11-13-2009, 11:58 AM

Originally posted by -Joe-

You will to make sure both the camera and gps have the same date/time set. Turn the gps on with tracking enabled. Take your pictures. Then when you are done grab the tracklog from the gps and use whatever program you choose to sync the gps coords with the pictures. It will store it in th exif data of each picture.

Do you know software that can do that? I assume you have to tell the software (a) where the photos are and (b) where the corresponding gps data is, right?

As far as I can tell, this isn't something I could do in Lightroom or Picasa.

Will

WMBP · 11-13-2009, 12:01 PM

I just discovered that my Android G1 phone can store gps coordinates (in WGS 84 format) right inside a photo. In other words, I don't even have to use the GPS Status app! I can just take a photo and save it. Later, I move the photo from the phone into Lightroom and (with any luck) sync this detail with the other 700 photos I took that day. Haven't figured that part out yet but it seems doable.

This is cool - and so far I haven't spent any money!

Will

WMBP · 11-13-2009, 12:20 PM

Originally posted by WMBP

I just discovered that my Android G1 phone can store gps coordinates (in WGS 84 format) right inside a photo. In other words, I don't even have to use the GPS Status app! I can just take a photo and save it. Later, I move the photo from the phone into Lightroom and (with any luck) sync this detail with the other 700 photos I took that day. Haven't figured that part out yet but it seems doable.

Well, I just tried it - and it works! Here's the process:

I took a photo of my dining room (where I'm sitting right now) with my G1 phone. This has gps info embedded in the EXIF data.
CLicked the "share" button in the G1's Photo app and emailed this photo to myself.
Downloaded the photo on my computer and put it into a folder for today's date.
Imported photos in that folder into Lightroom. That was a couple of raw files + this one jpeg.
Selected the jpeg first, then selected all the other photos, went to File > Plug-In Extras > Geoencode. This brings up Jeffrey Friedl's plug-in's UI. There I was able with just 1 click to apply the reference photo's gps coordinates to the other photos in the folder.

Whole process (starting from step 2 above) took about 2 minutes, if that. It could, I guess be easier - but only if my K20D could embed the gps info in photos the way the G1 phone can. And it could not be any less expensive.

All I really want to do is get a general location point. But if I wanted to get more precise, I could just take more photos with my phone - photos that match in subject/perspective the photos I'm taking with my camera, and perhaps roughly match the times. Then I could tie inidividual photos or groups of photos more precisely to their coordinates.

Thanks again. This is kind of cool.

Will

pxpaulx · 11-13-2009, 04:54 PM

Originally posted by -Joe-

the eyefi cards use wifi.. Really doubt you could get wifi in some noncity locations.

You just need a gps capable of recording tracks and a program to match the date/time of the two.

I have an Etrex Venture HC and have done this.

You will to make sure both the camera and gps have the same date/time set. Turn the gps on with tracking enabled. Take your pictures. Then when you are done grab the tracklog from the gps and use whatever program you choose to sync the gps coords with the pictures. It will store it in th exif data of each picture.

I would echo this possibility. I dont do it all the time, but I do follow the same steps, using a delorme PN-20. Takes less than a minute to pull the track log from the GPS. I also use geosetter, it is really straight forward (well about as straight forward as these programs get!). It takes awhile to write the information to the files, but doesnt require you to actually do anything more, just about 2 or 3 minutes of your time!

I have a couple of galleries on picasa that show the map information - check this one out:

Picasa Web Albums - pxpaulx - adventures in...

The map shows up on the left, and you can click on it to make it interactive, basically a google map pushpin of your photos for the entire gallery. Kinda fun!

11-13-2009, 09:20 AM	#1
WMBP Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Dallas, Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,482	Saving GPS data in K20dD files at time of capture: possible? Is there an accessory of some sort that I could use with my K20D (or K10D) to get GPS coordinates while shooting and store them directly and immediately in the images? I can't quite visualize how this would or could work, so perhaps it's crazy, like asking if there's an add-on that would allow me to float 2 ft above the ground (er, probably not unless I lose a lot more weight). But I thought I'd ask, as I've seen some things advertised for Canon cameras that appear to be GPS add-ons. I'm guessing that such a device would connect to the camera's PC port but that's where I get lost. Unless the camera's firmware has an API of some sort for this kind of thing, I don't know how plugging a device into the camera would necessarily make anything at all possible. I expect the answer is "no" but thought I'd ask. Will p.s. Does the K-7 do GPS? I can't remember.

11-13-2009, 11:22 AM	#7
WMBP Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Dallas, Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,482 Original Poster	thanks! Thanks for the quick replies, folks! Very interesting. I took at look at the Eye-Fi cards, which continue to intrigue me - just not enough to buy one. :-) But aside from the price tag, the problem with the gps-enabled card is that you have to be within reach of any wifi network. But I discovered what might be a satisfactory solution for me - and it costs me nothing. I have a T-Mobile G1 (Google Android) smart phone. I found an app for it called GPS Status. Have installed and played with it for a few minutes and it will give me the GPS coordinates I need. And I found a plug-in for Lightroom by Jeffrey Friedl that allows me to geoencode my photos. I've installed it now, too, and after struggling for a while I've figured it out enough to have geotagged a photo taken here at home, and I know I did it right because when I click on the "show in map" link, it shows my house on Google Maps. Success! Finally, I was able to export my geotagged image from Lightroom with the geotag info embedded in the jpeg output file, and when I open the jpeg in Picasa, voila! it's there, with a location push-pin and a quick link to a map showing the location of my home. Total success! * And I think the GPS Status app on the phone should work even if I'm out of the city. I'm pretty sure the GPS feature of the phone works even when there's no cell service. (Without cell service, I can't see the maps in Google Maps, but the GPS Status app doesn't show a map, just coordinates.) And the GPS Status app lets me email or text myself a message with the required coordinates. That should do. I'm not looking for anything too fancy right now - I don't need info that shows me a different set of coordinates a photo if I step 10 ft to the left. I just want a single location that shows me where the wedding was, where I was on vacation, etc. Thanks! Will

11-13-2009, 12:20 PM	#11
WMBP Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Dallas, Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,482 Original Poster	Originally posted by WMBP I just discovered that my Android G1 phone can store gps coordinates (in WGS 84 format) right inside a photo. In other words, I don't even have to use the GPS Status app! I can just take a photo and save it. Later, I move the photo from the phone into Lightroom and (with any luck) sync this detail with the other 700 photos I took that day. Haven't figured that part out yet but it seems doable. Well, I just tried it - and it works! Here's the process: I took a photo of my dining room (where I'm sitting right now) with my G1 phone. This has gps info embedded in the EXIF data. CLicked the "share" button in the G1's Photo app and emailed this photo to myself. Downloaded the photo on my computer and put it into a folder for today's date. Imported photos in that folder into Lightroom. That was a couple of raw files + this one jpeg. Selected the jpeg first, then selected all the other photos, went to File > Plug-In Extras > Geoencode. This brings up Jeffrey Friedl's plug-in's UI. There I was able with just 1 click to apply the reference photo's gps coordinates to the other photos in the folder. Whole process (starting from step 2 above) took about 2 minutes, if that. It could, I guess be easier - but only if my K20D could embed the gps info in photos the way the G1 phone can. And it could not be any less expensive. All I really want to do is get a general location point. But if I wanted to get more precise, I could just take more photos with my phone - photos that match in subject/perspective the photos I'm taking with my camera, and perhaps roughly match the times. Then I could tie inidividual photos or groups of photos more precisely to their coordinates. Thanks again. This is kind of cool. Will

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Newbie questions about saving RAW files	lectrolink	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	7	08-03-2010 12:08 AM
GPS data in K7 pictures?	Ivo_Spohr	Pentax DSLR Discussion	9	04-23-2010 02:10 PM
PSPX2 problems saving files Help Please	LaRee	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	1	03-20-2008 12:41 PM
Help, Silkypix and saving files. + Paint.net Pentax RAWloader	Peter Zack	Photographic Technique	2	01-23-2008 01:41 PM
EXIF data saving	borno	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	0	03-29-2007 04:51 PM

11-13-2009, 09:50 AM	#2
Aristophanes Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Rankin Inlet, Nunavut Photos: Albums Posts: 3,948	GPS receivers are still fairly large, so few cameras have them built in. this might work for you: Eye-Fi wireless memory card comparison chart \| Eye-Fi GiSTEQ and Sony amongst others offer GPS geotagging units that attach to the hotshoe or can be attached tot he camera strap. Unless you are finnicky about the precise location of the photo, what I do is enter the basic data in Google Earth about where the photo was taken, then I copy the coordinates and batch enter them into the EXIF metadata of all files from that location. iPhoto then shows me on a map where all were taken. The cost to do that is zero, and takes maybe 15 seconds.

11-13-2009, 09:53 AM	#3
dragonfly Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: on the wall Photos: Gallery Posts: 715	I think there is a program that will synch up your photo files with your pocket GPS unit.

11-13-2009, 09:59 AM	#4
Eruditass Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,207	I don't think its possible, but Zooomr seemed to boast something about geotagging pictures. Alternatively, you can just save each GPS recording in your GPS every time you move locations

11-13-2009, 11:01 AM	#5
Lowell Goudge Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,891	pentax does not yet have a unit compatible with GPS or a gps built in to the camera, but if you have a GPS, you can download the track information and there are many geo tagging programs available. I have a Garmin GPS-76CSx and I have it set to continually (every second) write the GPS location to the storage card. I use a freeware program called GeoSetter to batch process the GPS data into my images. It can be set to match any time offsets between your camera and GPS so that there is no issue of location and accuracy. Even if you don't record every second, it can be set to interpolate between points, for up to one hour

11-13-2009, 11:09 AM	#6
-Joe- Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: KY Photos: Gallery Posts: 47	the eyefi cards use wifi.. Really doubt you could get wifi in some noncity locations. You just need a gps capable of recording tracks and a program to match the date/time of the two. I have an Etrex Venture HC and have done this. You will to make sure both the camera and gps have the same date/time set. Turn the gps on with tracking enabled. Take your pictures. Then when you are done grab the tracklog from the gps and use whatever program you choose to sync the gps coords with the pictures. It will store it in th exif data of each picture. There are some devices that will do this for you. You just turn it on while you are taking your pictures, then stick in your memory card and it will add the coords without the computer software part. Heres one.. Amazon.com: Geo Tagging for Your Pictures Atp Photo Finder Calc & Records: Electronics

11-13-2009, 11:54 AM	#8
-Joe- Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: KY Photos: Gallery Posts: 47	Benefit of the way I mentioned is that you wont need to do each file, it will do them all at once. No importing/exporting.. Will not even touch the image itself, only the exif data. But whatever works! I geocache from time to time and its easier to just have a real handheld gps.

11-13-2009, 11:58 AM	#9
WMBP Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Dallas, Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,482 Original Poster	Originally posted by -Joe- You will to make sure both the camera and gps have the same date/time set. Turn the gps on with tracking enabled. Take your pictures. Then when you are done grab the tracklog from the gps and use whatever program you choose to sync the gps coords with the pictures. It will store it in th exif data of each picture. Do you know software that can do that? I assume you have to tell the software (a) where the photos are and (b) where the corresponding gps data is, right? As far as I can tell, this isn't something I could do in Lightroom or Picasa. Will

11-13-2009, 12:01 PM	#10
WMBP Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Dallas, Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,482 Original Poster	I just discovered that my Android G1 phone can store gps coordinates (in WGS 84 format) right inside a photo. In other words, I don't even have to use the GPS Status app! I can just take a photo and save it. Later, I move the photo from the phone into Lightroom and (with any luck) sync this detail with the other 700 photos I took that day. Haven't figured that part out yet but it seems doable. This is cool - and so far I haven't spent any money! Will

11-13-2009, 04:54 PM	#12
pxpaulx Veteran Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Twin Cities, MN Posts: 2,867	Originally posted by -Joe- the eyefi cards use wifi.. Really doubt you could get wifi in some noncity locations. You just need a gps capable of recording tracks and a program to match the date/time of the two. I have an Etrex Venture HC and have done this. You will to make sure both the camera and gps have the same date/time set. Turn the gps on with tracking enabled. Take your pictures. Then when you are done grab the tracklog from the gps and use whatever program you choose to sync the gps coords with the pictures. It will store it in th exif data of each picture. I would echo this possibility. I dont do it all the time, but I do follow the same steps, using a delorme PN-20. Takes less than a minute to pull the track log from the GPS. I also use geosetter, it is really straight forward (well about as straight forward as these programs get!). It takes awhile to write the information to the files, but doesnt require you to actually do anything more, just about 2 or 3 minutes of your time! I have a couple of galleries on picasa that show the map information - check this one out: Picasa Web Albums - pxpaulx - adventures in... The map shows up on the left, and you can click on it to make it interactive, basically a google map pushpin of your photos for the entire gallery. Kinda fun!