Module 2 - Visual Interpretation

This week, we were tasked with identifying different features and elements of aerial photos in Arc Pro. This was my first time using arc pro extensively and it took quite a bit of patience to figure out how to navigate the program. Ultimately, I did complete my maps, but I will be use provided help from now on!

The following information is from my process summary for future reference:

Exercise 1

The objective of exercise 1 was to identify different textures and tones on an aerial raster image. I accomplished this by creating polygons that outlined distinguishable areas for each of these criteria including Tone: Very light, light, medium, dark very dark – and – Texture: Very fine, fine, mottled, coarse, very coarse. 

This exercise caused me the most trouble because I had never used Arc Pro before. After adding my input files into the folder and reading the instructions and helpful tips from ESRI, I still could not figure out how to create a feature class. Finally after much troubleshooting (my preferred way of learning computer-based concepts) I realized I needed to use a .gdb to do so. I was then able to create the tone and texture polygons over the applicable areas of the map. Unfortunately, I was able to change the tone polygons to yellow, but unable to choose an outline color other than black for the texture (the program changed the fill. I will continue to do research on how to change the outline). The example was very helpful for references, but the polygon locations chosen were very similar to the areas I felt were the most representative of each class. Hopefully this means I did the assignment correctly! I then added a map layout for my essential elements.

Exercise 2

The objective of exercise 2 was to identify objects located on the ground using in aerial photo through their associations to surroundings, the objects’ size and shape, shadows, and pattern. I will explain how I accomplished this for each criteria:

Association – The pier is identifiable because it extends out into the ocean. The swimming pool is identifiable because it is surrounded by a stadium and parking lot.

Size and Shape - The vehicles, beach, and road are all identifiable by their size and shape.

Shadows – The tree and water tower both have shadows that appear like a projection of the original object on the ground. The building is identifiable by shadows because the shadow gives it depth and because of its projection on the ground similar to the first two objects.

Pattern – For patterns, I chose a parking lot, which is identifiable because of the many individual parking spaces, a neighborhood which is identifiable by the neighboring buildings and their proximity, and an undeveloped area that is identifiable because of the foliage and lack of man-made structures. 

This exercise was a much smoother process simply because I knew how to accomplish the basics of the objective. This exercise used points instead of polygons and I was able to change the colors of each point using the same method as ArcMap. I attempted to choose points that were the most obvious for each category. I enjoyed this exercise because it reminded me of examining an aerial image on google maps for leisure and introduced different ways to correctly identify an object or area. The labels on this map were tricky for me because I was unsure of how to insert leader lines, but fortunately the labels do not cover features that take away from the map objective. I then added a map layout for my essential elements.