Proposed system for 35 mm. large scale aerial photography in natural resource management

This describes an aerial photographic system which is based on 35 mm. cameras. The design for the camera mount is explained in detail. The originality of this equipment is due to the fact that the camera is operated by hand and that the special device for advancing the film enables the operator to take photos from an altitude as low as 400 feet above ground elevation whilst still obtaining 60 per cent forward overlap. More than 10 flying hours were spent in order to study the feasibility of this method in the various fields of natural resource management and others. The outcome of these test flights is illustrated with stereo pairs and single prints for the fields of wildlife management, fish management, range management, agriculture, forestry, city planning, erosion and pollution problems. The basic film type used was Kodak Tri-X panchromatic black and white. The problems which arose during the flight are illustrated and discussed, e.g. shutter, scale, speed of the aircraft, requirements for the plane and pilot, filters and films, weather conditions etc. The feasibility of this new method was substantiated in presenting a series of sharp photos. The high resolution power of modern 35 mm. film material allows the trained interpreter to use the large scale photographs taken by this system for: 1. Estimates of big game populations and spotting game with the aid of tracks on snow, 2. Detecting beaver activity, 3. Population estimates of muskrats by a house count, 4. Waterfowl census by pin pointing the individuals on the prints, 5. Detection of spawning grounds for salmon, and the estimation of algal production. 6. Detecting water and land pollution. 7. Determining erosion problems. 8. Habitat and range evaluation of game and livestock. 9. Inventory work in range management, agriculture, and forestry. 10. City planning and landscape architecture.Forestry, Faculty ofGraduat