<p>EXIF is just a data format. Most cameras, including drone's, attach <em>some</em> information to each photo taken.</p>
<p>The amount of this information and its specifics varies greatly. There are hundreds or even thousands of different <em>tags</em> that the camera can provide. All of them are optional, but some of them are very common and are present in nearly every photo/camera, such as &quot;Date taken&quot;, &quot;Exposure time&quot; etc. The camera model is nearly always attached as well (as a text string). These items are well documented and can usually be unambiguously interpreted.</p>
<p>On the other hand, a big chunk of tags are camera-specific &quot;maker notes&quot;, and their interpretation will depend on the camera manufacturer. Some of them are well documented, some were reverse-engineered, but more are being added with each new camera. The popular <a href="https://exiftool.org/" rel="noreferrer">ExifTool</a> is perhaps the most comprehensive EXIF parser/manipulator (albeit command-line). Its documentation has description of most known tags.</p>
<p>Most decent image viewing software (including online services) have the ability to display EXIF info alongside with the image. The more generic ones can only display the most common tags, while the more specialised software can decode most tags, including Maker Notes.</p>
<p>As for the location data, it's <a href="https://exiftool.org/TagNames/GPS.html" rel="noreferrer">fairly comprehensive</a> in theory. The standard has provision for the camera as well as the subject location. However, in practice, I've only seen the <strong>camera location</strong> being filled. It is much more difficult and ambiguous to ascertain the exact subject location, especially for landscapes.</p>
<p>For example, this is what comes from a DJI Mavic Pro:</p>
<pre>
GPS Altitude          : 324.9 m Above Sea Level
GPS Latitude          : 37 deg 35' 30.81" S
GPS Longitude         : 144 deg 54' 13.29" E
</pre>
<p>(Each piece of info here actually uses two EXIF tags: the data and the reference, such as &quot;Above Sea Level&quot;). The altitude here is also the camera (i.e. drone) altitude; it is not height above the ground.</p>
<p>In addition, there is a bunch of <a href="https://exiftool.org/TagNames/DJI.html" rel="noreferrer">DJI-specific tags</a>, which can help you to pinpoint the approximate subject location if you really want to:</p>
<pre>
Speed X               : -0.30
Speed Y               : -0.10
Speed Z               : +0.00
Pitch                 : -0.60
Yaw                   : +113.60
Roll                  : -3.00
Camera Pitch          : -9.50
Camera Yaw            : +113.70
Camera Roll           : +0.00
</pre>
<p>Interestingly, DJI doesn't write the barometric height, even though it knows it (and can write it to the srt subtitles to the video).</p>
<p>Of course, your drone can have a different set of data. However, the basic GPS data (i.e. camera location) is fairly universal.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T05:17:13.287Z
+1, you answered the question very well (in the middle) and [mentioned the most important argument: which is this](https://drones.stackexchange.com/questions/2140/how-should-i-interpret-the-exif-data-from-an-image-taken-by-a-drone?newreg=efb1a9904e7541ff9ee87c97e0a5022e#comment2358_2140)
FriendlyFire
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T09:11:17.177Z
I suppose it's specifically the location of the drone's GPS antenna, but if only stores 2 decimal places there are about 20 yards of rounding errors, so that's a bit irrelevant.
Robin Bennett
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T09:32:31.867Z
@RobinBennett It's more likely to be the position of the camera focal point, with the lever arm from the GPS antenna to the camera being applied. That's what matter if you want to do photogrammetry (though as you note the precision here is very low). At least that's what we did when I was working for a drone manufacturer (not DJI).
Leherenn
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T03:00:40.917Z
2021-11-05T03:00:40.917Z
Zeus
<p>Hi Mate EXIF is the Acronym for Exchangeable Image File, a format that is a standard for storing interchange information in digital photography image files using JPEG compression, therefore is widely used in digital photography and not only in pictures taken with drones. Almost all new digital cameras use the EXIF annotation, storing information on the image such as shutter speed, exposure compensation, F number, what metering system was used, if a flash was used, ISO number, date and time the image was taken, whitebalance, auxiliary lenses that were used and resolution. Some images may even store GPS information so you can easily see where the images were taken.
Thanks to Prof TsuruZoh Tachibanaya. <a href="https://www.media.mit.edu/pia/Research/deepview/exif.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.media.mit.edu/pia/Research/deepview/exif.html</a> we have an excellent document reporting EXIF specification.
Moreover Latitude and Longitude report the actual geografical location from where the image was taken (the camera's location).
This opens a wide discussion about GEOTAGGING that in summary is the about including the geographic location related to the picture that has been taken.
A very interesting document about EXIF GPS Geotagging is here: <a href="https://www.ridgesolutions.ie/index.php/2015/03/05/geotag-exif-gps-latitude-field-format/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.ridgesolutions.ie/index.php/2015/03/05/geotag-exif-gps-latitude-field-format/</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T05:22:11.170Z
-1. this mention the EXIF data as the *image's location*, not as the camera's or subject's as the asker wants. It basically mentions a wider area-locations as *location related* or *where it was taken*, not like what the asker is asking, as the subject's location or the camera's.
FriendlyFire
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-04T21:52:52.273Z
2021-11-06T12:39:29.000Z
2021-11-06T12:39:29.000Z
Luca Spuntoni
<p>Each aerial image taken by a drone has some exif data. What does that exif data signify?</p>
<p>There are latitude / longitude and altitude values mentioned. What does this data signify?</p>
<p>Does this signify the ground location as seen in the image?</p>
<p>Or does this signify the actual location (aerial) from where the image was taken?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-04T21:09:30.300Z
A likely important prerequisite question is: what specific drone/camera system are we talking about here?
ifconfig
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T05:13:06.053Z
@ifconfig The model/brand would only be required if you want to know the drone records the subject's location by calculating in a way and puts it instead of the camera's location albeit I don't know if one system that does this exists.
FriendlyFire
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T05:15:47.190Z
Whether you take the photo from a camera or a drone, EXIF data only record the location of the camera, not the place, albeit, if you used a ground camera it's very easy to measure the distant from the camera to the subject and calculate the distance.
FriendlyFire
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T05:44:00.293Z
@VScode_fanboy Correct. That's what I meant :)
ifconfig
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T05:44:43.190Z
@ifconfig thanks for the clarification! :)
FriendlyFire
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-05T05:51:40.827Z
@ifconfig I have seen some military/police helicopters/drones have [this](https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Geotagged_photograph#/Remote_standoff_capture), I saw one image with this, in a documentary/show in national geographic that HSI was doing a raid. Maybe this is a feature of some odd drone?
FriendlyFire
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-11-06T08:15:53.803Z
@user253751 good argument. The answer is simply, no, because how are we gonna calculate it (let alone specify the subject? e.g. in a beach, sky). After all EXIF doesn't show the subject location. But we can get a general idea by looking at the camera location.
FriendlyFire
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-02-18T19:14:50.063Z
If you  really need to know the ground location shown on (and captured by) a drone camera I have developed software to do just that.  The accuracy of the placement (a polygon that shows the extent of the image on the ground and a georeferenced image file) is subject to the accuracy and precision of the onboard GNSS unit, the quality of the IMU and magnetometers, the relief of the terrain, and the angle of the image.  Contact me privately to discuss.
GBG
<photography>
How should I interpret the exif data from an image taken by a drone?
srini
# How should I interpret the exif data from an image taken by a drone?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-11-04)

Each aerial image taken by a drone has some exif data. What does that exif data signify?

There are latitude / longitude and altitude values mentioned. What does this data signify?

Does this signify the ground location as seen in the image?

Or does this signify the actual location (aerial) from where the image was taken?

**Tags:** photography
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: A likely important prerequisite question is: what specific drone/camera system are we talking about here?  
> **username_2**: @ifconfig The model/brand would only be required if you want to know the drone records the subject's location by calculating in a way and puts it instead of the camera's location albeit I don't know if one system that does this exists.  
> **username_2**: Whether you take the photo from a camera or a drone, EXIF data only record the location of the camera, not the place, albeit, if you used a ground camera it's very easy to measure the distant from the camera to the subject and calculate the distance.  
> **username_1**: @VScode_fanboy Correct. That's what I meant :)  
> **username_2**: @ifconfig thanks for the clarification! :)  
> **username_2**: @ifconfig I have seen some military/police helicopters/drones have [this](https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Geotagged_photograph#/Remote_standoff_capture), I saw one image with this, in a documentary/show in national geographic that HSI was doing a raid. Maybe this is a feature of some odd drone?  
> **username_2**: @user253751 good argument. The answer is simply, no, because how are we gonna calculate it (let alone specify the subject? e.g. in a beach, sky). After all EXIF doesn't show the subject location. But we can get a general idea by looking at the camera location.  
> **username_3**: If you  really need to know the ground location shown on (and captured by) a drone camera I have developed software to do just that.  The accuracy of the placement (a polygon that shows the extent of the image on the ground and a georeferenced image file) is subject to the accuracy and precision of the onboard GNSS unit, the quality of the IMU and magnetometers, the relief of the terrain, and the angle of the image.  Contact me privately to discuss.  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2021-11-05. Score: 7

EXIF is just a data format. Most cameras, including drone's, attach some information to each photo taken.
The amount of this information and its specifics varies greatly. There are hundreds or even thousands of different tags that the camera can provide. All of them are optional, but some of them are very common and are present in nearly every photo/camera, such as "Date taken", "Exposure time" etc. The camera model is nearly always attached as well (as a text string). These items are well documented and can usually be unambiguously interpreted.
On the other hand, a big chunk of tags are camera-specific "maker notes", and their interpretation will depend on the camera manufacturer. Some of them are well documented, some were reverse-engineered, but more are being added with each new camera. The popular ExifTool is perhaps the most comprehensive EXIF parser/manipulator (albeit command-line). Its documentation has description of most known tags.
Most decent image viewing software (including online services) have the ability to display EXIF info alongside with the image. The more generic ones can only display the most common tags, while the more specialised software can decode most tags, including Maker Notes.
As for the location data, it's fairly comprehensive in theory. The standard has provision for the camera as well as the subject location. However, in practice, I've only seen the camera location being filled. It is much more difficult and ambiguous to ascertain the exact subject location, especially for landscapes.
For example, this is what comes from a DJI Mavic Pro:

GPS Altitude          : 324.9 m Above Sea Level
GPS Latitude          : 37 deg 35' 30.81" S
GPS Longitude         : 144 deg 54' 13.29" E

(Each piece of info here actually uses two EXIF tags: the data and the reference, such as "Above Sea Level"). The altitude here is also the camera (i.e. drone) altitude; it is not height above the ground.
In addition, there is a bunch of DJI-specific tags, which can help you to pinpoint the approximate subject location if you really want to:

Speed X               : -0.30
Speed Y               : -0.10
Speed Z               : +0.00
Pitch                 : -0.60
Yaw                   : +113.60
Roll                  : -3.00
Camera Pitch          : -9.50
Camera Yaw            : +113.70
Camera Roll           : +0.00

Interestingly, DJI doesn't write the barometric height, even though it knows it (and can write it to the srt subtitles to the video).
Of course, your drone can have a different set of data. However, the basic GPS data (i.e. camera location) is fairly universal.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: +1, you answered the question very well (in the middle) and [mentioned the most important argument: which is this](https://drones.stackexchange.com/questions/2140/how-should-i-interpret-the-exif-data-from-an-image-taken-by-a-drone?newreg=efb1a9904e7541ff9ee87c97e0a5022e#comment2358_2140)  
> **username_5**: I suppose it's specifically the location of the drone's GPS antenna, but if only stores 2 decimal places there are about 20 yards of rounding errors, so that's a bit irrelevant.  
> **username_6**: @RobinBennett It's more likely to be the position of the camera focal point, with the lever arm from the GPS antenna to the camera being applied. That's what matter if you want to do photogrammetry (though as you note the precision here is very low). At least that's what we did when I was working for a drone manufacturer (not DJI).  

---

### Answer by username_7 on 2021-11-04. Score: 3

Hi Mate EXIF is the Acronym for Exchangeable Image File, a format that is a standard for storing interchange information in digital photography image files using JPEG compression, therefore is widely used in digital photography and not only in pictures taken with drones. Almost all new digital cameras use the EXIF annotation, storing information on the image such as shutter speed, exposure compensation, F number, what metering system was used, if a flash was used, ISO number, date and time the image was taken, whitebalance, auxiliary lenses that were used and resolution. Some images may even store GPS information so you can easily see where the images were taken.
Thanks to Prof TsuruZoh Tachibanaya. <https://www.media.mit.edu/pia/Research/deepview/exif.html> we have an excellent document reporting EXIF specification.
Moreover Latitude and Longitude report the actual geografical location from where the image was taken (the camera's location).
This opens a wide discussion about GEOTAGGING that in summary is the about including the geographic location related to the picture that has been taken.
A very interesting document about EXIF GPS Geotagging is here: <https://www.ridgesolutions.ie/index.php/2015/03/05/geotag-exif-gps-latitude-field-format/>

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: -1. this mention the EXIF data as the *image's location*, not as the camera's or subject's as the asker wants. It basically mentions a wider area-locations as *location related* or *where it was taken*, not like what the asker is asking, as the subject's location or the camera's.  

---

