PhotoSurveyor

Getting Started with PhotoSurveyor

Create your professional Google Earth survey in three simple steps.

Step 1: Select Your Image Source
Launch PhotoSurveyor and select the folder containing your geotagged JPG images.

Pro Tip: For the fastest performance, ensure your images are stored on a local drive (like your Desktop) rather than a network share.

Step 2: Configure Your Output
Choose between a .KML or .KMZ file format.

Choose .KML if you want a lightweight file that links to images on your computer.
Choose .KMZ if you want a portable, all-in-one file that includes the photos—perfect for emailing to clients.

Step 3: Generate and View
Click "Generate KML File" button or "Generate KMZ File" button and PhotoSurveyor will extract the GPS coordinates and create your map. Once finished, simply double-click the generated file to watch your survey come to life in Google Earth.

Ensure Accuracy: For best results, verify that your camera’s Location Services (GPS) were active when the photos were taken. PhotoSurveyor uses the embedded EXIF metadata to pin each image precisely on the globe.

Manual

Enter the directory path where your JPG files are stored, click the Browse... button to select a folder, or drag and drop a folder directly from Windows Explorer.
If you are to create KML file, make sure the path does not include character "#". Otherwise the links in the KML file would be broken.

Enter the desired file name without a file extension. This name will be used for the generated KMZ or KML file. The output file will be saved automatically within the same source folder as your JPG photos.

When you click an icon in Google Earth, a pop-up "balloon" window displays the associated photo. Use the track bar to adjust the width of this window.

Too small: The photo may be difficult to see.
Too large: The photo may occupy the entire screen, making Google Earth difficult to navigate.

Every photo is represented by an icon in Google Earth. Icons are set at a specific height above the ground to prevent them from being hidden by trees or buildings.

Rural areas: Set this value lower.
Urban areas: Set this value higher to clear tall structures.

Adjust the size of the icons to ensure they are easily visible on the map.

If you have a large number of high-resolution photos (e.g., 500 photos at 5MB each), the resulting KMZ file may be too large for Google Earth to handle efficiently.

Check this option to resize the photos based on your Balloon Window Width setting. PhotoSurveyor will include these reduced-size versions in the KMZ file, significantly reducing the final file size while leaving your original, full-resolution photos completely intact.

Note: For KML files, photos are not resized or embedded; the width setting only controls the display size of the balloon window within Google Earth.

Check this option to display the filename next to each icon in Google Earth. If you have many photos in a small area, we recommend turning this off to avoid a cluttered view.

Automatically opens Windows Explorer and highlights the new file once generation is complete.

Automatically opens the generated file in Google Earth immediately after creation.

Starts the process of creating a KML file. The progress of each photo is displayed in the table on the right side of the screen.

Starts the process of creating a KMZ file (an archive containing the map data and photos). Progress is tracked in the table on the right.

If you are unsure if your photos contain GPS metadata, use this button. PhotoSurveyor will scan the selected folder and display the results in the table. No output file is created during this scan.

Apple (iOS) and some Android devices use the HEIC format to save space. Since PhotoSurveyor requires JPG format, use this button to convert your HEIC files to JPG before generating your map files.

Click this button to immediately cancel any active operation (KML/KMZ generation or photo investigation).

Restores all track bars and checkboxes to their original factory settings.

View version information or enter your license key to activate the full version of the software.

Opens this online documentation.

Exits the application.