Gps

i never turn the gps on, but its a good idea to strip that. you don't need people knowing exactly where you took something. its one reason i have it off, that and battery life. its a good idea to turn it off in phones as well.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

I don't leave it on but sometimes I'll turn it on so I can find where I've been. It becomes a blur after a while when I try to remember where a photo was taken but I'm torn about leaving the coordinates in the file if others have access. Not that anything I shoot is all that important to anyone else.

Yes and an article recently (I am sorry, I cannot remember where) showed good reasons why it was important to

Abbie, important to strip coordinates or important to leave them there?

its important too because parents are posting their kids, and the coordinates are leading weirdos right to their doors.

but in our case people can really say - hey that's my house, i want money. and you can't deny you weren't in a spot to get a shot.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

oh and what i do is, and while it's not a 100% accurate. i will make a trace with my phone and save that. i can load it up in google. i can't get the time stamps from the locations though which is odd since that's how gps's work. but it shows me the rough area i was in, and using google maps and buildings i can figure it out from there. the advantage of using a phone is, i can see where i've been, as it leaves a trail of bread crumbs for me.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Some railroad photographers I know turn it off for a few reasons -- 1.) they don't want to give up their photo spots to other photogs (which is a silly reason, frankly) or 2.) they may not exactly be on public land when they get their shots. But, really, you don't need a GPS most times to figure out where someone was standing. My camera doesn't have this feature and I don't have a smart phone, but I don't think I would cut mine off if I did since I already am more than willing to show people where I was when I took a shot and always stay on public land (or have permission otherwise)

Relying on a trail of bread crumbs could be problematic for a turkey.

I often shoot in well known locations, even if my shot is somewhat off the beaten track it's often close enough that it could be easily recognized. Usually my descriptions and keywords tell where I've been. So even if my camera had a GPS built in, I mostly wouldn't care.

But I can certainly see why it's a good idea in some situations.

Strip them...important to strip them off

Who would have access to it? I don't see how it would matter much for FAA. That said it is probably a good idea to make stripping GPS meta-data a part of your workflow.

bread crumbs are only bad if the hunter is near by. i'll be in a protected location come thanksgiving.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Drains the battery on my Canon 6D so I usually don't have it on. Landscape photographers probably find it useful for their own data to be able to revisit places.

Yes, it does drain the battery quickly so I try to turn it off when I don't need it. For personal shots, I like to use GPS to see some of the improbable places where I spent nights in the bush so that when I'm even older and more rickety I can look back at Google Earth (or whatever cool app will take its place) and marvel at how I managed to get there and wonder what possessed me to try. Some camp sites had amazing views and I may use some for FAA but I don't want to advertise the locations because the places are pristine (if you don't count the carcasses of half-eaten grizzly kills littering the woods).

Kathleen, in my experience the ones who would ruin such places aren't about to hike into them. They are too lazy for that.

i think the site strips off the exif anyway. its been an issue with many since we have copyright data in there as well.


"(if you don't count the carcasses of half-eaten grizzly kills littering the woods"

but imagine all the cameras you could collect from that...


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

I agree with Chuck. I'll stop at a beautiful spot in Vermont, take two steps off the road and find dumped bags of trash.

LOL, Mike, how'd you know I'm a shameless scrounge? I find all kinds of useful stuff left behind months (or years) ago by careless people. On one long hike tiptoeing atop the sheared fin of a an upthrust reef I found headphones, a camera in its case, a couple cool things I won't mention here and a darn good axe. Can't imagine what the axe was doing there as there are no trees at all.

Chuck, I used to believe that until I saw the vandalism of rock art sites that are hard to get to. Yes, there is less of it than the easy access sites but as the human population explodes it seems that the number of idiots grows exponentially.

free stuff is free stuff. and if you don't mind the screaming and the site of blood, you could take a few nice shots and lead them there with the image. "smart" photographers will be lead up a bear trail, and well... you both can work together. and its not like you committed murder, all you did was show a picture and collect prizes. seems like a good murder she wrote plot. only no real arrests.



people will put graffiti on anything. i've seen it on tall towers, a water tower with no ladder on one side, i imagined they climbed up there and came down by rope, just to do that. it is interesting to the extent of their reach though.. where the wall is still clean.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Hmm. That's a bit too well thought out Mike. Leave anyone behind on any of your photo shoots?

mmmmm no one that i know of... or anyone would miss. if the fbi should ever find this unusual murder mystery, this was a work of fiction, and any similarities to the event is purely a coincidence. no one should try this at home. should you see a bear, take a picture of it.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

This is a very interesting thread and I understand why you would strip out GPS info of photos of children and yourself that you post on social media but, why is it important to do when posting images for sale? That's the part I don't understand. I don't currently do it now but would like to understand why it is important to do. I don't really about other photographers knowing where I shot. Is there some other reason besides safety when posting on social media?

LOL, I've missed Mike's way of thinking. And no, there's enough of the photojournalist in me to be dispassionate when capturing events, gory and otherwise. Have to be quick to tag the carcasses though. An entire elk was dragged off during the night.. A sow and her cubs strolled past another site just at dusk. It was in a meadow with woods on either side. The coyotes started kicking up at the edge of the woods on the right and that set the wolves to howling from the woods on the left.

John, I have photos on Panoramio that are tagged and of course they are up for grabs. Most people just steal them without asking but I recently was contacted by a non-profit that found one of my photos tagged to a property they are trying to conserve. They asked for the high-res file to use (for free, with credit) in their e-newsletter. I contract with non-profits so I'm aware of funding issues and support conservation efforts but that is one of my favorite photos for some odd reason and I hate to just give it away. That's what got me thinking about geo-tagging and wishing I hadn't posted it to Google Earth.

@john - imagine you were a bit on someone else's property. you took a shot of a farm house. you have the image for sale and they take a look at the meta tags and notice you were a good 100ft into their property. where you thought you were sneaky, wearing camo and wearing a bush disguise. they have proof you were trespassing. that would also go for abandoned buildings etc. it would let you be caught red handed, the trail shows where you were. sometimes being anonymous is a good thing. plus of course if you shoot near your house, people can find where you live and take your stuff.

in essence it places you at the scene of the crime. the guy sneaking images from inside a car or in front of the school under the guise of street photography. the evidence is locked in the picture, it could be used against you in the future.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

I can see all those different scenarios of doing something illegal and all and how that is definitely a way of getting caught. I don't do those things so I guess there is nothing for me to worry about.

i don't think most people have to worry. and yet someone will figure out some terrible use for it. like there was a bombing and you happen to be there that very day. and your tied into that some how. or everyone knows your secret spot.

what it is good for though is to see what others took pictures of in an area. if your want to go on a trip and want to see what it looks like google shows all the places someone tagged an image. and you can get a good feel of a spot. and if you happen to be one of those people you get your name known - for those who care. so there is an upside.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com