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Monday July 7, 2008
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Geotagging is the process of adding geographical identification metadata to various media such as images. Camera users who travel often or want to remember the exact place that they took a photo have wanted it for a while, and it'll be possible soon to geotag within a camera like the GE E1050. For professionals, it's possible to hook a Nikon D3 or D300 up to a GPS unit, but it can be a very clumsy and not very practical when you're out in the field shooting a story with a bag (or sometimes a carload) of equipment.
In addition, GPS uses a lot of power--locking onto satellites, talking to them, and then processing the answers can be a battery drain. However, a company by the name of Geotate seems to have the answer: the The Kato, a small gadget that looks like an iPod Nano that clips onto your DSLR's hot shoe.
Each time the photographer takes a photo, the Kato automatically captures the raw GPS signal. And since it's connected to the camera's hot shoe, it won't drain the precious battery life of your DSLR.
How does it work? A PDF on the company's Web site states: "When the user has finished taking photographs, they unload their photos and raw GPS data captures onto a PC and run our software. Matching is quick and easy, since the photos and raw GPS data were captured simultaneously. Our server provides historic GPS satellite information corresponding to the times the raw GPS data was recorded."
It's interesting to note that it doesn't mention anything about Mac support; MacBook Pros are well loved by many professionals using DSLRs.
When the Kato finally pops its head out of the factory this September at Photokina, it should cost around $156.
Posted By:
Chris Gampat
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