In collaboration with the Montserrat National Trust and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), LRR Geospatial Consultancy provided a 2-day basic introductory course on QGIS, GPS and Drone Mapping to 19 participants from diverse backgrounds to include persons working in the field of agriculture, biodiversity conservation, environmental protection and land surveying.
On Day 1, the participants were given a brief overview of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and its components. They learnt about the visualization and data consolidation capabilities that a GIS provides and the major differences between a map and a GIS.
Delving into the opensource software, QGIS, participants were given a step by step guide on:
- The user interface of QGIS
- Loading Vector Layers
- Navigating the Map Canvas
- Symbolization and Labelling
- Digitizing an existing feature
- Creating New Vector Data
Day 2 focused on Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and drone mapping covering the following topics:
- Introduction to GPS and Terrasync Software
- Field Data Collection
- Loading GPS Points into QGIS
- Layout and Exporting Maps
- An Introduction to Drone Mapping
Participants learnt that GPS, developed by the United States Department of Defense is only one of four Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). GLONASS which was developed by Russia, Galileo which was developed by the EU and BeiDou which was developed by China make up the other three Global Navigation Satellite Systems.
After being introduced to the software, and given tips for optimal data collection, participants were then challenged to collect a list of spatial data (points, lines and polygons), from the beautiful botanical gardens of the Montserrat National Trust using the Garmin etrex 30x and the Trimble Geo7x.
Participants also learnt about the four major types of drones and were further engaged with videos and explanations about the Delair UX11, a fixed wing drone and how it is used for spatial data collection.
Participants are now better positioned to create, collect and share spatial data.
If you are interested in learning more about this course or how GIS can help you in your work, contact LRR Geospatial Consultancy via email at [email protected]. Visit our website at www.lavernrogersryan.com.
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