Imago Capture is available from the downloads section of the website.  It allows you to capture new imagery by controlling a supported camera or uploading pictures from your local computer.

The following videos provide a synopsis of how to configure and use Imago Capture

Configuring you Imago Account

In order to use Imago Capture you must have first created an account in the Imago Portal.  Following are the basic steps required:

Configuring Imago Capture

Once you install Imago Capture on your local computer you will need to connect the application to the Imago portal and define the setting for the subsequent capture:

 

More detailed annotations on what each of the settings does can be found at the bottom of this article.

Setting up a Camera in Imago Capture

Once your camera is connected to your computer you can use Live View to adjust the frame and the general capture setting for the camera

Taking a picture with Imago Capture

Now you are ready to take a picture and assign a cropping template to it:

 

Uploading and Image to Imago Capture

Final step is to upload the image to the Imago portal so everyone can use it.

 

Imago Settings

Following is a description of the available settings for Imago Capture and what each options does.  Options are numbered in screen capture and described in text below

1. Import environment allows the user to download the configuration of the destination fields where the images will reside from the Imago Portal.

2. Directory where the images will be cached (stored locally) before they are uploaded to the Imago portal.  For support purposes we recommend preserving the default location

3. You can add or delete profiles for the different types of images you might be collecting, ie: Chips or Core Trays.  Right hand click on an existing profile to delete it.

4, 5, 6, 7. Destination of the data on the portal  

8. Used to read from and two from a barcode and corresponding database

9. Option to add a visible title box to the image with the images meta data: project, holeid, from to, etc.

10 Size of the title box with respect to the image, 80 is a good value for most cameras.

11, 12. Label will be in feet or meters

13. Option to use and store box numbers in addition to from and to depths

14. Option to write your own title format

15. Option to enable downhole reconstruction of the core runs into a single linear image

16. Compression algorithm used for the jpg image. Recommend you do not go above 90.  Keep at 80 for optimal results.

17. Enable ability to crop the exterior of the box.  No used for core runs.

18. Validation that allows the system to upload with one image if you have setting for more that one, ie: you captured Wet but have set the project to capture dry and wet.

19. Remove GPS metadata if present from the image.  Some SLR cameras are GPS enabled.

20. If your core runs are horizontal you want to display them vertically in the lightable.  Should be on if your core box runs are horizontal.

21. Auto increment from to by a specific range. Used for chip tray image capture

22. Validation, drillhole must exist in the portal for Imago Capture to allow you to upload to it.

23. Validation, Imago Capture forces you to define a cropping of the core tray runs if this option is enabled.

24. Used in conjunction with 21 so keyboard can be used to expedite the capture process.  Capture happens upon hitting new interval button.

25. Option to automatically set From = To or To = From on next image. Handy when core is stacked from deepest core box to shallowest core box.

26. Option to define the format of the file while importing.  Will allow you to automatically set from\to from image file name.

Title Template Variables

Title Template: The values here are any text with {field_name} in there, with field_name being any one of:

project

dataset

drillhole

startdepth

enddepth

startdepth_m

enddepth_m

startdepth_ft

enddepth_ft

startbox

endbox

imagerytype

So for example the default title is

"{project}, {dataset}: {drillhole} {startdepth}-{enddepth}m"

 

Import File name Pattern

Import File Name Pattern:   No regular expressions, it just looks for these four things:

[DEPTHSTART]

[DEPTHEND]

[BOXSTART]

[BOXEND]

And then it tries to match the text in between those with whats in the filename.

Disk Cleanup

We recommend all images are synchronized with the portal before running this command.  Backing up your c:\imagocapture directory the first time you run it is also a good idea.  This way you can return to a previous state if needed.

After you use Imago Capture for a while you will accumulate a lot of images on your local drive that will take a lot up a lot of disk space.  Imago Capture has a Disk Cleanup utility that can be access with the ALT+Shift+K key combination.

This utility will delete all the candidate photos out of you c:\ImagoCapture\ directory.  These files are the original files from the camera and are not used by Imago after and picture has been taken. The files that where uploaded to Imago are in the C:\ImagoCapture\CoreTrays directory.  If you want to quickly delete all the files in Imago Capture you can delete or move the coretrays directory. When you reopen Imago Capture all images will no longer exist in the Image Gallery.

Making Changes

Once Images have been uploaded to the portal their status changes to "All Done" and can no longer be edited.  To revert and image back to the "Ready for Upload" status you can select the corresponding image in the image Gallery, right click and select the "Mark for re-upload" option.

This will revert the image to is pre-upload state where you can change anything on the image, including retaking the images and assigning them to a new HoleID. 

Note: If the same interval and HoleID is preserved the image will be overwritten in the portal.  If a new interval is assigned a new image will be inserted into the portal and the existing will not be deleted.

Where to Next?

This article introduced you to image capture with Imago Capture. Want to use your mobile to capture and upload images? Getting started with Imago Mobile explains how to do this.

Do you have a single image you want to upload via the portal instead of your camera or mobile? How to upload Single Pictures to Imago explains how to do this.

Here is a list of supported cameras.

Capturing the best quality core images is essential. Capture Better Drill Core Images: Crash Course on Manual Camera Settings explains how to do this.

An imagery station is important for the capture of high quality images. What Imaging Station Shall I Build? provides some good advice depending on whether you are capturing core, reverse circulation cuttings or field piles. For chip trays, Building an Chip Tray Imaging Station explains how this may be done.

Have a look at using a Pre-built Core Imaging Station, if time is of the essence.

Want to link your captured images to your downstream product? Creating a URL Link to an Imago Image explains how to do this.