Metal Rod Marker Type - What 's Useful To Picture?

[+Black Dog Trackers]

I was looking in the benchmark gallery and saw a bunch of pictures of PIDs that are Metal Rod marker type. The pictures look like ones that I have done. Take two pictures - one with the lid closed and one with the lid open with the rod in view.

 

Many of the pictures don't clearly show the designation on the cover's rim. Not all of mine do either. The designation is rather small and hard to clean.

 

One could say that opening the cover and photographing the rod is a necessity. I don't know what things happen to these rods that a picture would indicate. They seem rather safe.

 

I'm wondering if it is better to just take a close-up picture of the designation on the cover's rim and not bother to take a picture of the rod inside. Should both be done?

[ArtMan]

BDT,

 

In my (unprofessional) opinion, the key photos are, first, an extreme closeup clearly showing the stamping on the rim. Just like the stamping on a conventional disk, it serves as confirmation that, yes, you got the right one.

 

Second, I think you need an open-lid shot showing the intact rod. I've never seen a damaged rod, but I suppose it could happen, and the tip of the rod is, after all, the point that has been measured to high precision and will be used by the survey team.

 

I rarely if ever bother with a closed-lid closeup, the kind that would show the station and its very immediate vicinity, but not much else. This would be the equivalent of the waist-level (I think they call it) recommended NGS photo, I just don't think it adds much. I would rather have an extra area view, which I think would in most cases be more helpful to someone looking for the thing.

 

My two cents, anyway.

 

-ArtMan-

[+Harry Dolphin]

But, sometimes, you cannot open the cover. This one seems to need a special device to open. And, of course, park workers were watching from nearby. KU4903 One even came over to ask how close the coordinates were.

[Z15]

All you should need is a small screwdriver like a Leatheman etc, there is a small opening opposite the hinge to insert the s-driver. There are some that the lid is screwed on but none of the NGS/NOS ones are like that.

 

Its hard to tell what the screw type is on KU4903 but it looks like what is called "Torx" (star shape), you can buy these in any hardware store.

Edited May 25, 2005 by Z15

[+GEO*Trailblazer 1]

I have found a couple the bulldozer or the cable diggers got,the whole thing is smashed and the rod is bent.

So there are a few cases.

[+Me & Bucky]

I will take a similar set of pictures to what I take with a disk:

 

1) A closeup with the GPSr and designation (hopefully, in focus) with the access cover closed.

 

2) A closeup with the access cover open and the designation and rod in view.

 

3) A shot from eye level showing the setting with the access cover open.

 

4) and 5) are view shots offset by 90 degrees, but at least one of which shows items described in the data sheet.

 

I have used all kinds of things to get the access cover opened. Sticks, spoons, lethermans, and most recently, an old screwdriver. The only time I have ever had problems was in the winter when the cover is frozen shut. Sometimes in the winter, the cap has filled with water and frozen, so that there is a nice block of ice that needs some chipping away in order to see the rod.

 

As far as damage seems to go, fiberoptic lines seem to be the biggest enemy of a metal rod. Fiberoptic lines tend to get installed at the edge of road rights-of-way, in the same area as the metal rods. I have seen several where the PVC cup and access cover have just been stuck back in the ground with nothing in them.

 

I know that metal rods aren't the most popular items to hunt, but I love 'em! As a Wildlife Biologist, I look at metal rods as a nation-wide grid of pitfall traps, and I can't wait to open them up to see what they've caught! Mostly insects and spiders (in some areas of the West, every one in a string has a Black Widow), but also shrews, mice, banded geckos (and other lizards), snakes (none poisonous yet, but it will happen some day), scorpions, centipedes, millipedes, and likely alot of other things that I can't remember off the top of my head.

 

One thing I am very careful about is opening that access cover. Poisonous snakes or spiders don't worry me as much as the chance of getting some Africanized Bees when down in Arizona or southern Nevada.

[+BuckBrooke]

I always take one photo looking down on the opened cup, showing the rod and trying to get the designation. The second photo is the eye-level shot from 10-20 feet or so, showing the station, witness post (if present) and one of the to-reach references if possible.

 

I do have problems showing the designation. The designation shows up in my large photos, but when I size them down for Geocaching it doesn't show well. However, I haven't been submitting the photos to NGS, and need to look over their photo requirements in case they do start having photo submission.

[+Black Dog Trackers]

I have been taking the distant picture and the closeup picture (with the cover open) just like with disks, but I realized just before I started this that I hadn't done a good job of taking a readable picture of the designation in all cases.

 

To get the readable closeup of the designation, I think it doesn't matter whether the cover is open or not. It might even help a bit if it was closed so the darker hole wouldn't tend to overexpose the designation on the rim.

 

I was interested to see trailblazer's comments on rod damage that has been seen. I guess I shall continue to open the lids when I can.

 

It sounds like at least 3 pictures are needed for rods, one for the designation, one for the rod, and one for the usual 'distant' picture. An eye-level picture (whether cover open or cover closed) would be an extra in case the distant shot somehow couldn't show some important 'finding' features.

 

The picture re-sizing thing has me puzzled but that is for another topic, I guess. I NEVER re-size any pictures since I know that the GC site automatically resizes pictures in the upload process. After I log, I often look at the pictures on the GC site and have never been disappointed.

[ArtMan]

As for that extreme closeup of the designation stamping (or the stamping on a disk), most people will know this already, but if your camera has a macro setting, you should be able to get an in-focus image just inches from the object, with the stamping nearly filling the frame. Check your manual. (I can't tell you how many products I've owned that turned out to have interesting features that I only discovered months after I started to use it, when I went back to the documentation.)

 

-ArtMan-

[evenfall]

I always take one photo looking down on the opened cup, showing the rod and trying to get the designation.  The second photo is the eye-level shot from 10-20 feet or so, showing the station, witness post (if present) and one of the to-reach references if possible.

 

I do have problems showing the designation.  The designation shows up in my large photos, but when I size them down for Geocaching it doesn't show well.  However, I haven't been submitting the photos to NGS, and need to look over their photo requirements in case they do start having photo submission.

Buck,

 

FYI, Send your photos to deb.brown@noaa.gov via email. Be sure to include the PID in the Subject line with the word photos next to it. They would like one close up of the station and one area photo with the station positioned as clearly as possible. It is helpful to add the direction you were facing when you took the area photo.

 

Photos should be resized to 72 dpi and around 4x6 inches in dimension, this will assure the file size is under 100k each. It helps them tremendously if you can provide this service.

 

I know it can be a pain, but they are working on a better system. For now, we can contribute these way. Photos are slowly being added to PID's at NGS all the time, Look for clickable links to photos right on the datasheet.

 

As for small print showing up in the photo, try Manual mode on your Cam. Push the ISO rating up a bit quicker and shut the flash off. This will help you hand hold the shot for faster shutter speeds in low light. and the lack of flash may help by not washing out the detail. Sometimes zooming in for close ups is more workable than being close up too. In Lieu of everything else you can add the details by writing on the photo with a photo editing program.

 

Art, Macro rocks doesn't it? :-)

 

Enjoy,

 

Rob

Edited May 25, 2005 by evenfall