REPORT OF COMMISSION VII (PHOTOGRAPHIC
INTERPRETATION) TO THE INTERNATIONAL
SOCIETY OF PHOTOGRAMMETRY
Robert N. Colwell; Kenneth E. Bradshaw; H. T. U. Smith; Ragnar Thoren;
C. A. J. von Drabbe
PART I. GENERAL
Robert N. Colwell, President of Commission VII
U. S. Naval Photo Interpretation Center
"| "E purpose of this report is to outline recent progress in the field of photo-
graphic interpretation, to indicate major unsolved problems in this field,
and to suggest avenues of approach toward the solution of some of these prob-
lems.
Normally the report of a Commission to the International Society of Photo-
grammetry embraces only the four-year period since the last previous quadren-
nial meeting of the Society. However, Commission VII was established less
than a year ago and therefore is reporting for the first time. Accordingly, portions
of this report relate to significant developments in photographic interpretation
prior to the year 1948.
Photographic interpretation is the act of examining the photographic images
of objects for the purpose of identifying those objects and deducing their
significance. In the course of the past hundred years, professional photographic
interpretation has developed from the germ of an idea, through the stages of
experimentation and development, to the point where, today, its methods are
precise, its results reliable and its value widely recognized in both civil and mili-
tary circles. Photographic interpretation currently is proving to be unexcelled
as an information-gathering process in an extremely wide variety of fields ranging
from geography to archaeology, from astronomy to microscopy, from criminol-
ogy to mineralogy and from warfare to recreation. Several significant develop-
ments since the last World Congress bear witness to the newly-acquired stature
of photo-interpretation. For example, within the American Society of Photo-
grammetry this is evidenced by the recent formation of a special committee
on Photo-Interpretation, by the increased emphasis on photo-interpretation
both in PHOTOGRAMMETRIC ENGINEERING and at the Annual Meetings of the
Society, and by the greatly increased rate at which photo-interpreters are join-
ing the Society. Perhaps the best evidence that this is truly an international
trend is provided by the formation, within the International Society of Pho-
togrammetry, of this new Commission on Photo-Interpretation which already
claims active participants from at least 10 countries.
In view of the current enthusiasm for photographic interpretation, it seems
highly appropriate for photo-interpreters to pause at the approximate centen-
nial of the birth of their profession and, in the presence of a World Congress of
their colleagues, to take note of the progress which they thus far have made, to
survey their present capabilities and limitations, and to recommend fruitful lines
for further research.
In order that this report may be presented in an orderly fashion, the first
portion of it consists of a general survey of the subject under three major head-
ings: (1) Photographic Reconnaissance Equipment, Materials and Techniques;
(2) Photographic Interpretation Equipment, Materials and Techniques; and (3)
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