Shadowless aerial photography for vegetation studies—a review of benefits and limitations

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Abstract
Shadowless aerial photography, the practice of taking photographs under clouds, has been increasing in popularity for vegetation studies during recent years. In some cases its use has been necessitated by the scarcity of suitable weather for conventional sunlit photography and in others by the desirability of the low contrast image which results. For forestry applications this low contrast image may assist in making photographic measurements, identification of tree species and vegetation damage assessment. The elimination of shadows under a forest canopy has important implications for studies of understorey vegetation, ground condition assessment and road location surveys. In this paper the published references on shadowless aerial photography are reviewed and the limitations and unique photographic aspects of the technique are discussed.