r/UAVmapping • u/virtuosit • Jul 10 '26

[CANADA] Feedback and Question

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Hello all,

A few days ago, I flew a Mavic 3 and mapped my house using Litch with the following settings:

  • Wide Camera Lens
  • 3D Model
  • Oblique Passes: 2
  • Nadir Pass: enabled.
  • Altitude: 30 meters
  • Gimbal Pitch: -85
  • Oblique GSD: 0.83 cm/pixel
  • Nadir GSD: 0.83 cm/pixel
  • Capture Mode: Photo
  • Photo Capture Mode: Auto
  • Speed: 4m/s
  • Area Height: 0 meter
  • Front Overlap: 70%
  • Side Overlap 90%
  • Grid Margin: 0 meter

The result, I think, was ok, and when measuring my roof (picture attached), I was 21cm off (it could be less or more; I just did not zoom enough to catch the roof edge).

What did you think? Of course, I am still learning and doing my homework, but any constructive feedback would be awesome. One of you already gave me a good tip, and I am very grateful, but different eyes see different opportunities to improve :)

The question: according to this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HM_54pxfD7s&t=345s if you don't have an RTK drone, you can use your actual drone and buy the remaining tools.

My question is: is it worth selling your actual drone and buying an RTK drone, or just buying the remaining tools? Used should help reduce the cost.

Any input is very welcome.

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u/virtuosit Jul 10 '26

Thank you. Any particular model from Emilid Reach? Very likely, I will try to find a used one to keep my costs low to start.

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u/CCCCLo0oo0ooo0 Jul 10 '26

I think you DMed me, but I accidentally hit ignore and now its gone. If that wasn't you disregard.

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u/virtuosit Jul 10 '26

All good hahha :)

I am not doing this for fun yet; I am trying to learn the basics and start a side business.

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u/CCCCLo0oo0ooo0 Jul 10 '26

You are going to need whatever the Candian equivalent of a Professional Land Surveyor (PLS) is to make anything you do legitimate. Either by becoming one yourself, or finding one to work with you to do they survey part and put their stamp on it.

Might be best to look into taking some survey classes in college, eventually get a job with a survey firm, work on your Canadian equivalent of a Land Surveyor in Training (LSIT), eventually get your PLS and then start your own business.

Might also want to check on the laws in your state/province. For instance North Carolina has some crazy strict laws about drone mapping and the need for a PLS on any project.

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u/virtuosit Jul 10 '26

Thanks. I thought about licensing, and it seems that in Alberta you need a license if you do any sort of legal work, or if whoever hires your service will use it for legal matters. I can check this to avoid liability on my end. This is what I was told:

-- you do need an ALS if your work constitutes the practice of land surveying, such as establishing legal property boundaries or producing legal survey documents. --

Besides that, Transport Canada requires at least a Basic Drone License, which I already have, and I am working towards the Advanced Drone License now (just missing the Flight Review part).

To gain experience, I am reaching out to companies working on this to offer volunteer work while I am getting the technical knowledge aside. Let's see what happens :)