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So I asked, “Would it be cheaper to rent a camera and plane or helicopter, and fly over the farmers field, hand process the data and see if that’s the information farmers would pay for?"

After the 2nd paragraph, I assumed a question like this was going to be asked, but my "frugalness" assumed it was going to be:

"Wouldn't it be cheaper to get a DSLR, and spend 8 hours walking through a field and taking pictures?"

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If you've got a friend who's a private pilot or working on some sort of flight certification and needs hours... you could probably talk them into taking you up for the cost of fuel and lunch.

A farmer may not feel comfortable with you trundling through their fields on foot.

Back in 1984 I took the first infrared crop pictures in Michigan. We rented a Cessna, took out the passenger seat and I got on my stomach and pointed the bosses 35 mm out the inspection port.

Special IR film from Kodak that had to kept refrigerated when it wasn't in the camera. I could feel the pilots tight turns in my gut. Good times!

Good thinking, but in this case no. The high value crops they were going after were almond orchards and the specific data they wanted from the trees were only visible from overhead.

How about a camera on a long pole?

Raspberry Pi blimp?

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