Archaeological site documentation with drone photogrammetry

Just completed a really cool project: 3D documentation of a Native American cliff dwelling site for the National Park Service. Incredibly sensitive site that researchers can't walk on.

Used an M3E flying at low altitude (80ft) with 85/85 overlap. Created a sub-centimeter 3D mesh of the entire site that archaeologists can study without physically disturbing it.

The texture quality on the mesh is remarkable - you can read individual tool marks on the stone walls. This kind of non-invasive documentation is exactly what heritage sites need.

Total flight time: 45 minutes. Processing in Metashape with high-quality mesh settings. Final model: 50 million triangles.