The Photographic Archives of the Italian Military Geographic Institute host one of the most important collections of aerial photos of the national territory. This is a huge historical, cartographic and environmental heritage that documents the Italian landscape evolution during the twentieth century and the new millennium.
The Archives preserve the aerial photographic coverage of Italy from 1927 to 2010, as well as precious historical aerial images of the former Italian colonies.
In order to preserve and enhance this material, a massive digitization process is currently being completed.
Consultation, research and purchase can be done directly online.
Products are divided into “Aerial Photos” and “30X30 Aerial Photos“. The difference is formal: the “30×30 Aerial Photos” cannot be purchased in photogrammetric format but have the same level of quality and detail as the “Aerial Photos” product
The search for this historical material cannot be done automatically
You need to submit a ticket using the IGMI Customer Support Platform
The digital images provided by the Institute are obtained by professional high-resolution scanning of the full original photogram.
For specific areas of the territory, aerial coverage performed by photographic infrared is also available.
Users can choose from the following product options according to their professional needs:
| Format | Main use | Features | Limitations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photogram scanning in TIFF format, not photogrammetric | Visual analysis and photointerpretation. | Full-photogram scanning. It is a multi-purpose format intended mainly for photo interpretation, visual analysis and historical documentation | Available for both the "Aerial Photos" and the "30X30 Aerial Photos" products |
| Photogram scanning in TIFF format, photogrammetric | 3D reconstruction and stereoscopy. | Full-photogram scanning. The file preserves the rigorous geometric and radiometric characteristics of the original image, necessary for the three-dimensional reconstruction of the volumes. This format allows the use of stereoscopic methodologies, for which it is essential to have at least two contiguous photograms belonging to the same flight strip-run. | Only available for the "Aerial Photos" product |
| PDF authenticated by photogram scanning | Digital image of the full photogram in a PDF file with digital signature of the Institute |
|
Available for both the "Aerial Photos" and the "30X30 Aerial Photos" products |
All IGMI photograms, from 1935 to today, can be searched for and purchased online; for 75% of them, there is a low-resolution preview which, where possible, allows an initial evaluation.
Each photogram was made with the aim of producing small and medium-scale national cartography, taken from an average height of 5000 m. By way of example, we inform you that generally on a photogram taken from that height you can distinguish 3×3 m. details.
Accuracy depends on altitude, year, weather conditions at the time of shooting and each photo has different characteristics.
Many users find our images helpful, but it is up to the user to decide how useful they are.
As required by the legislation on the right of withdrawal, once the download has been completed, it is not possible to request a refund, except for a defect in the product or in the information provided.
The interpretation of the content of the photograms is exclusive to the client and cannot be anticipated or assessed by our institute, unless explicitly instructed by the judicial authority.
Photograms that are not immediately available for direct digital download, once the purchase procedure has been completed, require archival processing times and will be delivered to the customer within approximately 15 working days.
The download links of the purchased products will expire 30 days after they are generated
For any further information, product description or technical support regarding our terrestrial photos, please contact us via the dedicated form.
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