Announcing Mapillary Camera Grant Program 3.0

No, I didn’t receive a confirmation. Just before delivery, I got a WhatsApp message from DHL in Ireland. At first, I thought it was spam because it didn’t say what was being delivered. After checking the track and trace, I saw that the parcel was from Meta, of which Mapillary is a part.

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I was given a Mapillary magnetic sign when I reached some numeric image milestone some years ago. Unfortunately I lost it somewhere on a brush lined track northeast of Cleve SA! I think another one was sent, but not having a permanent postal address it got lost somewhere.

My icon/avatar for Mapillary (for this forum and contributor) has the sign visible on my old van.

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So you’re talking about the ones at - 100k, 500k, 1 million, and I think 5 million?

I don’t actually remember sorry, but I’d guess >1 million. Pretty sure it was the first prize/gift though. Comprised a mouse mat, phone mount and the sign. I believe it was a standard prize for all contributors. The sign photo was taken Jan 2019.

The vehicle was used by a child playgroup service before I procured, hence the crazy artwork.

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I was hoping someone could (privately) confirm if my application has been received and if it’s been accepted or declined. I’ve spotted a very good local deal on a Max 2 that expires in a few days and am wondering if I should jump on it.

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cc @Semir_Mapillary

@une_abeille - Thanks for reaching out, sent you an email, let’s catch up! - As for applications, we will review and reach out to applicants who are successful. We have had a number of users reaching out, and we appreciate everyone who has applied!

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I’d always wondered what the artwork was about. :joy:

Hi @arshajib

Have you read the guidelines for contributions?

Why am I asking? I’ve seen some photos of menus and such on your profile. That’s not what Mapillary is for. If you were to receive the Mapillary Camera Grant Program 3.0 package, I’d definitely give the guidelines a read if I were you.

KR Louis

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Hello @Lowiekse,

Thank you for the heads-up and for taking the time to point this out.

​I appreciate you bringing this to my attention. My initial thinking was based on the guideline to capture “anything else noteworthy or interesting about a place”, assuming restaurant menus might offer helpful local context. However, I completely see your point now—Mapillary is fundamentally a platform for street-level imagery, and the primary focus must stay on clean, unobstructed views of streets, pedestrian paths, and building facades.

​Moving forward, I will strictly align my uploads with these street-level standards. I am giving the full contribution guidelines a thorough re-read to ensure all future uploads are fully on track, especially as I hope to participate in the Mapillary Camera Grant Program 3.0.

​If you happen to notice any other photos currently on my profile that might fall outside these guidelines, please feel free to let me know so I can remove or update them. Thanks again for the constructive guidance!

​Best regards,
Abdur Rahman

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Here’s my completed setup:

  • GoPro Max 2
  • 4ft GoPro extension pole
  • Triple Fat Gecko suction cup mount
  • Two magnetic signs (30cm across)

I just wish I realised before ordering the signs that 30cm isn’t quite large enough.

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I’ve also submitted mine back in late August. Haven’t heard anything. Is there any update if mine was declined?

I’ve seen some deals at my local best buy. But have been holding off. Really don’t want to spend a lot on both the camera and a good suction mount :sweat_smile:
Really want to start mapping my entire city, there is almost zero mapping done here and I know quite a few local editors for Waze, Tomtom, etc that would love to have mapillary captures to use..

Although Winter is just around the corner..

That’s a very good looking setup @wa_wheatbelt - nicely done!

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Hi Boris! I received an email from DHL today notifying me of a package from Meta (Dublin). Could it be that I was selected to receive the Mapillary GoPro?
The problem, however, is that the address entered was almost correct but listed the wrong country; the package was shipped to France instead of Italy. I contacted DHL, but they informed me that this error can only be corrected by the sender. Who can I contact?

cc: @Semir_Mapillary

Well I guess we are now french…

Contributing in Berlin.

Many thanks also from me being invited to apply for the Camera Grant Program 3.0.

My findings after using the device for nearly 4 weeks:

  • The GPS accuracy of the MAX2 is in general way better compared to my HERO 8. But in some dense inner city streets it shows sometimes the same wrong positions as in HERO 8 images. No clear pattern why it fails or succeeds so far.
  • The image quality is better compared to the MAX output (had one lend by an organization for 9 months). But from the selfie stick position when walking (around 2.30 m above ground as I am 1.93 m) objects near ground at a distance/circle of ca. 5 m around me are looking sometimes blurry after being uploaded. For this reason I decided to let the HERO 8 run as well mounted to a GoPro chest mount to get better “ground” images.
  • Random MAX2 shutdowns happened 2x after a few minutes of image capturing for no obvious reason. 1x by bike, 1x by foot. Both times the air temperature was around 20° to 23° C. The GPS signal indicator was blue before I started walking or cycling. The firmware has been updated before first use as advised in the GoPro product package. As one of the two batteries included seems to get hot during charging I suspect a battery quality issue. And an internet search revealed that MAX2 random shutdowns are a known issue amongst other users.
  • One image sequence was planned to show a non tilted horizon as I walked on a former airport runway here in Berlin. To my surprise a skewed horizon was shown on Mapillary for a part of the sequence for the next few days, starting and ending with a strong content “jump” during sequence playback. Now the sequence seems to be kind of repaired (see sequence: Tempelhofer Feld runway 09L)?
  • GoPro Quik software issue: after a recent update the app cannot be used to remote control the MAX2 on my iPhone SE3 by just opening the app. The new user intro cannot be skipped as no button is shown to dismiss on the small SE3 screen. To control the camera you have to touch and hold the GoPro Quik app icon to get a context menu to reach the camera control screen. Hopefully this will be resolved in a future update. And I just discovered this workaround during writing this text after being cut off control for 3 weeks. :joy:

Conclusions:

  • The Grant Program 3.0 MAX2 allowed me to get better 360 degrees imaging compared to the MAX.
  • The selfie stick included in the package is a game changer when walking. My former tests with an old small tripod I own and the MAX were not as good as the MAX2 and the “invisible” selfie stick feature.
  • The random device shutdowns (if continuing) would be a major show stopper. Some sequences cannot be repeated therefore the device has to act reliable. For this reason I will continue to run the HERO 8 at the same time where possible. Its own firmware issue (sometimes wrong DateTimeOriginal values) seems to be repaired by Mapillary during upload/processing.
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+1 from me for a Mapillary vest.

The long stick with a MAX2’s red LED gave me more verbal reaction in 3 weeks compared to 6 years with a HERO 8 on a bike or a chest mount. Most of them fear their face to be recorded, so I am used to tell them it will be blurred.

This increased attention is visible in my captured images when people turn around after passing me - and shift focus away from their smartphones!

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@Macsico - thank you for sharing these detailed impressions and notes!

On your point about the skewed horizon - yes we have a new feature that attempts to automatically align captures to the horizon, which is the fix you are likely seeing.

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Many thanks to the entire Mapillary team for this fantastic program. I was truly surprised and very happy when I found out that I would be receiving a GoPro MAX 2 bundle.
The camera opens up many new possibilities for high-quality 360° shots, and I’m looking forward to using it to further expand map and image coverage. It’s great to see how Mapillary supports the community while also contributing to the improvement of open geodata.
Thank you so much for this opportunity. I look forward to sharing my future contributions with you!

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