Exporting to QGIS

QGIS is the free, open-source GIS application that opens DroneField’s GeoTIFF, Shapefile and KML exports directly. This combination is ideal when you want to:

• See multiple project results side by side
• Add your own GIS analyses
• Go beyond the report with deeper analysis

What to export

DroneField produces QGIS-compatible files:

Layer	Where?	Format
Orthomosaic	Export/orthomosaic.tif	GeoTIFF RGB
DSM	Export/dsm.tif	GeoTIFF Float32
NDVI / GNDVI / NDRE	Export/[index]/[index]_geotiff.tif	GeoTIFF Float32
Field boundaries	Export/boundaries/*.shp	ESRI Shapefile
Application map	Export/application_map/*.shp	ESRI Shapefile (Hardi VRA case)

Installing QGIS

Download from the official site: qgis.org/download. Mac, Windows and Linux versions are all free.

After install, launch QGIS Desktop.

Loading a DroneField project in QGIS

1. New project in QGIS (Project → New).
2. Drag these files from Finder / Explorer into QGIS one by one:
   • orthomosaic.tif
   • dsm.tif
   • NDVI/ndvi_geotiff.tif
   • boundaries.shp (if present)

QGIS places every layer at its correct CRS — no manual georeferencing needed.

3. In the Layers panel on the left, reorder as needed:
   • On top: field boundaries
   • In the middle: NDVI or DSM
   • On the bottom: orthomosaic

NDVI visualisation in QGIS

DroneField exports the NDVI GeoTIFF with Float32 pixel values — not a pre-rendered image. That means:

• You can apply your own colour ramp in QGIS
• Set arbitrary threshold values
• Compute statistics directly from the index pixels

Setting up the colour ramp

1. Right-click the ndvi_geotiff.tif layer → Properties.
2. From the left list: Symbology.
3. Render type: pick Singleband pseudocolor.
4. Min / Max: enter values (e.g. 0.0 / 0.85).
5. Color ramp: pick one (e.g. RdYlGn).
6. Mode: Equal Interval with 6 classes.
7. Click Apply / OK.

NDVI now displays with the chosen ramp.

DSM contours

You can compute contour lines from the DSM at any spacing:

1. Processing Toolbox → GDAL → Raster extraction → Contour.
2. Input: the DSM layer.
3. Interval: e.g. 0.5 (50 cm contour spacing).
4. Output: a filename (e.g. dsm_contours.gpkg).
5. Click Run.

Style the contours (Properties → Symbology) — thin black for detail, thicker every 5 m.

Multiple projects side by side

To see multiple projects in one QGIS session:

1. Create a shared QGIS project (my_farm_2026.qgz).
2. Drag in every DroneField project’s orthomosaic, NDVI, boundary.
3. Group layers per project — right-click in the Layers panel → Add Group.
4. QGIS places them all correctly on a world basemap.

Retrieving statistics

For every raster, QGIS gives you statistics:

1. Right-click → Properties → Information tab.
2. You’ll see:
   • Pixel range (min, max, mean, stddev)
   • Histogram (separate tab)
   • CRS, file size, resolution

The Zonal Statistics plugin (built in) computes statistics per boundary: e.g. “NDVI mean for field #1 = 0.62, stddev = 0.08”.

Web publishing

To make the results available online:

• QGIS QField mobile companion: take the fields out on an iPad for on-site navigation
• QGIS Server / Cloud: web WMS publishing (advanced topic)

Common issues

”Layers are not where they should be”

Check that the QGIS project CRS matches the layers’. The bottom right shows it (e.g. EPSG:4326).

If the layer is in WGS84, the project should be too (or Web Mercator EPSG:3857). Bottom right: click and choose Set project CRS from layer.

”NDVI is only black & white”

DroneField exports NDVI with Float32 values, and QGIS defaults to a single-band grey view. See Setting up the colour ramp above.