Geographic Information Systems:

A Personal Roadmap & Accomplishments Guide

Brandon Deusenberry

University of West Florida

GIS Certificate Program Graduate

**Insert Professional Address Here

BD26@students.uwf.edu

Linked In

2 | P a g e

Table of Contents

Page # Content

3 About the Author

4 Resume

6 Samples of Work

7 Introduction to GIS and Cartography

8 Cartographic Design

9 GIS Background Knowledge: Projections

10 GIS Background Knowledge: Projections 2

11 Cartographic Mainstay: Choropleth Mapping and Proportional Symbols

12 Cartographic Mainstay: Flow Line Mapping

13 GIS Mainstay: Geocoding

14 GIS Mainstay: Georeferencing

15 Intro to GIS Culmination: Bobwhite Manatee Power Transmission Line

16 Cartography Culmination: Average SAT Scores by State

17 Real World Applications: Environmental Impacts; Lahars

18 Real World Applications: Environmental Impacts: Tsunami

19 Real World Applications: Environmental Impacts: Hurricane Sandy

20 Real World Applications: Crime Mapping

21 Real World Applications: Homeland Security

22 Real World Applications: Suitability Analysis Part 1

23 Real World Applications: Suitability Analysis Part 2

24 Special Topics and Network Analysis

25 Remote Sensing: Land Use and Land Cover

26 Remote Sensing: Multispectral Analysis

27 Remote Sensing: Supervise vs Un-Supervised Classification

28 Open Source GIS Projects Part 1

29 Open Source GIS Projects Part 2

30 Conclusions

3 | P a g e

About the Author

Quick Biography: I have a growing family of my wife, two boys ages six and

two, and multiple pets. I have been in the United States Air Force since 2003

and will continue to be until retirement. In addition to family and work life,

2015 was dedicated to the UWF GIS Certificate Program. It was through this

program that I found my academic calling. I wanted to combine my military

background in Full Motion Video with a formalized academic background in GIS

and Remote Sensing. This is currently being realized by pursing the Bachelors in

Environmental Science, Natural Science Track at UWF.

Goals:

Short Term:

Excel in all ongoing and upcoming college courses maintaining current 4.0 GPA

Become an *Active* member in FLURISA (Membership already acquired)

Continue to build GIS skill base

Long Term:

Obtain M.S in Environmental Science from University of West Florida

Discover / enter into Master Program focusing on Remote Sensing

Retire from Armed Forces of the United States

Find a GIS position in remote sensing preferably with ESRI.

4 | P a g e

Resume

Brandon C. Deusenberry

2212 Calle De Marbella, Navarre, FL 32566 Brandon.Soulbgone@Gmail.com • 760.218.1743

SUMMARY OBJECTIVE A position focused on the integration, dissemination, or exploitation of full-motion video (FMV) or remotely sensed imagery analysis and utilization within a Geographic Information System (GIS). Spatial and spectral analyses of which ideally involves leading a team of analysts providing high quality, technically precise visual and cartographic products for end user benefit.

SKILL HIGHLIGHTS

EO/IR FMV Systems (Q-39, Q-26, MX-15Di, StarSAFIRE III)

ESRI ArcGIS 10.2 / 10.3 Desktop (1.5 Years)

ArcEditor data creation

U.S. Census data

U.S. Geological Survey data

Cartographic production w/ Corel Draw x7 and Adobe Illustrator CC 2015

Geodatabase design and creation

Technical Instruction

Data Editing

Projections

GIS analysis

Geoprocessing

Metadata implementation

Google Earth

Model builder

Active TS/SCI clearance

EXPERIENCE Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) Tactician and Action Officer July 2015 to Present, USAF, Hurlburt Field, Fl.

Team lead integrating Tactics’ Techniques, and Procedural documents across seven USAF airborne platforms

Project Management Action Officer responsible for liaising between acquisitions and applications branches of Headquarters AFSOC.

Developer for concepts of operations for aircraft systems and equipment being fielded across AFSOC spectrum of operations.

Managed individual data and application development projects under limited supervision

Technical Specialized Skills Aide January 2016 to May 2016, University of West Florida, Pensacola, Fl.

Developed and tested cartographic skills deliverables utilizing Adobe Illustrator CC 2015 for instructional accuracy, data integrity, and software interoperability

Crafted cartographic deliverables for baseline instruction and guidance of 45 graduate and undergraduate students

Acted as a teaching assistant for GIS 3015/L Cartographic Skills course. Duties include working through

assignments, ensuring course content is complete and accurate on the course site and e-Desktop, grading

5 | P a g e

lab assignments and providing constructive feedback, and supporting the instructor of record and

students.

Scheduled and maintained weekly office hours to be available for students immediate questions, feedback and assignment assistance

AC-130U / PC-12 Evaluator Sensor Operator March 2008 to Present, USAF, Hurlburt Field, Fl.

Electro-Optical airborne sensor systems operator, instructor, and evaluator culminating in 2,500 operational hours.

Planned and executed intentional and dynamic sensor tasking’s involving airborne interdiction, persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), and battle damage assessment (BDA)

Designed, developed, tested formal courseware for qualification as an AC-130U FMV operator.

Exploited visual, Near-Infrared, Mid-Wave Infrared, Long-Wave Infrared, and Radar portions of the electromagnetic spectrum utilizing full motion, high resolution video

Instructor Air Surveillance Technician January 2004 – July 2007, Tinker Air Force Base Oklahoma, Ok.

Detected, Identified, and tracked air and waterborne targets of interest using E-3B/C AWACS surveillance radar

Recorded and transmitted track data to national command authorities or overseas equivalents

Oversaw coordination with joint/coalition air and ground forces to ensure airborne de-confliction and protection of airborne assets

Instructed junior and requalifying members in the operations of E-3 surveillance systems

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Science, Environmental Science (anticipated 2017), University of West Florida, Pensacola, Florida (GPA: 4.0)

Undergraduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems (anticipated Apr. 2016), University of West Florida, Pensacola, Florida Relevant Courses: GIS Programming, Applications in GIS, Special Topics in GIS, GIS Internship

Applied Associate of Science, Instructor of Technology and Military Science, Community College of the Air Force, 2013 Associated Certification: CCAF Certified Instructor Level 1 & 2 (2014)

Applied Associated of Science, Air and Space Operations Technology, Community College of the Air Force, 2009

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND AWARDS

Air Force Special Operations Command Sensor Operator of the Year 2014

Member Florida Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (FLURISA)

University of West Florida, Presidents Honor Roll

Emerald Coast Regional Science Fair Judge

6 | P a g e

Samples of Work

The examples that follow are derived from personal coursework completed throughout the

following courses at the University of West Florida, Undergraduate of Geographic Information

Systems Certificate program. Descriptions below stem from the UWF course overviews. The

primary software utilized for the work are ESRI’s ArcMAP, ArcGlobe, ArcScene, Corel Draw x7,

Adobe Illustrator CC 2015, Google Earth, ERDAS Imagine 2014 and later QGIS.

GIS 4043 Introduction to GIS

Introductory course balancing the “how to” and “why” of GIS by explaining the roles GIS

technology plays in analyzing local and regional problems.

GIS 3015 Cartographic Skills

Provides the basic understanding of thematic mapping methods and design.

GIS 4048 Applications in GIS

This course builds upon the intro to GIS foundations focusing on applications in geohazards,

natural disasters, urban planning, homeland security, health and marketing decisions.

GIS 4102 GIS Programming

An introduction to the Python programming language as it applies to fundamental spatial tasks

such as geoprocessing, editing, database management, projecting data, and map creation.

GIS 4035 Remote Sensing & Photo Interpretation

Course for the familiarization of fundamental remote sensing and air photo interpretation

concepts exploring aerial and satellite photograph for real word applications.

GIS 4930, Special Topics in GIS

Advanced course building on previous GIS fundamentals and application involving analysis

techniques, methods, outputs and uncertainties as they relate to specific problem sets.

GIS 4944 Internship

Culmination of the certificate program considered a supervised application of GIS in n available

field with advanced look at business, government, non profit use, educational and other

applicable GIS uses.

7 | P a g e

Introduction to GIS and Cartography

The introductory two courses

started with an overview of the

foundational principles of

Cartography and GIS. These are

two thematic examples explored

early in the program.

The map to the right shows the

states of Mexico utilizing a

graduated color scheme of light

tans (lower population) to dark

browns (highest population)

while not being overshadowed by

surrounding elements.

The map to the right shows you the elevation throughout Mexico utilizing a raster Digital Elevation Model (DEM). It uses a stretched continuous flow color scheme. This starts with light greens as the lows, moving to yellows, tans, and ending with reds highlighting the peaks in the country. This layout also maintains an inset map highlighting Mexico and the focus area again. The other elements mostly maintain the previous maps standard layout with minor changes to the compass rose and

name/date/data source elements

due to spacing.

8 | P a g e

Cartographic Design

Thematic Cartography has

several principles that must be

adhered to all within the eye of

the designer. Key elements of

the cartographic process were

dissected to better understand

how to effectively apply the

same critical thinking elements

despite maps having all

different styles of content,

layout, and purposes.

My task in this map was to take

the data provided and create a

product that focused on

Gestalts Principles of

perceptual organization. These

can be summarized with a few

key concepts: closure, common

fate, continuity, figure-ground

relation, proximity, similarity,

smallness/ area, and symmetry.

Further these are enhanced by

the aptly named cartographic

design process which adds the

following considerations: visual

hierarchy, visual weight,

contrast, figure-ground, and

balance.

9 | P a g e

GIS Background Knowledge: Projections

There is an incredible amount of knowledge to be gained from GIS, cartography, geography and

all things related to mapping and spatial analysis. One of those keys is to understand how the 3-

dimensional (3D) earth is translated to a 2-dimensional (2D) surface. This is done through a

variety of projections depending on the properties you want maintained on that 2D surface.

On the map below you see the projection used is highlighted at the top of the otherwise

identically laid out maps. When you look a little further you can see the same four highlighted

counties in each map, and a little closer still shows that the square mileage is slightly different

in each. You can see that in the extreme from one projection to the next an entire county is

different by 19 square miles. All of this is due to the projection type used and where its origin

lies in reference to the map. This can also show you a good reason of why it’s important to

make sure that all the data you gather for a project is in a usable format or can be changed to

suit your needs.

10 | P a g e

GIS Background Knowledge: Projections Part 2

This project has an invisible component not seen in the projection discussion on the previous

page. The map below not only combined re-projection of the initial assigned projection but it

also called for the addition of tabular data which is depicted as all of the monitoring sites

portrayed.

Some of the particulars of this

project involved completing it

entirely within ArcMAP. Also,

incorporating two adjacent 7.5

minute quarter quad pictures.

I chose two North - South

oriented quads, those for Pace

and Pensacola proper, which

give you an entire overview of

eastern Pensacola as it rests

on the Pensacola and

Escambia Bay's. The visual

depiction of the area was then

combined with tabular data

for the petroleum storage

monitoring sites. This provides

a good overview for you to

look at to see where major

clusters of certain types of

monitoring sites are.

11 | P a g e

Cartographic Mainstay:

Choropleth Mapping and Proportional Symbols

There are several different types of thematic maps, but one of the largest mainstays is the

choropleth map. That is, a map that displays data collected and generally contained within or abruptly changing when transitioning to a different enumeration unit (Counties, States, Countries, etc). This data is then displayed by being grouped into classes and assigning a color or varying shades of a color to represent it.

Proportional or graduated symbols can go hand in hand with this type of thematic data. These are

symbols that represent data within an enumeration unit that is proportional in size to how much that particular data measurement occurs in that enumeration unit. Graduated symbols differ from proportional symbols in that a particular size represents a range of the data rather than being scaled as a ratio like the proportional symbol.

The map below shows a sequential color scheme representing overall population density of Europe, a breakdown of women to be by population, and wine consumption per capita. These are highlighted in a quantile method of data classification.

12 | P a g e

Cartographic Mainstay: Flow Line Mapping

Flow Maps are used to depict the movement of some phenomena between various geographic

locations, most often utilizing lines of varying widths or tones to represent how much

movement there is. Further, the map below is sub-categorized as a Distributive flow map. That

is a map focusing on the movement of commodities, people, or ideas between geographic

regions. This is why we are using this style of map to look at Immigration to the United States in

2007 as the main theme.

This particular map was designed and executed completely within Corel Draw x7. A similar

product could easily be created utilizing Adobe Illustrator CC 2015. Choice of enhancing

software is really only dependent on preference and cost. This map employed a number of

stylistic effects employed from the software. Chief among these effects are the drop shadow

applied to the flow lines, and the extrusion seen in the inset of immigrant per U.S. State.

13 | P a g e

GIS Mainstay: Geocoding

GIS is far from just the application of thematic cartography. There is a whole realm of spatial analysis to be explored. One of the fundamental spatial analysis arenas is that of geocoding or network analysis. That is the process of finding a geographic location using an address, coordinate pair, or name of a place. This is accomplished through network analysis. A network is a set of interconnected lines and intersections. In this context we refer to the lines as edges, and intersections as junctions. The network is a representation of possible routes from one point to another along these interconnected edges, via the intersections. Network analysis then is what we do to derive certain information about the network, whether it be as simple as finding the shortest route from point A to B, or understanding based on the network the next best place to put a new branch of your business. Happily the software of GIS, in this case ESRI’s ArcMAP is here to help.

Several addresses were geocoded and routes subsequently displayed in the map to the right. To get to this process though I was able to use ArcMAP to automate some of the processes that helped get to this result with Model builder. Model builder is used to see a

visual representation of analysis and

geoprocessing operations, automate and

manage geoprocessing workflows, run a

complex succession of processes as one tool,

plug in additional tools and parameters or be

able to share geoprocessing workflows with

other users by sending them the model you’ve

created. The blue ovals indicate input data

elements, the yellow rounded rectangles are

individual tools being applied at various

stages, and the green ovals are data created as

a result of a tool or process.

14 | P a g e

GIS Mainstay: Georeferencing

Georeferencing is the registration of an image without a known reference to a dataset or group of

features with known coordinate system. So below I took two un-referenced images of UWF and

using the buildings and roads feature layers was able to add reference information by matching up

location in the road and buildings

layer to locations on the imagery.

This was done entirely in ArcMAP.

The lower map involved taking the

newly georeferenced rasters and

the associated feature layers and

adding them to Arc Scene. There,

the layers were all floated on top

of a digital elevation model. The

building layer was extruded

relative to the height of each

building. Then the entire image

was given a vertical exaggeration

of 5x, which only changes the

visual appearance of the map, not

any of the actual data values

associated, but gives you a better

visual interpretation of where

height variation occurs.

You may note that in

addition to the

georeferencing and

projection in 3D that

there are also features

that were added by

heads up digitizing,

which is an incredibly

useful skill when

combining building

footprint layers and

imagery.

15 | P a g e

Introduction to GIS Culmination Project:

Bob White Manatee Power Transmission Line

The Bobwhite-Manatee Transmission Line Project is a recreation of an actual power line

proposal that was initiated in 2006 in central Florida. This project required mapping 25 miles of

potential transmission line against determining factors of what impacts the new power lines

would have on local population, to in clude homes and schools, and effect on communities and

environment. The full project is linked to external sites below.

FPL Presentation

Slide Commentary

This is one aspect of the

analysis conducted

showing the proposed

corridor and homes that

are assessed to be within

the corridor proper or

within 400 ft of the

proposed area.

The analysis was

conducted in a variety of

means from heads up

digitizing (adding direct

points for houses) and

verifying against external

imagery sources such as

Google/Maps.

This project utilized three

phases, a Background or

information phase, an

Analysis phase utilizing

the background data to

derive various conclusions

about the transmission

line and surrounding area,

and a Presentation phase.

16 | P a g e

Cartography Culmination: Average SAT Scores by State

Here I am comparing Average SAT score by state with the participation rate of the state. I

created a stretched symbology choropleth map as the base in ArcMAP, showing a continuous

sequential color change from the low composite score of 1200 to the high of 1838 in blue. Then

I utilized an Equal-Interval classified graduated symbol in the form of a diploma where the

larger the diploma the more graduate participants by state. I incorporated a drop shadow to

the main elements and balanced the overall map gravity to the bottom with the peripheral

information.

The objectives for this exercise were to put all of the skills gained throughout the cartographic

skills course into practice to build and polish a professional grade thematic map. Specific focus

areas were to present both of the individual statistics on one map while balancing the basic

elements of cartography: project and classify data for easy interpretation, organize and

maximize map space, demonstrate effective visual hierarchy through figure ground

relationships, label in accordance with typographical guidelines.

17 | P a g e

Real World Applications: Environmental Impacts; Lahars

This project stems from the Applications in GIS course which looks more at real world planning and

response. Lahars are volcanic debris flows consisting of ash, soil, water which can be either super-

heated or cool, and travel through river ways and natural ravines from some volcanic eruptions. The

study area for the lab was Mt Hood in Oregon. The objectives of this lab were to conduct a hydrology

analysis to define river ways most likely to channel Lahar activity, and identify the local populations

inhabiting the most likely areas to be affected.

The map above depicts the Mt Hood region in Oregon and highlights block groups that intersect within

1/2 mile of the river areas stemming from Mt Hood. These are colored for population concentration per

block group occur. These river areas would channel lahar activity which could devastate the areas

around the river. ArcMAP hydrology and raster tool sets needed to be used to generate the river ways

seen, by starting with a digital elevation model, and identifying where the natural water channels are,

and overall flow directions. This determined where lahar activity would likely occur and allowed the

population groups affected to be identified. In addition to highlight population by block group, the

schools within 1/2 mile of the river ways are also highlighted and labeled.

18 | P a g e

Real World Applications: Environmental Impacts; Tsunami

This map continues the environmental applications theme as it analyzes another real world situation. The Fukushima Daichi nuclear power plant which was struck by a tsunami is explored for regional effects. The center piece of this map is the radiation danger areas highlighted by the centrally placed multi-colored rings. They were done by adding multiple buffer rings to the Fukushima Nuclear plant, cutting them to just the inland area and color coding them according to severity. Other significant features such as the closed cities were then identified and represented with the population impact by city.

The side map, highlights the inundation or runup danger areas on the eastern land features where tsunami runup washed inland and the affected elevations. This area revolved around several Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) which were analyzed up to 10 Km inland for hazard areas. The DEMs were evaluated for elevation and proximity to the coast line in three zones as listed. These were then transformed from Raster features into polygon vector feature classes and then symbolized similarly to the Radiation evacuation zones. The key to this in depth process was that rather than use each tool three separate times, with multiple tools, the process was automated using ArcMAPS ModelBuilder to drastically reduce workload and work time.

19 | P a g e

Real World Applications: Environmental Impacts: Hurricane Sandy

Real world events continue to be excellent teachers of the practical applications of GIS. In this case I

looked at Hurricane Sandy, both depicting its track but also performing analysis in one area of its

destruction to put into practice some recovery focused uses of GIS. This map focuses on portraying

Sandy's path from the Caribbean Sea through the Atlantic and into the NE United States. You can see

that the points along the path show relative wind strength and pressure as the storm fluctuated in its

intensity.

The lower map shows the defined damage levels across the parcels along the south side of Fort Ave. This

area was heads up digitized (edit a new feature class of points) to show the associated damage level.

Points in each of the parcels

center point were ID’d then

referenced to the after image and

assigned a level of destruction.

The overall flow from east to west

in this case shows houses going

from completely destroyed to

more minor structural damage.

Everything in this block also has

some inundation damage, damage

from rising of sea level above

ground level. Overall this map

serves as an example of the type

of analysis that could be done

block by block in a larger scale

project for this type of disaster

response.

20 | P a g e

Real World Applications: Crime Mapping

The real world isn’t just

impacted by weather. There

are other serious issues that

can be tackled by GIS. Three

different density analyses

(based on the crime points for

Washington DC) are being

compared. These are kernel

density analysis which involves

taking specific point locations

and grouping them together

by proximity to one another.

This creates a variable input

raster. This then shows

varying cells with given values

based on proximity to points

using a search radius for

looking at adjacent points.

This method of analysis gives

you a look at where the crimes

were occurring spatially, and

can also be used as a

predictive tool for leveraging

police or other resources.

21 | P a g e

Real World Applications: Homeland Security

When looking at homeland security applications we are looking at prevention or response to

some type of natural or man-made disaster. In this case I conducted a multipoint analysis of the

2013 Boston Marathon Bombing. Knowing the event in question I was tasked with looking back

and conducting a security analysis of the finish line looking for key surveillance and observation

points. The overall objectives for this exercise were to explore the LiDAR data using it to

generate Hillshading, perform a Viewshed analysis, and create a Line Of Sight analysis utilizing

created observation points.

The first section at the top is a

straightforward look at 15

identified observation points

around the block within view of

the finish line, highlighted in

the center. These are also

labeled with the elevation of

the best observation height for

the point. The second frame

down combines a multitude of

analysis. Most clearly visible is

the Viewshed analysis. This is

the pink and green layer

symbolized by pink meaning an

area is not visible from the

closest associated observation

point, and green meaning the

view is unobstructed. This layer

is generated by a Hillshade

layer which provides the gray

shadowing underlying the

Viewshed. Over top of this

layer is a line of sight look from

each point to the finish line.

The red areas indicate some

form of obstruction and the

green areas are clear. This view

is further broken down by the

most obstructed point (# 4),

and shown in the graph just

under and to the right of the

line of sight look.

22 | P a g e

Real World Applications: Location / Suitability Analysis

This is a fundamental application of spatial analysis within GIS. Being able to apply particular

criteria to an area in a weighted fashion to determine how well a location meets a person’s

needs. Whether that be in locating the best area to buy a house, or start a business etc.

In this example I was

looking for the best area to

suggest buying a home for a

potential client. They had

four specific criteria which

needed to be factored into

the location search. These

criteria were then analyzed

with a couple different

weight factors. They were

given even weight and cross

referenced where the most

favorable areas overlap, and

that generated the output

shown. Additionally for

comparison certain criteria

were given heavier

influence weights. Then

once again cross referenced

based on this distribution a

new overlapping map was

created. This entire process

involved first looking at

each factor individually by

base component, Ie

distance factors, or census

data. Favorable data was

given a reclassified weight

from 1-9 as a raster looking at the data for each cell. Its this transformation of data to a raster

that allowed the direct comparison and look at most suitable areas.

23 | P a g e

Real World Applications: Suitability Analysis Part 2

This is an example of a cradle to grave project that was the culmination of the Applications in

GIS UWF course. It is formed off the same basis as the weighted location analysis discussed on

the previous page. For this, I took on the persona of a GIS analyst for the UWF Working Group,

working for a client who needs a suitability analysis to locate a new commercial facility for government

contracting based on several criteria. The client is the principle party involved representing the contract

company locating a new facility with the following requirements. The facility which needs to be located

in one of two counties, Santa Rosa or Okaloosa, Florida. The final selection must balance the following

inputs. It must be close to a civilian airfield with greater than 3,000 feet length. It must be located on

commercial, industrial, or vacant re-zone-able land. It is preferred that the area have relatively low

overall population, and relatively low combined parcel values in the surrounding area. To execute this

project the individual criteria were examined from a basic feature class and transformed into a

specifically classified raster to allow for multiple weighted analyses to be performed. With all these

criteria being combined, and weighted overlays ran, a particular set of parcels were identified within the

most suitable areas as being the ones that would be presented to the client for further exploration. The

project as a whole can be seen at the following link: Suitability Project

24 | P a g e

Special Topics in GIS: Network Analyst and Evacuation

Here is a map that combines both cartographic flair with a host of useful information. The

below is an evacuation route in Tampa under the pretense that a tropical storm or hurricane is

bearing down on it. Network analyst takes a network dataset built of paths and junctions such

as those found in a road network and utilize specific attributes for impedance, e.g. distance or

time, to calculate a preferred route, a closest service center, and overall area etc from one or

more points to another. This map answers the question of what if you have an entire area that

needs evacuation and not everyone could or should take the same route. The red route has

multiple starting points at the bottom that eventually converge on one shelter in the upper

right. More is less with

this map as your only key

features are labeled; e.g.

key roads, routes, and

focus items depicted with

arrows. Different form

and function can be

tailored to the purpose of

a map. This one could be

highlighted on the nightly

news for a local area

whereas other route maps

might be mass

reproducible in black and

white for supply delivery

during the response to a

hurricane. Network

analysis can also show

service areas for which

shelter should be your

primary evacuation

location based on the

area of town you live in.

25 | P a g e

Remote Sensing: Land Use and Land Cover

Switching gears to the remote sensing aspect of GIS, there are several foundational

understandings when looking at imagery composition and analysis. Elements such as size,

shape, pattern, texture, and association make up the content of an image. Based on these

aspects we can identify the content and then proceed to label it. Land use and land cover is

then used for that labeling. Land Cover is the actual biophysical description of the Earths

surface. Examples include, is the ground forested, is it desert, water, built up urban area etc?

Land Use specifically documents how we humans have interacted with the landscape and

changed or developed it. The

two of these elements

combined become a Land Use

/ Land Cover layer when an

image is classified into

appropriate categories.

Examples of level two land

use and land cover are seen in

the map above. An image of

Pascagoula Mississippi has

been heads up digitized with a

polygon feature class showing

similar compositions of land

features and development.

The code descriptions are all

two digit to signify second

level classification.

26 | P a g e

Remote Sensing: Multispectral Analysis

Multi-spectral analysis through spectral enhancement means to take existing spectral data and

present it in a manner that might bring out certain relationships or patterns not readily present

in other presentations. The objective of the below map was to study an image set and identify

certain spectral relationships that aren't readily seen looking at a standard true color image.

This is done by manipulating that pixel values to show other relationships through gray scale

panchromatic views of single spectral bands or different combinations of multiple bands such

as that seen from a standard false color infrared image. Both ERDAS Imagine and ArcGIS were

used to explore the given image. Several tools within ERDAS were used, such as the Inquire

cursor to look at particular

groups of pixels for there

relevant brightness information.

Histograms and contrast

information were used to

identify patterns within multi-

spectral and panchromatic

views of one or more spectral

bands.

27 | P a g e

Remote Sensing: Supervised vs. Unsupervised Classification

Supervised classification revolves around

the creation of training sites to train the

software in what to look for when

conducting the classification. This is

accomplished by creating a polygon type

area of spectrally similar pixels. Examples

would be dense forest, grassland, or

water. Each area has a distinct spectral

signature. These signatures are used to

evaluate the whole of the image and

allow the software to automatically

reclassify all matching spectral areas.

Unsupervised classification is a

classification method such that a

software suite utilizes an algorithm to

determine which pixels in the raster

image are most like other pixels

throughout the image and groups them

accordingly. After the software has

grouped the various pixels together it is

up to the user to define what the

grouped classes represent. For this type

of classification the software is given

certain user defined parameters such as

number of iterations to run, confidence

or threshold percentage to reach, and

sample sizes.

28 | P a g e

Open Source GIS Projects

When you nolonger have access to ESRI products you need an alternative. The Quantum GIS (QGIS)

platform has a similar feel but not necessarily as in-depth of a spatial processing tool suite as ArcMAP,

but is an excellent free-ware alternative. The culmination of the Special Topics in GIS course at UWF

explores QGIS.

Here is a map not unlike many of the others that I have created using ESRI's ArcMAP. That is in fact the

point of one huge aspect of this project. There is open source, defined as free to use software which you

can personally suggest improvements for update and redistribution to the masses, applications which

perform quite similar tasks and produce similar outputs. This specific map presents the concepts of Food

Deserts and Food Oasis by census tract for the Pensacola area of Escambia County. These deserts were

calculated by comparing the centroid (geographic center) of a census tract with its distance to a grocery

store. Tracts without a grocery store providing fresh produce are said to be in a Food Desert. The

average person in these areas has to travel farther to obtain fruits and vegetables and the like. This can

cause other closer, less healthy alternatives to be taking precedence for these people’s diets. Ultimately

those with less access are likely to be less healthy overall and that is the issue explored here.

29 | P a g e

Open Source GIS Part 2

Taking open source one step further than just free software there are additional methods of

distributing your mapped information. Taking the same QGIS platform and the concept of Food

Deserts and Oasis as the previous page, the culminating project of Special Topics in GIS was to

choose my own area to examine for food deserts and to build the map in QGIS but transition

the mapped information to a web based platform.

A Growing Trend: Food Deserts Powerpoint Report

The culmination of the analysis results is presented in the fully narrated power point presentation

Palm Springs Food Desert Interactive Web Map

An independent web map depicts the below stand alone map in an interactive web page base.

30 | P a g e

Conclusions

This portfolio is not an all-inclusive look at the work I have completed. It is a representative

sampling of several fundamental tasks introduced throughout the UWF GIS Certificate program.

Since this program ended I have continued toward the endeavors of continuing my degree

program in natural science and geography with GIS at the forefront of my thought and ongoing

motivation.

I have become a member of the Florida Urban and Regional Information Systems Association

(FLURISA) which is an organization dedicated to education, collaboration, innovation and

professional advancement in the geospatial industry.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me with the information below for questions, comments, or

additional information.

v/r

Brandon Deusenberry

BD26@students.uwf.edu

Other Email Here

Phone Number here