Good documentation is key for a project as large as the Hardwood Ecosystem Experiment. One of the best ways to show forest changes over time is through set photo points. These points show the forest before a harvest, right after, and years later. Photographers set up the first photo points in 2008 across HEE Units 1, 2, and 3. John Maxwell from the Indiana DNR took individual photos at these spots, which staff then combined into 360-degree panoramas.
These panoramas show each harvest method: group selection, single-tree selection, clearcut, shelterwood, and unharvested control sites. Most photo points link to long-term plant study plots. This setup lets researchers track and measure the real changes seen in the photos.
Photographers take these pictures every spring before trees leaf out. Maxwell and future photographers will return to these same spots each year. Repeating these panoramas helps document long-term changes in the forest.
Staff create these panoramas by digitally stitching single photos together. Because of this process, small areas in the image may look slightly warped. Photographers try their best to capture each photo from the exact same spot, but small differences still happen. As a result, images from different years may not align perfectly.
Forest Galleries:
Note for Clearcut pictures: These images are not full 360-degree panoramas. A complete circle did not show the harvested area well, so these photos focus only on the cut area.