Planimetrics

In Concept
Planimetrics has two roots: “planar ” and “metrics,” which is a form of the suffix “-metry .” Essentially, the word refers to two-dimensional space, and the art of measuring, respectively.

In Geography
The field of geography requires an innate understanding of planimetrics because there are often cases in which some geographic element has a limitation regarding how well it can be represented in a two-dimensional space. Planimetrics is fundamental to the creation of maps, the representation of real-life features as seen on a three-dimensional Earth, and accurately portraying them on a two-dimensional surface. Maps are the primary way in which people view geographic information. Planimetric elements are represented on two-dimensional maps as they are seen from the air, or in aerial photography, and often include features such as: roads, building footprints, sidewalks, trails, rivers, lakes, etc. These features are often digitized from orthorectified aerial photography into data layers that can be used in analysis and cartographic outputs.