Dronographies emerges from the intersection of technology and creative vision: a visual exploration of landscapes through aerial photographs captured by drone. From new vantage points, familiar environments are transformed into striking textures, geometries, and patterns, revealing often unseen connections between natural elements and human presence. Coastlines, waterways, forests, and infrastructure appear as marks on a canvas, where scientific detail meets the evocative power of imagery.
In this space, observation becomes storytelling: the images are not merely documentation, but tools for interpreting landscapes, understanding their dynamics, and inspiring new questions.
The approach of the CIMA Research Foundation weaves together scientific rigor and artistic sensitivity, offering a perspective that broadens perception and encourages a deeper, more conscious reading of the territories we inhabit.
Coastal Margin
Villa Zanelli, Via Nizza, 17100 Savona SV, Italia - 2022
lat./long. 44° 17’ 34.48790’’ N – 8° 27’ 29.85910’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI Zenmuse P1
120 m s.l.m.
Vertical view of the shoreline.
The image captures the meeting point between the dark mass of the sea and the sandy coastal strip, marked by a small river incision.
The zenithal perspective highlights the geometry of the natural boundary between water and land, continuously shaped by wave action and surface runoff.
(H)GCPs - Find the Markers
SP Acquasanta, Ostra, 60010 Ancona, Italia - 2023
lat./long. 43° 35’ 24.3250’’ N – 13° 5’ 38.48840’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI EP800 (integrated with Zenmuse L1)
80 m s.l.m.
In this floodplain, reshaped by a recent flood event, everything seems to be in its proper place: sediments, erosion features, and bent vegetation.
But look closely… among the natural elements, an intruder is hiding!
Ground Control Points are usually discreet, but this one decided to stand out—in a decidedly human way.
Dynamic Balance Between Roots and Tides
Ilha da Inhaca, Maputo Bay, Mozambique – 2025
lat./long. 25° 58’ 34.2804’’ S – 32° 58’ 38.4026’’ E
DJI Mavic 3E; integrated camera
150 m a.g.l.
Interface zone between mangrove forest and tidal flat.
The transition between the compact, structured mass of mangrove vegetation and the sandy surface exposed at low tide is carved by narrow drainage channels.
The nadir view reveals the dynamic nature of the coastal margin: an irregular boundary, continuously reshaped by the tidal cycle and by the interaction between sediment, water, and root systems.
Paths on Water
Fokontany Andavamamba, 101 Antananarivo, Madagascar – 2025
lat./long. 18° 54’ 52.12280’’ S – 47° 30’ 17.8720’’ E
DJI Mavic 3E; integrated camera
60 m a.g.l.
Aerial view of a neighborhood located in a marshland area on the outskirts of the city.
Sheet-metal houses overlook depressions filled with stagnant water covered by aquatic vegetation, crossed by wooden walkways built on unstable, flood-prone ground that connect the homes.
These areas represent an extreme form of urban adaptation, shaped by internal migration and a lack of planning: places where the search for a better life confronts environmental and social precariousness.
Deviation
Sentiero degli aironi, 60019 Senigallia, Ancona - 2023
lat./long. 43° 41’ 37.24930’’ N – 13° 11’ 24.81780’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI EP800 (integrated with Zenmuse L1)
80 m a.g.l.
Aerial view of a ploughed field, selected for the regularity of its pattern and the chromatic harmony of the soil surfaces.
The parallel lines of the furrows are interrupted by a main furrow that bends to the right, creating an irregular visual rhythm.
In the upper-right corner, the isolated presence of a tree alters the arrangement of the furrows, introducing a subtle discontinuity that disrupts the balance of the composition.
Between Impact and Regeneration
Contrada Coste, Barbara, 60010 Ancona, Italia - 2023
lat./long. 43° 35’ 53.7382’’ N – 13° 00’ 40.2877’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI EP800 (integrated with Zenmuse L1)
80 m a.g.l.
The force of water is revealed through the material it moves: uprooted trunks, accumulated sediments, and channels carved into the floodplain.
The chromatic composition articulates a threshold: from the unstable grey of mud to the saturated green of vegetation, in a transition that alludes both to the short time scale of damage and to the slower process of regeneration.
Burn Line
Porto Skanderberg, Campomarino, 86042 Campobasso - 2021
lat./long. 41° 56’ 47.8002’’ N – 15° 04’ 20.6059’’ E
DJI Mavic 2 pro; integrated camera
60 m a.g.l.
Aerial view of a coastal pine forest affected by wildfire near the shoreline.
The burned vegetation forms a dark, branching pattern that extends to the sandy strip, abruptly ending where it meets the water.
The irregular texture of the charred trees contrasts with the bright, uniform surface of the sea, creating a sharp boundary between the two.
11:36
14 August 2018
lat./long. 44° 25’ 33.5688’’ N – 08° 53’ 18.3207’’ E
Collapse
Camogli Cemetery, Camogli, 16082 Genova - 2021
lat./long. 44° 21’ 16.1039’’ N – 09° 08’ 52.1096’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI Zenmuse P1
60 m a.g.l.
Nadir view of the coastal cliff following a landslide that affected the town cemetery.
The collapse, which occurred in just a few moments, disrupted the stillness of a space conceived for permanence, carrying portions of land, structures, and traces of memory into the sea.
The continuity between the space of the living and the space of remembrance is abruptly broken, replaced by an unstable margin where the boundary between land and sea is no longer fixed but in transformation.
Tetrapods
Via Aurelia, Bergeggi, 17047 Savona - 2024
lat./long. 44° 15’ 10.1153’’ N – 08° 27’ 06.6657’’ E
DJI Matrice 300; DJI Zenmuse P1
80 m a.g.l.
Nadir view of an engineered stretch of coastline characterized by concrete breakwaters.
The irregular arrangement of the modules creates a compact strip that clearly separates the chromatically uniform sea surface from the platform behind it.
The contrast between the repetitive geometry of the artificial structures and the variability of the water mass defines a linear composition based on rhythm and color.
Neural Pattern
Seafront, Campomarino, 86042 Campobasso – 2021
lat./long. 41° 56’ 28.5148’’ N – 15° 04’ 44.7189’’ E
DJI Mavic 2 pro; integrated camera
60 m a.g.l.
Nadir view of a forested area crossed by wildfire.
Dark, branching lines spread across the surface, interweaving into a continuous and irregular pattern.
The mark left by the fire transforms the ground into a diffuse network of connections, where the distinction between individual element and overall system begins to dissolve.
Partition
Provincial Road Corinaldese, Senigallia, 60019 Ancona - 2023
lat./long. 43° 41’ 35.7041’’ N – 13° 11’ 05.6171’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI Zenmuse P1
80 m a.g.l.
Distinct surfaces meet along a sharp line, separating two chromatic fields.
The dense green of vegetation forms a regular texture, while the brown of the ploughed soil extends as a continuous and uniform surface.
The geometry of the landscape emerges as an anthropogenic construction based on rhythm, repetition, and division.
Drapery
Heron Trail, Senigallia, 60019 Ancona – 2023
lat./long. 43° 41’ 57.6466’’ N – 13° 11’ 59.5717’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI Zenmuse P1
80 m a.g.l.
The agricultural design dissolves into a less ordered configuration.
The furrows take on a fluid movement, resembling folds flowing across the surface, while lighter areas marked by drying patterns introduce a fine and irregular texture.
The overall composition appears mobile, with agricultural geometry losing its rigidity and taking on the qualities of a textile structure.
A Field of Hides
Moyale road, Modjo, Adama, Ethiopia - 2025
lat./long. 08° 36’ 25.9651’’ N – 39° 06’ 50.0818’’ E
DJI Mavic 3E; integrated camera
80 m a.g.l
Cattle hides, spread open to dry, cover the ground in a dense and irregular arrangement.
Dark and reddish surfaces alternate with the pale earth, creating a widespread pattern that extends to the riverbank.
The scene conveys an immediate physical dimension: the acrid smell of tanning, the constant presence of organic matter, and a direct relationship between labor and environment.
Mercado do peixe
Praia Nova, 2100 Beira, Mozambique - 2025
lat./long. 19° 50’ 05.9900’’ S – 34° 49’ 49.9284’’ E
DJI Mavic 3E; integrated camera
45 m a.g.l.
The shoreline becomes a dense and fragmented space, animated by people, boats, and places of exchange. Figures gather around vessels and disperse along the beach, tracing irregular paths that constantly intersect.
The air is heavy with the smell of fish, saltwater, and trampled sand. Voices overlap; movements unfold slowly—those selling, buying, exchanging, and working.
Time seems stretched into a suspended dimension, where activity repeats continuously according to its own rhythm.
Submerged Forms
Ilha da Inhaca, Maputo Bay, Mozambique – 2025
lat./long. 25° 58’ 25.0098’’ S – 32° 58’ 24.2241’’ E
DJI Mavic 3E; integrated camera
70 m a.g.l
The shapes of the seabed emerge through the water, forming soft and continuous surfaces articulated through subtle variations.
Changes in depth create distinct chromatic fields where greens and sandy tones meet in clear and stable contrasts.
The composition conveys a sense of stillness and openness, where the natural regularity of forms inspires calm and suspension.
Waiting for the Tide
Ilha da Inhaca, Maputo Bay, Mozambique – 2025
lat./long. 25° 58’ 38.0228’’ S – 32° 58’ 22.8261’’ E
DJI Mavic 3E; integrated camera
100 m a.g.l.
The sand emerges and stretches into soft forms, crossed by winding channels left by retreating water.
The traces of the tide draw pathways converging toward the sea, like lines guiding the flow.
A lone boat remains suspended between land and water, waiting for the tide to return and restore the connection.
Autumn Forest
Sentiero dei Piccoli, Vastogirardi, 86088 Isernia, Italia – 2024
lat./long. 41° 45’ 40.4696’’ N – 14° 12’ 42.8859’’ E
DJI Matrice 300; integrated camera with DJI Zenmuse L2
60 m a.g.l.
Bare canopies expand into a complex network of branches, interwoven into a dense and disorderly texture. The ground, covered with decomposing leaves, takes on muted brown tones interrupted by the isolated green of climbing plants.
The cold, diffused light flattens contrasts, enveloping the scene in a suspended atmosphere where the density of forms generates both disorientation and attraction.
Incision
Road to Albergo I Cavallini, Cenova, 18026 Imperia, Italia - 2021
lat./long. 44° 01’ 59.3049’’ N – 07° 53’ 35.3482’’ E
DJI Matrice 210; DJI Zenmuse P1
80 m a.g.l.
A landslide cuts across the surface, carving the landscape with a continuous and irregular mark.
The brown of disturbed earth contrasts sharply with the white of the snow, creating a clear separation between surfaces.
The composition is built around this chromatic fracture, in which the landslide track emerges as the dominant element.
Forest in the Fog
Sentiero dei Piccoli, Vastogirardi, 86088 Isernia, Italia – 2024
lat./long. 41° 45’ 34.3061’’ N – 14° 12’ 36.9334’’ E
DJI Matrice 300; integrated camera with DJI Zenmuse L2
60 m a.g.l.
The forest dissolves into the fog, softening contrasts and homogenizing the scene.
Evergreen canopies alternate with pale, leafless branches that emerge as delicate signs within the vegetation mass.
The view becomes muted and suspended, where distinctions between forms fade and the landscape tends toward a more diffuse and silent perception.
