kb6kgx Loc: Simi Valley, CA

It seems to be a popular thing now to have cameras with “built-in GPS”.

Can someone please explain to me why one would want to have this feature, of what practical use it is supposed to be?

The way my uninformed brain works, I KNOW where the photo was taken because I was there and was the one who shot the photo. Why would I need to know the precise coordinates?

I don’t mean to come across as arrogant or anything like that like, but I really want to know.

Ol' Frank Loc: Orlando,

Yes, me too.

lightcatcher Loc: Farmington, NM (4 corners)

So you can show them on Lightroom Map. Why I don't know.

Morning Star Loc: West coast, North of the 49th N.

I also thought I knew where I had taken my photos because I was there and I took them. I am just finishing putting my photos into albums - enough of them to fill up 17 shoeboxes!
For some of them I was able to match them up to their negatives, and so tell from the context of the 36 negatives together where I was and what the subject was.
With others I was not so lucky as I don't have the negatives now. They're mostly landscapes and I have absolutely no idea where I was.
So now have a hiking GPS as my camera is not equipped with one, I make sure the GPS and my camera have their clocks synchronised. When I'm taking a photo somewhere, I just push the button to establish a location, then when I get home, after a week or 2 or 3, it's easy to use the clocktime to find what coordinates belong to what photo(s), I jot it down on a Notepad document that is filed in the folder with the photos. Since I've started using that, even if I don't remember the location, it is a cinch to find the coordinates on Google Earth, and "remember."

Believe me, when your hair is gray, or lacking altogether, you will no longer remember all the locations where you took photos.

Whuff Loc: Marshalltown, Iowa

A few times I've gone out driving the back roads on a photo safari (so to speak) and was so all over the place I was totally lost. After editing the photos I've thought to myself, I wish I could do that one over but I'm not sure what the location was. Even with that being said, I really don't feel I would upgrade my camera just to get that feature.

Walt

oldtigger Loc: Roanoke Virginia-USA

so that anyone glancing at the photo will know you were really in lower slobovia and not faking it in Aruba on the child support payment.

Supernova Loc: Maryland

I geotag photos when I'm traveling.

kb6kgx Loc: Simi Valley, CA

Now THAT'S funny, right there!!!

My wife wanted to know what I just burst out laughing at, and when I told her, her reaction was the same.

kb6kgx Loc: Simi Valley, CA

Some good answers, here, thank you all.

Ol' Frank Loc: Orlando,

Now I have GAS again. I didn't think I would need a GPS but this thread makes so much sense I will now have to have one. Now, where to get a hand held one as I don't want anything else on my cameras. Thanks to all who responded to the OP and let me just look in.

tsilva Loc: Arizona

If you have a smart phone there are apps available to create tracks. No need to buy extra gear.

jethro779 Loc: Tucson, AZ

Slobbovia is spelled with 2 LL's and It was poorer than Dogpatch.

UtahBob Loc: Southern NJ

There are other reasons but that's a good one. No different that those that say no need to take photos as I'll remember it up there as they point to their noggin ... but how many photos have you looked at with not the slightest remembrance of taking that photo yet you must have as you were the only one there.

Personally, I like the gps loggers as they provide a full record of your location during a trip and aren't battery hogs so they'll work all the time as long as you charge them whenever you're in a car or where there is power.

johneccles Loc: Leyland UK

I geotag all my photos because I like to have the location recorded.
It's not important to everybody but I often find geotagging very useful especially, when on cruise recently I visited so many places that I could not remember where some photos were taken.
Before geotagging was possible I used to take a shot of a place name etc. to help.
It's a personal thing but not essential really.

Revet Loc: Fairview Park, Ohio

There are a bunch of them I see. Does anyone have tested experience using one in conjunction with Lightroom?? If so, what is the name of the App.

This does open another problem though. I do take pictures with my Galaxy 5 and import them into lightroom. When I look at the Map section, some are 100s of miles from where they were taken. So currently, I enter coordinates manually after a shoot. It just takes a few secs even with multiple locations.

However, I can see the use of geotagging if you are hiking (however, I just take a guess, do I really need to know what tree I am next too??) or more importantly, a trip where you are doing multiple stops per day over the course of a week or so (is. the bucket trip to Hawaii or Europe, etc). In this case I can see the value of geotagging so if anyone has an App they use with Lightroom, I would appreciate the name.