A planning visualisation guide requires the camera data behind it

The picture

On 17 September 2019, the Landscape Institute published Technical Guidance Note 06/19, Visual Representation of Development Proposals, replacing two earlier notes on photography and photomontage. TGN 06/19 sets out four Visualisation Types, from an annotated viewpoint photograph (Type 1) to a photomontage capable of survey verification (Type 4), plus an Appendix 10 checklist of what each image must disclose: camera location method, likely accuracy, lens focal length and why, date and time, camera make and sensor format, horizontal field of view, compass bearing, and grid coordinates with height above Ordnance Datum. The guidance now carries a note that it is under review, and the Landscape Institute's own visualisation page, retrieved 16 September 2026, confirms that status while the document remains in force.

What the documents show

The guidance states a Type 4, survey-verified visualisation requires a surveyor fixing camera position and matching it to a 3D model, so the image is 'capable of being verified to agreed standards by reference to the original photograph with metadata'. The Institute's page adds context the PDF does not: TGN 06/19 replaced LI Advice Note 01/11 and Technical Guidance Note 02/17, both withdrawn on publication. Neither document claims TGN 06/19 is a legal requirement outside planning authorities that have adopted it as supplementary guidance to GLVIA3, the Institute's assessment methodology, not a standalone statute.

What it is allowed to decide

A Type 4 visualisation, captioned to the Appendix 10 checklist, can plausibly support Class 4 Planning: a decision-maker can check the stated camera position, lens and bearing against the claim being made. It holds Dimensional authority when survey-verification is followed, since camera position and model geometry are tied to an independent survey rather than the visualiser's placement by eye. It does not hold Photometric authority: the guidance governs viewpoint, lens and scale, not whether light matches real sun position or fixture data. A Type 1 annotated photograph, the lightest type, holds neither authority and supports at most Class 2 Creative approval.

The disclosure label

A Type 4 image under TGN 06/19 would carry a label reading, in substance: this is a survey-verified photomontage prepared to Landscape Institute Technical Guidance Note 06/19; it can support Class 4 Planning decisions; it holds Dimensional authority through surveyed camera position and model geometry; it does not hold Photometric authority, since lighting is an artistic or seasonal choice; dated 16 September 2026. The landscape consultant preparing the submission, not the applicant or authority, would plausibly assert it, since Appendix 10 asks the preparer to state the methodology and its limitations.

• Which of the four Visualisation Types was used, and does the methodology table match it?
• Is the camera position independently surveyed, or placed by the visualiser's judgement?
• Does the image disclose lens, bearing and date, or only show a finished composition?

TGN 06/19 is a professional methodology, not a certification scheme, and its own review status is a reminder that even a widely used disclosure standard needs periodic revisiting rather than indefinite trust.