How do I create photo scenery for FSX?

To create photo scenery for FSX, obtain legally usable georeferenced aerial imagery, align and crop it in SBuilderX, define the coverage and resolution, add blend or water masks where needed, then compile it with the FSX SDK Resample tool into a scenery BGL. Install that BGL as an activated scenery area.

FSX and FSX: Steam Edition use the same compiled photo-scenery format. The main creation tools are SBuilderX and the SDK utility resample.exe; FSX itself cannot turn an ordinary aerial photograph into scenery.

What do you need before making FSX photo scenery?

You need a working FSX-compatible Resample tool, SBuilderX, an image editor and imagery with reliable coordinates and suitable licence terms.

• The FSX SDK: Boxed Deluxe and Gold installations provide SDK components on their media, installed separately from the simulator. FSX: Steam Edition can display compiled photo scenery, but it should not be treated as a complete copy of the original creation SDK. Our explanation of the FSX SDK and its scenery tools covers the edition and installation considerations.
• SBuilderX: Configure it to use the correct resample.exe. Its built-in imagery download functions may stop working when imagery providers change their services, so importing your own licensed, georeferenced image is more dependable.
• Source imagery: You need the geographic bounds or embedded georeferencing. A screenshot from an online map is not automatically licensed for extraction or redistribution.
• An image editor: This is used for cropping, colour correction and greyscale blend or land-water masks.

Start with a small test area around a recognisable airport or coastline. Compiling an entire region before checking the coordinates is a common way to waste hours and produce an enormous unusable BGL.

How do you create FSX photo scenery in SBuilderX?

The reliable SBuilderX workflow is to calibrate the image first, compile a small sample, inspect it in FSX and only then process the full area.

Our worked SBuilderX ground-texture tutorial provides a practical companion to these steps.

1. Prepare the imagery. Crop unnecessary borders and combine neighbouring tiles into a consistent mosaic where practical. If the project begins as many lawfully obtained numbered tiles, the tile-preparation utility for SBuilderX can help organise and rename them.
2. Create a project and import the image. Preserve existing georeferencing where available. Otherwise enter accurate WGS84 coordinates for the image boundaries or calibration points. Remember that western longitudes are normally negative; a missing minus sign can place the scenery thousands of miles away.
3. Check alignment. Compare coastlines, roads, runway thresholds and other fixed features against the SBuilderX background or known coordinates. Do not rely on a single centre point, and confirm that north, south, east and west were not reversed.
4. Select the coverage area. Define only the part that should be compiled as photo scenery. Avoid carrying blank borders or map labels into the selection.
5. Add masks where required. A blend mask fades the photograph into surrounding default terrain: white retains the image, black makes it transparent and grey creates a partial blend. A land-water mask normally uses white for land and black for water, allowing FSX water rendering to replace photographed water. Masks must match the source image dimensions and alignment.
6. Choose the output resolution. Match the finest compiled LOD to the real detail in the source rather than selecting the highest available value. SBuilderX then creates the source definition and calls resample.exe.
7. Compile to BGL. Use a writable project directory rather than compiling directly into a protected simulator folder. Keep the generated source definition and compiler log; they are the first places to inspect when no BGL appears.
8. Install the result. Put the compiled file in a structure such as Addon Scenery\MyPhotoArea\Scenery. The original JPG, TIFF or bitmap is not installed as scenery; the imagery is compiled into the BGL. A sibling Texture folder is needed if the package later gains autogen or separate texture assets. Follow our instructions for activating a custom scenery area in boxed FSX and Steam Edition.
9. Test the boundaries. Load the area in daylight, inspect coastlines and airport alignment, then fly across every outer edge. Only expand the project after the sample appears in the correct place without hard borders.

What LOD and image resolution should you use?

Choose the finest LOD that roughly matches the source image's ground sample distance; compiling beyond the source resolution creates larger files, not extra detail.

These are practical regional-project choices rather than an engine limit. Very high-resolution airport imagery can justify finer levels, but a huge area at that resolution consumes substantial disk space and memory. FSX is a 32-bit simulator, so splitting a large project into manageable, non-overlapping tiles is usually safer than compiling one giant mosaic.

The simulator's Global texture resolution setting also affects what you see. The Mesh Resolution slider changes terrain shape, not the sharpness of the aerial image.

What does photo scenery not create?

Photo scenery replaces the visible ground texture; it does not automatically create elevation, functional runways, buildings, trees, lighting or seasonal imagery.

• Airports: A runway visible in the photograph is only a picture. Airport surfaces, lights, parking positions and AI paths still come from airport scenery BGLs. Old imagery can therefore show a displaced or demolished runway beneath the active airport.
• Autogen: Default autogen often disappears where photo terrain replaces landclass textures. Buildings and vegetation must be annotated separately with the SDK's autogen tools, with the resulting files placed in the project's Texture folder.
• Seasons and night lighting: A basic project displays the same source photograph throughout the year. Genuine seasonal changes and night textures require separate prepared imagery and the corresponding Resample configuration.
• Terrain elevation: Photo scenery follows the active terrain mesh. Hills, cliffs and airport flattening require mesh or conventional scenery work rather than a sharper photograph.

Common FSX photo-scenery problems

Most failures come from incorrect coordinates, mismatched masks, an unavailable SDK compiler or overlapping scenery rather than from FSX being unable to display the BGL.

• No BGL is created: Check the configured path to resample.exe, SDK compatibility, source file accessibility and the compiler log. Try a short writable project path if Windows permissions are blocking output.
• The scenery appears in the wrong place: Recheck the coordinate order, negative western or southern values, image projection and calibration points.
• Black, white or transparent blocks appear: Confirm that every mask has exactly the same pixel dimensions and alignment as the source image, and that its black and white values were not reversed.
• The image has a hard rectangular border: Create a blend mask and colour-correct the edge to resemble the surrounding default terrain.
• Photographed water remains flat: Add a land-water mask. Without it, FSX treats the water visible in the aerial photograph as ordinary ground texture.
• The scenery is blurry: Check the source resolution, selected LOD and Global texture resolution setting. Upscaling a poor image before compilation cannot recover missing ground detail.
• Only patches appear or textures flicker: Temporarily disable other photo-scenery BGLs covering the same coordinates. Remove duplicate coverage rather than assuming that changing Scenery Library priority will resolve every terrain conflict.
• A large project fails or performs poorly: Divide the source into adjacent tiles, compile them separately and avoid overlap. Retain the same calibration and colour treatment across every tile so seams do not become visible.