TIFF to SHP conversion problem

Question

Hello All,

I am trying to convert a .tiff to a .shp file in ArcGIS 10.1. In particular, I have been attempting to convert my continuous data set found in the TIFF extension into a shapefile. The data contains a range in values and I understand that shapefiles must hold integer values. As a result, I will list my attempted solutions for the issue:

1) I navigated to Catalog> Spatial Analyst Tools > Math > Int. After obtaining an map with integer values, I then converted to a shapefile by navigating to Catalog > Conversion Tools > From Raster to Polygon. The output from the Raster to Polygon stage gave a polygon with no difference in values. The result from this process was a single color image, not a range in values.

2) I attempted to use the raster calculator by navigating to Catalog> Spatial Analyst Tools > Map Algebra > Raster Calculator. I multiplied the values by 1000 and after converting the integers to the shapefile, I then divided by 1000 to try to retain the floating point values. The result was that only 1's and 0's were mapped.

Any suggestions? Thank you.

KlintonNana · Answer

Hi, Baylor.
I am not using ArcGIS 10.1. But I am testing with another   Tiff converter   these days. I am not so sure whther it allows users to convert Tiff to SHP files or not. You can also google it and select a fine   converting SDK   whose way of processing is simple and fast to help you with the related work. It will be better if it is totally manual and can be customized by users according to our own favors. Remember to check its free trial package first if possible. I hope you success. Good luck.

Best regards,
Arron

Hi there
It seems that you are an experienced user for Tiff converter.I am a beginner in tiff converting issues.And i also need to convert tiff to SHP.But my previous tiff converter can not do that.Do you know any free trial for that kind of program?
Thanks for any suggestions.

arronlee · Answer

Hi, Baylor.
I am not using ArcGIS 10.1. But I am testing with another Tiff converter these days. I am not so sure whther it allows users to convert Tiff to SHP files or not. You can also google it and select a fine converting SDK whose way of processing is simple and fast to help you with the related work. It will be better if it is totally manual and can be customized by users according to our own favors. Remember to check its free trial package first if possible. I hope you success. Good luck.

Best regards,
Arron

Steve_Kopp · Answer

First assumption is that your "continuous data set" TIFF represents sampling of a continuous variable, such as elevation, temperature, distance to roads, etc. To convert your "continuous data set" TIFF to a vector format like a shapefile, you can convert it to points using RasterToPoint, to lines using the Contour tool, or to polygons. However, to convert it to polygons you also have to group some of the values together, otherwise you will end up with millions of single cell polygons which won't be very useful. The simplest way to do this is to create contour polygons which can be done using the Create Filled Contours sample tool. If your TIFF is actually something else like a multispectral image, you would use the multivariate statistics tools to first classify the cells into meaningful groups before converting them to features using Polygons To Raster.