More importantly,
it is not a good way to represent what people really see on the
ground. People see trees as 3-dimensional objects on the ground,
not as the canopy cover shown in aerial photographs. To illustrate
this point, two one-acre tree stands have been visualized using
the stand visualization system (SVS, Version 3.36; McGaughey,
2007). Fig. 1 shows the perspective view, overhead view, and profile
viewof those two stands. The two stands have the same canopy
cover, leaf surface area, distribution pattern, and are of the same
species. The heights of the trees are varied in image b, while all
the trees in image a are the same height. The overhead view is
similar to what one can see from an aerial photograph; the two
stands appear to be the same. Nevertheless, the perspective view
and the profile view are what people see from the ground. The
minor variation results in two stands with very different visual
effects. This example represents a highly simplified situation. In
an urban environment, the mixture of trees and man-made facilities
and different management practices can result in urban forests
with dramatically different appearances but with the same canopy
cover