This is from the http://www.emergency-forum.de/board330-emergency-5/board379-emergency-5-modding/board389-emergency-5-modding-discoveries/59944-anleitung-zum-importieren-von-realen-landschaften-in-den-editor/

I've carefully read through the god awful google translate and actually got it to work with the editor =D

Step 1. Download and Install Microdem http://www.usna.edu/Users/oceano/pguth/website/microdem/microdemdown.htm

This is for generating the height-map for the editor later on.

Step 2a. (Optional) Go to GoogleMaps and find the place you want to import.

Right click the centre of that map and select "What is here?". This will provide you with a window in the top left telling you what is here, click the long string of numbers, it'll expand to show you the coordinates of that location. Just make sure you keep the N/S/W/S number the german instructions explain more but it's confusing a little.


Step 2b. Go to this website http://srtm.csi.cgiar.org/SELECTION/inputCoord.asp

Once there on 'Data Selection method' select 'Enable Drag Mouse' select the part of the map you want to use and click and drag your mouse of the square.

Now press the large yellow button and once you found the correct height-map make sure to use the 'Data Download (HTTP)'.

Save the zipped file to where you'll work on the image, make sure to extract it first into the folder you're going to work with.

Step 3. Open Microdem.

Go to open, open dem and open the TIF file that you extracted (not the HDR file).

Hovering the mouse over the image will show the coordinates at the bottom of the window.

Before anything else right click on the map and select 'Legends/marginalia' untick Elevations and Scale and press OK.

Right click again and select 'Grid/graticule' and select neither.

Find the closest you can find to your desired area and use the dashed box tool in top of the window http://www.abload.de/image.php?img=8lhji0.jpg to drag and select your desired area, this will zoom into the area selected keep doing this until you've found the area you want to use.

Right now you should have a colourful map this needs to be changed, right click 'Display Parameters' then select 'Elevation' and select 'Grayscale'.

You'll need to take note of something now, two numbers. Click the 'Z Range' button and take note of the two numbers. You'll need these for the editor.

Now confirm all settings are correct and goto 'File' -> 'Save as Image Map' -> 'As GEOTIFF, screen scale (grayscale)'.

Step 4. Now open the saved GEOTIFF into photoshop, paint.net or gimp.

(Photoshop) Goto 'Image' -> 'Mode' -> Select Grayscape and make sure the image is 32bit.

Now goto 'Image' -> 'Mode' -> 'Image Size' and change it to 1025 x 1025 so it is a square.

Now 'Save As' a TIFF file, make sure when prompted to save make sure Image Compression is 'LZW'.

Step 5. Importing into Editor.

This is the simplest step yet. Open up your map in the editor.

Goto 'Tool' -> 'Terrain Modelling' -> See the folder icon click it and it'll ask for min and max values this is where those 'Z Range' numbers come in, enter the lowest press ok then enter the highest number and press okay, It'll ask for the file you saved with 'PS,Gimp or Paint.net' select that TIF file and press open.

And there you go you've just imported your real landscape. It'll need some smoothing out and flatting in some areas but it is now imported.