A number of specific problems are encountered in attempts to construct maps of planetary surfaces from the images obtained by spacecraft. These include the need to correct for geometric distortions in the imaging system and the detector surface, and also allow for the montran of the spacecraft while the image is being formed. These problems are illustrated by examples of Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Mercury, where a lack of stereoscoping imaging has led to other forms of surface interpretation, notably illumination geometries.-after Author