This week’s session was about Reality Capture, also known as real-world scanning or photogrammetry. Sara introduced how we can turn real objects or spaces into digital models by taking photographs from different angles. In simple terms, Reality Capture is a method of bringing real-world materials into digital creation.
During the class, I tried scanning my own face. This helped me understand the process more directly. First, photos need to be taken from multiple angles to cover the shape and details of the subject as completely as possible. Then, these photos are imported into the software, where it identifies matching points between the images and generates a 3D model. After that, the model can be cleaned, textured, and optimised before being imported into Unreal Engine or other 3D software.
I found this process very interesting because it makes the boundary between reality and the virtual world less clear. In the past, I thought 3D models were mainly created through manual modelling, but Reality Capture offers another approach. Real faces, objects, buildings, or natural environments can all become part of a digital artwork. Scanning my own face especially made me feel that the real body can also be transformed into digital material.
This session made me realise that Reality Capture is not only a technical tool, but also a creative method. It allows artists to collect materials from the real world and reorganise them in a digital environment. In the future, if my work requires real objects, facial forms, or spatial textures, I would like to continue experimenting with Reality Capture as part of my visual research and production process.