Reference Photos

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(This question isn’t really specific to Shapr3D, so I’m not sure if it’s appropriate here. Please suggest a general 3D design forum if questions like this are not really welcome in this help section. Thanks!)

I’m trying to take reference photos of a cumbersome oddly shaped object (a pair of headphones), and while I’m fairly confident that I’m scaling my photo correctly — using a ruler, and cropping the photo to specific dimensions prior to importing — I’m still having issues with perspective distortion due to the placement of the camera lens.

I’m sure this is a common problem, and that I’m just too much of a noob to get this right. What’s the best way to take a reference photo? Is a particular focal length required? Is there some math I can do to make this work reasonably well with my phone camera?

Should I be using a flatbed scanner instead? — For flat objects, I definitely would, but this is not a flat object, and so I’d have to prop it up on the underside, which unfortunately is the side the flatbed scanner views the object from — it’s all a bit confusing to me.

Is LiDAR a better option? My phone has this ability, but I’ve never done it. Conceptually I’m not even sure how accurate scaling works with LiDAR. Would I have to include a 20mm cube in the scan?

I’m a quick study, but I would just benefit from being pointed in the right direction, so I’m not flailing around looking at this from the wrong angle. I appreciate any hints you can provide to make this a more precise exercise.

Thank you all.

(Again, I apologise if general design questions are not welcome here)

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My input would be to scan it, or have it scanned. I’ve only toyed with the LiDAR Scanner on the iPhone and iPad. There are numerous apps that have been used and posted within this forum. I use a commercial grade scanner for items such as what you’re describing, but even then, it takes quite a lot of work to get is scanned well.

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Thank you @McD, I appreciate you setting my expectations appropriately. If it takes some work to achieve precision even with a commercial service, I might try a three-step approach.

  1. Muddle around using my photos as a (very) rough guide, and just iterate on a 3D printer until I get something close enough….
  2. Get frustrated with this approach and then…
  3. Have it done by a commercial service, and see if I can pay someone there to clean up the mesh so it’s usable.

I understood going into this, that a low-tolerance fit and finish would take some work to achieve, but I hoped it would be somewhat more doable without having to contract someone, but reading your post helps me understand that even seasoned industry types like yourself outsource this kind of thing.

Thank you for taking the time to help me out.

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Here is a service located in SoCal. https://rapidscan3d.com/
Chris runs this business and the service is excellent.

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Thanks @McD :slight_smile: — I’m sure they appreciate the plug. Hopefully someone more local finds it useful. I’m in Australia.

I’ve made a few calls, and these guys have won my business for now. 3D Printing, 3D Scanning and 3D Design Solutions - Thinglab

Hopefully my relationship with them will be as good as yours is with RapidScan3D.

Cheers for the nudge in this direction.

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