Happy St. Paddy's Day


Expert 3D Scanning & Modeling 

Photo-Realistic Digital Doubles
Photogrammetry Specialists

3D Scanning North America from
Los Angeles, New York, New Orleans, Atlanta,  Vancouver BC, Toronto ON, Montreal QC



March 2018
Volume 10  Issue 3



Digital Doubles  from Raw to Ready-to-Rig for the Entertainment Industry


3D SCANNING FOR VFX
TNG VFX U S & CANADA


TNG Visual E ffects is headquartered in  Los Angeles with offices in New York, New Orleans and Atlanta. Locations also  in the Canadian territories of Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto.

is a 3D scanning company in the entertainment industry that specializes in the creation of photo-realistic
digital assets. Many characters, vehicles, cars, sets, props,  animals, sculptures, and other items have been added to our scope of work since inception in 2009. 

Our team knows how to work with producers, directors, coordinators, A-list talent, and other agencies, making the most of their precious time and ensuring a successful project. TNG's work is always guaranteed. We are also highly noted for our ability to travel at a moments notice for a project. Exclusive use of highly mobile scanning systems allow for TNG to perform scans in practically any location.

TNG Building
A Moment with our Founder


Another month, March, Happy St Paddy's day to all. As you can see I'm animated more than ever. We are all but jumping out of our skin with the work and loving it.
Plus doing some testing on markets, just pulling out all the plugs. I guess Blue Tooth is doing that as well. This is already close to the end of the first quarter. Hope you are all doing well and enjoying this time.

At TNG, we are developing more techniques in relation to 3D scanning to give you better models. We are getting deeper into developing systems and products to expand our markets with our
high-tech scanners, skilled modelers, and our mobility.  We are always researching new technology and software to keep the quality of our service at the highest level, and to accelerate our pipeline. We do our best to provide a great product to our customers. 

We continue our search for partners who are synergistic to our service. Together we can help our customers save more while using better products.
Contact us  for more information.





LiDAR Scans



Products for E-Commerce

                    
3D Digital Doubles
Let's start with our Irish lass at the top. This model was scanned and did a  number of facial expressions for a test we are involved in. This really is the future of having Digital Doubles be the actors or have a more active part in the content that we watch.

It starts out with a 3D Scan of the actress,  a number of facial expressions and then some additional motions to get mouth movement, teeth and tongue.  And, if you have the digital expertise you can even set up a chat box and voice to match the Digital Character


Your next step is to set up AI and give her or him the digital intelligence to carry on a conversation (as if, there aren't a lot of real people that can do that part). All kidding aside with today's technology, the intelligence of learning is also available for that avatar to learn from you and use that information the next time they talk with you.


Of course, they would not feel real if they did not move their head or blink as well.   What we will want to do is to get as close to a real human being as possible. It would be too distracting to see a digital double acting in a TV show or Film, if the natural movements and characteristics that we display to each other don't come across correctly.


We have all been after this for years and I feel we are getting closer. Perhaps in 5 years or less we will have the perfect Digital Double.

Photography for 3D Scanning and Photogrammetry
Artec-Faro-Canon +

3D Scanners capture geometry and shape, but not all 3D scanners capture color textures or pictures. And the 3D scanners that do capture color or pictures will often have low resolution, low megapixel sensors, which can't possibly give you high detail. Some people may just take out their smart phone and snap a few pictures, but they're better alternatives. A professional photography shoot involves a high quality camera capable of high megapixel and high resolution textures as well as soft diffused, spread-out light from a minimum of two sources. Using only a single light source will cast shadows and will prevent you from having an even spread of light.

Additionally, the light must be harnessed in such a fashion that it is not too overexposed or too intense. Highlights occur when light is too intense. And, with too little light, shadows can appear and the fill light will disappear. The orientation of the light, its height, its distance to the other light, and its distance to the subject will all affect the resulting photo's lighting. The purpose of attempting to reduce the shine of the highlights is to provide a clean flat-lit diffuse texture, which can then be lit in any environment. If too many highlights are in the diffuse texture, you'll get what's called "baked-in" lighting. Then that the lighting's direction and intensity won't match what's "baked-in" to the diffuse map within a scene. Acquiring more skin pore information is another reason to reduce the shine; and skin pores are one of the next-gen, high detail hallmarks of photogrammetry and 3D scanning.

Photogrammetry has begun stretching its legs more throughout the industry. But, prepare to request a sample because the nature of photogrammetry allows for a myriad of variables which affect both how the 3D scanned geometry and shape as well as the diffuse texture will look. The resolution of each camera is vital as well as the focus being achieved on each camera. To fully take advantage of the technique of photogrammetry, the basic knowledge of how a DSLR camera operates is vital information. Depth of field should be maximized, which means avoiding certain apertures. Every picture taken should preferably be from a camera that is angled perpendicularly to the surface of your subject which you are trying to capture.

LiDAR Scanning, for those bigger objects

Now that the characters, animals and props are done, we need to tackle the buildings, trucks, cars, spaces etc. This is where LiDAR technology comes into play.

LiDAR is a special, laser-based tool that can scan large items and spaces in minimal time. However, complex items do take more time as it is still based on the principle of line-of-site; the more complex the shape, the more angles that need to be scanned.

With that said, if you have a building, then the work can be more methodical by just moving the scanner a certain distance away from the source. This not only gives you the surface texture, but, you can also get the height; granted that you're not dealing with a very 10 story building.   


Your next challenge is glass and reflective panels. These items would need to be modeled back in,  as glass and other reflective surfaces cannot be scanned unless you prepare it with some kind of dulling spray that will make the surface dull or more opaque.


The next step is to take those point clouds scans  back to the office and are aligned as point cloud models followed by  re-surfacing them into Obj usable models to re-topogize or just Texture map.

 LiDAR scanning has been serving the industry for years with outstanding results. So, when bringing in any service, be sure to always check the service providers credentials. Take a look at samples that are close to what your needs are.  This way there won't be any surprises on the back end. It will save you a lot of time and money in the long run.   
Thank you for taking the time to review our newsletter. If you have any questions, or would like to consider TNG Visual Effects in your next bid, please contact us. 
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