Happy Halloween!

In honor of the holiday, check out this rather amazing zombie ShapeShot:

New Men in Black 3 Trailer

The results of our 3D scanning are all over the new MiB3 trailer: actors, costumes, props, vehicles, sets, and locations!

SIGGRAPH 2011

Last month Direct Dimensions participated in The Studio at SIGGRAPH 2011. President Michael Raphael was a panelist for a round table discussion entitled: Scan, Model, Print.



The above image was compiled from The Studio where in one area participants were scanned and modeled by Direct Dimensions and then could print themselves with some help from the folks at MakerBot.

We look forward to next year!

Get a ShapeShot at SIGGRAPH 2011!

This year at SIGGRAPH the photo booth goes 3D!

Direct Dimensions Inc. will demonstrate the latest version of ShapeShot at SIGGRAPH 2011 in Vancouver. ShapeShot creates a 3D snapshot of your face. Users can share their face with friends via the online ShapeShot Gallery.



Along with the launch of new ShapeShot hardware, we've added an online store to the ShapeShot web site. Users in the ShapeShot gallery can purchase products including jewelry, a bust, and even an Easter Island head customized with their face. Users can access the store through their secure account at www.shapeshot.com.

If you are going to SIGGRAPH, make sure to stop by The Studio to see ShapeShot in action.

Direct Dimensions Invited to Participate in the Studio at SIGGRAPH 2011

This year Direct Dimensions is excited to be heavily involved in SIGGRAPH 2011 in Vancouver (August 7-11). We have been invited to participate in the "The Studio", a special, hands on area within SIGGRAPH where 3D industry experts and conference attendees use the latest technologies to create new works, experiment, and collaborate.

Direct Dimensions' President Michael Raphael will also be taking part in a round table entitled: Scan – Model – Print: A Roundtable Chat.

Learn more about the Studio here.

3D Scans for Oscar Winning Black Swan

Direct Dimensions scanned and imaged Natalie Portman in 3D for her Oscar winning role in the film, Black Swan.

We scanned the critically acclaimed actress for the latest film by Darren Aronofsky (Director of The Wrestler). Using various 3D imaging technologies, Ms. Portman's face, head, and body were digitally captured and modeled into 3D.

To see how some of our scans were used, check out this video about the film's special effects.

ShapeShot at Betascape

Going to Artscape this weekend? Intrigued by the idea of seeing yourself, your kids or even your dog in 3D?

Then make sure to stop by our ShapeShot booth in the Betascape tent and have your ShapeShot (a 3D snapshot) taken.

Betascape, being held in conjunction with the Artscape festival, will showcase innovative and interactive technology from companies all based in the Baltimore area. Activities for the whole family will include powertool drag racing, a robot exhibit, an arcade and video game hall, and the opportunity to get a 3D ShapeShot of your face!

ShapeShot will be at Betascape July 16-18. The Betascape tent is located outside of the MICA Brown Center.

DI4D Open House February 3rd in Los Angeles

Do you work in the Film or Game industries? Are you in the L.A. area? If so, we encourage you to attend the DI4D Open House. Mimic Studios and Direct Dimensions will be hosting this event to showcase the amazing 4D Video Facial Capture System from Dimensional Imaging!

This revolutionary 4D camera system, based on passive stereophotogrammetry technology from DI3D™, allows you to capture fully-textured 3D facial motion at 60 frames per second! This data can then be output in formats and resolutions for film and game use.

Please call us at 410-998-0880 or email mraphael@dirdim.com for additional information.

Facility Tour with the Upper Falls Retired Activities Club

If you've talked to anyone at Direct Dimensions then you know that we are very excited about what we do and love to share stories about our latest technologies, capabilities, or projects with anyone that is interested in hearing about them. Over the years that has led to some wonderful guests and facility tours with everyone from artists associations to historic preservation groups to mechanical engineering groups, and many tours for college and high school classes.

A few weeks ago we had a wonderful tour group in to visit with us and we want to share that experience with you now.



The Upper Falls Retired Activities Club (UFRAC) started in the 1980’s when a group of recently retired gentlemen would get together periodically to hike or canoe. Eventually some women joined the club and the activities became more varied, including lunches and tours. The club is a diverse group from different backgrounds and different Maryland towns.

On selected Thursdays of the year they all get together to enjoy each others company and learn about a variety of things. UFRAC has toured Under Armour's headquarters in downtown Baltimore, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, and most recently a prosthetics limb fabrication lab.

Back in 2006, Peg Walters, a UFRAC member, read a newspaper article that mentioned Direct Dimensions’ 3D scan of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. She clipped it out thinking it might be an interesting tour. Unfortunately daily life and scheduling got in the way for a while, but she finally contact us and scheduled the tour date.

Last month on September 24th, a group of about 25 UFRAC retirees visited Direct Dimensions and quickly became quite excited to hear about our many interesting projects and see our various 3D scanning and imaging technologies. Our founder and president Michael Raphael provided a thorough overview of the ways in which 3D imaging can be utilized for capturing real world objects into 3D digital forms for medical applications, museum art & sculpture, architecture, and various industrial applications.

While most of the retirees only casually use computers, it was surprisingly refreshing to hear their comments suggesting a good understanding of how these technologies work and why we perform these projects. As members of a demographic who are supposedly reluctant to embrace cutting edge technologies, we were really interested in how they would react to what we showed them.

We are happy to say that they loved the tour. In fact many even said it was the best tour they’d been on. And since many of us here at DDI are familiar with how amazing NASA Goddard is – that means a lot to us! More than enjoying the tour, the UFRAC group seemed to really “get” what we do and how it can be so beneficial in everything from scanning the famous Liberty Bell to measuring some greasy industrial gear.



The tour concluded with the attendees each getting their faces imaged in 3D with our fantastic new camera-based imaging system. We were particularly interested in seeing their reactions to this new and very exciting technology for reasons we’ll discuss in future postings – so stay tuned.



It was a great morning and we loved hosting them!

If you know of any groups that might be interested in touring Direct Dimensions, feel free to contact us at info@dirdim.com.

SIGGRAPH 2009

We're currently at SIGGRAPH 2009 in New Orleans. It is a great show with a focus on the entertainment and visualization applications of 3D technology. We're at the show with Dimensional Imaging, demonstrating their DI3D and DI4D face scanners.

If you can't make it out to New Orleans, you can check out the videos below for a demonstration of this new face scanning technology.

Real Time 3D Face Scanning

When Direct Dimensions was at the RAPID show back in May, we had a chance to demo our new face scanner, the DI3D, for Design World Magazine. We're very excited about this new face scanning technology and its applications. In just a couple of seconds the system captures enough 3D data for an incredibly realistic and accurate 3D face model.

Possible applications include:

Medical: surgical planning, analysis, and patient presentation for orthodontics, maxillofacial, plastic/cosmetics, ENT, craniofacial; medical appliances such as CPAP masks, burn masks, radiation shields, etc.; medical documentation and analysis, etc.

Entertainment: personalized avatars for video games, online social networks, movie CG animation, mass customized personal consumer items such as bobble heads, etc.

Security: facial recognition and biometrics, access control systems, facial databases

See the video below for a great demonstration of the DI3D in action.




For more on the DI3D system click here or you can also visit Dimensional Imaging.