http://www.shapeways.com/topics/udesign/video/mediaplayer.swf
Can you make a flat, two-dimensional photograph look 3D? Not easily, but the Shapeways project might lend a hand. Shapeways is a Philips Electronics Incubator project that up to now has focused on printing physical 3D models. It’s an elaborate process (video here) where you upload a 3D design and Shapeways prints your vision in 3D.
Today, Shapeways introduces a 3D photograph (PDF) service that might offer some appeal to more mainstream uses. Using the contrast levels in your uploaded photo, the project creates a physical photograph that shows distinctive depth not otherwise found. Something this visual is hard to describe, so check it out in the video above. It’s not 3D in a holographic or physical sense, but more like a virtual relief photo when viewing the photo with no light behind it.
Of course, 3D has one more “D” than standard 2D, so you’ll pay an appropriate premium. Expect to pay between $40 and $50 for your uploaded photo to be delivered in about 10 days. My impressions: it’s an amazing technology, but not what most consumers think of when they hear the phrase “3D photo”. Details are lost on the 3D output, which is going to limit appeal for most. Still, I like how the Shapeways team is challenging our notions of photography and printing!
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