No, this email isn’t about a politician or a flip-flop wearing motorcyclist…it’s about something a bit more useful.

Incredible 3D tool I’m finally starting to delve into

One of my favorite parts of recon is also one of the most intimidating parts of recon: it requires constant learning and evolution. There are so many facets to the field that you really have to pick your spots and dig in, in my humble opinion. You can’t learn it all. Blender, a free and open-source 3D creation suite, has been on my radar for years and its capabilities finally pushed me over the edge…it’s time to dig in.

As a bit of background, Blender was created by Ton Roosendaal and dates back to 1994, going open source in 2002. It was named after this stellar tune. Blender is now a beast of a program with tons of available add-ons, support from Apple, NVIDIA, Intel, etc., and 18 million annual downloads. The suite is capable of so much, including:

  • 3D Modeling and rendering

  • Animation

  • Photogrammetry

  • Object and camera tracking

  • Video editing

  • Simulations (fluid, light, smoke, particles, etc.)

I don’t have any illusions of mastering the whole program, but I do plan to dive down the photogrammetry/video analysis rabbit hole with the help of YouTube and Blender/recon master Anthony Cornetto. I’m hoping we can develop a method that combines PhotoModeler and Blender in a way that elevates the state of video analyses. Stay tuned, we might release some content from the teaching and development sessions.

Thanks for reading along!

Lou Peck
​Lightpoint Data | Axiom