Introduction to Photogrammetry

Data acquisition (small to large specimens)

Basics of the Structure from Motion (SfM) method: what data does it require?

•  Photography for SfM:
  • Camera settings
  • Specimen preparation & support materials
  • Image capture methods with static or moving camera
  • Scale bar usage
• Difficult cases: tiny, shiny, or otherwise problematic cases.

Model creation

• Basic workflow in Reality Capture (and Meshroom)
  • Data loading
  • Marker detection
  • Alignment and model creation
  • Colors and textures
•  Solutions for problematic cases
  • Multi-chunk modelling
  • Adding new photographs

 Basics of model editing for printing, web display, scientific use, etc.

• Introduction to the interface and basics of GOM inspect, MeshLab and Blender.
• Mesh description, quality assessment and elimination of errors (e.g. holes, non-watertight meshes, non-manifold vertices and edges, etc).
• Scaling and mirroring.
• Sectioning for 3D printing

 Long term data storage and scientific reusability considerations

• Data integrity and long-term reusability: what and how to archive?
• Digital repositories and licenses.

Ethical concerns and best practices.

This course is addressed to researchers and technicians who work with complex structures and need to digitise their samples for different reasons, such as digital preservation, mass digitisation of collections, 3D printing and research questions (e.g. for geometric morphometrics, biomechanics analyses, etc).

No specific background is required.

Main software that you will use during the course: Reality Capture, Agisoft Metashape, GOMinspect and Meshmixer. Temporary licences will be provided for the course.

For the equipment, below we are listing the ideal setting you should have for your research, and the minimum you will need to do the practice, in case you do not have access to the ideal one:

IDEAL: DSLR or mirrorless camera with a wide-angle lens with short minimum distance, matching LED light ring (best: SL-108).
OK: digital camera with LED light ring.
MINIMUM: good cell phone camera.

IDEAL: Dedicated photogrammetry scale bars.
OK: any other measure, e.g. labeled cm scale.

IDEAL: turntable, ethafoam or similar, 6 to 8 raw-wooden chopsticks
OK: styrofoam, 6 to 8 chopsticks

Online live sessions on February 24th and 26th and March 4th, 5th, and 7th, 2025.

From 14:00 to 17:30 (Madrid time zone).

Total course hours: 30 (17.5 hours of online live lessons, plus 12.5 hours of participants working on their projects).

This course is equivalent to 1 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System). The recognition of ECTS by other institutions depends on each university or school.

This course will be split evenly between practical sessions and lectures. Participants are expected to create a 3D model in the time between the first block and the second block of the live sessions, which will be discussed during the second block.

Live sessions will be recorded. However, attendance to the live sessions is required to obtain the course certificate.