How to create a popular celebrity 3D model

Creating 3D celebrity models is easier than you think! Apart from using a human 3D scanner like those shown at Texel Portal MX, there is an option to create it by yourself – with a simpler result, though.

All you need is a digital camera (preferably with a flash), 123D Catch and a local wax museum. With little money and effort, you can get dozens of royalty-free celebrity 3D models in a matter of hours. The best thing about this modeling method is that you can also visit a wax museum, which I found a pleasant, if not a little surreal, experience.

Go to the wax museum

Get the sleekest digital camera you own. A single-lens reflex camera with a 35mm lens and flash is preferable.
Make sure the battery is charged and the memory card is clean. Bring extras of both if possible. Put on your shoes and coat (if necessary) and head to the nearest wax museum.

We go to the wax museum because, unlike real celebrities, wax figures never move, move or sneeze. Wax figures can easily be captured using the 123D Catch Photogrammetry method. With a little patience and a few dozen pictures, you can get a 3D model of everything they have on display.

Sign in

Wax museums are usually non-profit so you have to pay to get in. Even if they were, you should probably pay to get in. It’s just the nature of things. But when all has been said and done, it shouldn’t be a ruin. They are usually quite cheap.

After receiving the ticket, go inside. This will give you a license to take as many photos as you want.
Since the wax museum collections are more of a tourist spot in larger cities, they almost always allow photography, allowing tourists to take a neatly framed photo or two of their favorite celebrities. That’s great because we take a lot of photos.

Photography

If possible, set your camera lens to 35mm and turn on the flash. If possible, set F-Stop to 10+ and ISO to 400 or less. The goal is a great depth of field. Do not zoom in or out with the lens.

Find the celebrity you are looking for a model for. Take a shot of the wax-up, go to either side and take another shot. Repeat this process, completely flipping the model.

When you have done this, hold the camera over your head, point it at the model and walk around it. Finally, sit down and repeat this process, but shoot straight up. The goal is to capture as many corners of the model as possible.

In the wax museum I visited, most of the models were against the wall so I couldn’t completely encircle them. In this case, I tried to take as many photos as possible in the area where I was allowed to get close to the model.

Note: If someone asks you what you do, tell them you are a photography student on a class assignment. It helps to have more people around because you can catch more celebrities faster and it feels less weird to do so in a group.

Create templates

Go home and download all your files to your computer.
If you haven’t downloaded 123D Catch yet, now is the time to do so. Run the program.
Click Create New Photo Scene, select all images of one celebrity, and click Calculate Photo Scene. In 15-20 minutes you should have a 3D model of the celebrity in the pictures.

If you’ve taken photos with a group of people, combining all of your photos may produce the best results. If your model needs fixing or tweaking, check out ShadyLogic’s instructions on how to become a 123D Catch figurine.

Export

Export the 123D Catch model as an .obj file.

Open it up in 123D or similar (I usually use 3DS Max) and do whatever you want with the model. Multi-head celebrity dance? Secure! Famous toothbrush holder? Why not! Celebrity Themed iPhone Cases? Apparently!

When you’re done, save it as a waterproof STL … assuming you want to 3D print it.

3D printing (optional)

When you’re done, 3D print your celebrity 3D model!

Reference: texel.graphics