Archives > Frisco Enterprise > News
Print
E-mail
Comment
Rate
RSS
Share
Photographer uses new technology to bring landmarks to life
ANN MARIE SHAMBAUGH/STAFF PHOTO
Frisco resident Peter Horn took hundreds of photos of a sculpture at Central Park Sept. 12 as part of a Photosynth project.
By Ann Marie Shambaugh, Staff Writer
Peter Horn is a persistent man.
The Frisco resident spends his spare time taking hundreds of pictures n moving just inches at a time n of landmarks around town to piece them together in Photosynth, a new program by Microsoft that turns digital images into 3-D explorations.
“If you don’t have a lot of patience, this is not the thing to do, because it almost looks like death by inches,” Horn said.
The Photosynth program evaluates between 30 and 300 photographs for similarities to construct a three-dimensional recreation of the original object. The more photos used, the more “synthy” or complete the end result will be.
Horn’s synths include images of Frisco Square, Central Park, churches, schools, and his most difficult project so far - the old water tower on Main Street.
“In order to fully cover that, there’s a lot of places on the street you can’t stand and see the water tower,” Horn said. The photographer found different locations in the city where the water tower could be seen and used a high-powered lens to capture the shot as if he were standing at a closer location.
Microsoft released the Photosynth program in August. It was developed through the discoveries of several researchers who determined it was possible to tie together digital photographs to recreate a three-dimensional image, a concept known as photo tourism, and through technology developed by Seadragon, which Microsoft purchased in 2006.
Horn learned of the program as it was in development after researching it on the Internet, and he became one of the first photographers to test the new technology.
“This is not something Microsoft has completed yet, so at this point it’s very beta, very experimental,” he said.
A Frisco resident since 1996, Horn said he loves Frisco’s small-town atmosphere and decided that its unique landmarks would be a great way to use the new Photosynth technology.
“Frisco is a great city,” Horn said. “It seemed like if I was going to do something with this PhotoSynth program, why not do it for Frisco.”
He plans to photograph Frisco fire stations, the police department, and Hall Office Park, among other landmarks. Internet browsers from around the country and Germany, England, France, and Aruba viewed his earliest synths.
The city has not commissioned Horn for the project, which gives him the freedom to shoot landmarks of his choice. They are available for public viewing on the Internet at www.ahh-photography.com/index_files/PhotosynthFrisco.htm or by searching the Photosynth Web site at www.Photosynth.net.
The following are comments from the readers.
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
You must register with a valid email to post comments.
Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Registered users sign in here:
Become a Registered User
- Return to: News «
- Home «
- Top of Page ^
