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Go 3D with your photos

Nick

Nick

  • Updated:

mypictures3DThere are many ways to spice up your photo collection but perhaps one of the most impressive is to make them 3 Dimensional. Giving your photos a 3D look can be useful for a number of reasons. Maybe you’d like to breathe new life into an old photo collection or maybe you’re working on a presentation and want to give it an original touch? Whatever your reasons, there are several programs out there that can bring a new dimension to your photos in a few clicks.

One of the most popular is PhotoPlus probably because it allows you to create many effects in just one package. This free program offers everything from reducing red eye, adjusting contrast and of course 3D effects through its ‘Layer Manager’. However, because it’s not a dedicated 3D photo program, the results can look somewhat artificial and unconvincing.

For better results, you’re probably better using 3D Photo Builder Professional which creates 3D panoramic shots with your photos. The program makes an analysis of your photo borders and then ‘stitches’ them together to create the panoramas. You can even pan and zoom the 3D shots as well as send them by e-mail. Because this is a dedicated 3D imaging program, the results are considerably more realistic than with PhotoPlus.

If it’s just headshots and portrait views you want to transform, then try Facial Studio for Windows. This program allows you to manipulate facial images such as by changing expressions, adding jewlery, changing hairstyles etc. Afterwards, it renders the image to create a 3D model of the photo which you can then export to other graphic design applications.

Maybe you want to create your own 3D avatar with one of your photos? If so, Active GIF Creator can take your images in various formats and create individual animation frames for it. At the end of the editing process, it puts these frames together and you’ve got yourself a 3D animated version of your photo which can be used as an avatar.

Finally, if you’re bored of image viewing applications that only offer slideshows, why not view your photos in your own 3D art gallery? My Pictures 3D is a cool little app which presents your photos as portraits on the wall of an art gallery. Choose from a humble showroom or a castle environment to give your holiday photo viewing sessions a fun and original touch. You can even set this program to work as your screensaver.

Note that to get the best out of any of these programs, you’ll need a fairly decent graphics card as 3D imaging is a demanding process.

Nick

Nick

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