One of the great things about http://labs.autodesk.com/technologies/photofly/ - Project Photofly is that you can use your own digital camera and the free Project Photofly software to capture things around you in 3D. You can share this 3D model with others in images, avatars, or a video posted to http://www.youtube.com - YouTube direct from Photofly. You could export an .IPM file and view on your mobile device using http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/inventor-publisher-mobile/id393147903?mt=8 - Inventor Publisher mobile or export to http://www.autodesk.com/fbx - .FBX , .OBJ, or . http://www.autodesk.com/dwg - DWG file to use it in http://www.autodesk.com/autocad - AutoCAD , http://www.autodesk.com/3dsmax - 3ds Max or http://www.autodesk.com/maya - Maya . Just imagine the fun making your captured 3D creations come to life in Max or Maya, perhaps produce that indie blockbuster film short “The Angry Pumpkin that Ate Miami.”

I had hoped to be in Half Moon Bay California this weekend for the big http://www.miramarevents.com/pumpkinfest/ - Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Festival but was unable to make it. The Half Moon Bay festival has monster pumpkins weighing 1500 pounds and several amazing carved pumpkin art.

Just take your digital camera and snap about 20 photos around the pumpkin then a couple from above. The shinier the pumpkin, the harder time Project Photofly will have. I have found the larger more uniquely patterned, scarred, drawn on, or carved pumpkins the better the result also carved regions work well. The more photos does not necessarily always mean the better results, so start with a smaller number of photos and then add more photos to the scene.

Here is a quick shooting location example for a pumpkin.

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A hardcore CAD geek uses AutoCAD for their illustrations.

Here is one http://www.autodesk.com/photofly - Photofly photo scene test result of a fairly large pumpkin that I carved.

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Here is a smaller non-carved pumpkin in progress as I need to add some manual points on this one to match some unresolved photos.

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I did try a pumpkin suspended by fishing line so I could shoot all 360 degrees of the pumpkin but the pumpkin kept turning so that I idea needs more thinking.

Just have some fun and share what you come up with. It does take some experimentation to find just the right technique.

Cheers,
Shaan