Filming guide
How to film a scan that prints beautifully
No app, no special gear — any phone will do. The whole trick: even light, a subject that holds still, and a couple of slow laps all the way around it. Here's how to nail it the first time.
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1
Light it evenly
Even light is the whole game. A nice overcast day outside is honestly the best there is — soft, and the same from every direction. Steer clear of bright, direct sun and single harsh lamps: they cast hard shadows, and as you circle the object the brightness keeps shifting frame to frame. Set your subject on a plain, uncluttered surface with a little contrast so it stands out.
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2
Pose it and keep it still
The subject can't move a muscle while you film — if it shifts, sags, or flops, the model won't come together. Pose it the way you want it printed. If it needs a little help holding that pose, use the tiniest supports you can and tuck them out of sight — anything big enough to block the camera's view of the object works against you.
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3
Keep it in focus
Blurry frames are wasted frames. Get to know how your phone focuses — tap to lock focus right on the object, and as you move, keep an eye on it staying crisp on your subject and not the background. The sharper every frame, the better your mini.
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4
Circle it slowly — twice
Move around the object in a smooth, unhurried circle, keeping the whole thing in frame and filling most of it. Two slow laps is frequently plenty for a smaller object. Slow and steady always beats fast — quick swings just blur everything.
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5
Catch every angle
As you loop around, vary your height so nothing stays hidden — and don't forget the top of the head and any tucked-away undersides. Whatever the camera never sees, we can't rebuild.
What scans great — and what to steer clear of
Most things scan beautifully. A couple of surfaces just fight any camera.
- Scans great: soft, matte, textured things — stuffed animals, toys, trophies, figurines, a pet holding still, your own face.
- Best to avoid: shiny, glossy, or mirrored surfaces, and clear glass or plastic. Our software rebuilds the 3D shape by matching the same little patch of surface across hundreds of frames — but shine slides around as you move, and see-through things let the camera look straight past them, so there's nothing steady to lock onto. Generally, just skip these. If you really need to scan something glossy, a light, brush-off-later dusting of something matte (baby powder, cornstarch, or chalk) can knock the shine down long enough to capture it.
- Also tricky: very fluffy or wispy things — long fur, feathers, fine hair — and very tiny, lacy, intricate pieces are the hardest to capture cleanly.
- Size-wise: anything you can walk a full circle around, from something in your hand up to something on the floor.
Not sure it'll scan? Send it anyway.
Go ahead and be experimental. If you've got something oddball and you're not sure it'll work, shoot it and send it in — we'll take a real look and tell you straight, yes or no, before anything gets printed. Some videos do get turned down, for all sorts of reasons — but you'll always hear why, and you're welcome to reshoot and send a new one.
You can't really mess this up. We check every scan by hand before we print. If it's not quite enough, we'll tell you exactly what to reshoot — no surprises, no wasted prints.
Got your video? Time to upload.
When your footage is ready, log in to your account and upload your video — that's where the scan begins, and we take it from there.