Quick Guide to Navigating thru a Photosynth "Synth
Trip Start
Unknown
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Trip End
Ongoing
Seattle, Washington
Thursday, February 26, 2009
by swami_worldtraveler
26-FEB-2009
First, WHAT IS PHOTOSYNTH?... Well, it's only the coolest FREE web-base program to compile 2D photos into a navigable 3D environment! This result is called a "synth."
Photosynth is a visual thing, so words alone fall way short in explaining the concept and the experience. For a great introduction, check out this excellent short video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHzw98qt5Lo (Note: the Photosynth interface has changed slightly.)
So, HOW DO YOU NAVIGATE A SYNTH?... Well, it's really quite easy with a few hints and a lot of playing around:)
There are several ways to get around in a synth...
- You can hit SPACEBAR/Shift+SPACEBAR for a quick tour. Click repeatedly.
- You can click-n-drag with the mouse, or just click a photo.
- You can use the keyboard cursor arrows and other keys. (See end of this guide for a list of keyboard shortcuts.)
- You can click the onscreen navigation icons.
- Plus, you can use the tool group in the upper-right of the interface.
Using the mouse to click-n-drag is pretty intuitive: just drag around! Sometimes this doesn't always get you everywhere you can go. In this case, use the onscreen navigation icons to move left/right, up/down, and in/out. The keyboard cursor arrows, plus 'u' and 'j' do the same. Lastly, don't miss the tool group in the upper-right. Hold the mouse over an icon to get a description, plus the keyboard shortcut. Click the PLAY/PAUSE (1) icon for an automatic, guided tour, or click the 3D GROUP (m) icon to cycle thru connected photo groups. Lastly, click the GRID VIEW (~) icon to display all the images in their groups. Click-n-drag, or use Spacebar/Shift+Spacebar to review photos. Single-click photo to select and zoom to. Double-click to enter the 3D environment centered on that photo. Be sure to use '+' and '-' to zoom in and out (some of the photos can be very hi-resolution!). Oh yeah, and for the maximum experience, go FULL-SCREEN (f) using the icon in the lower-right.
And here are a couple advanced controls. If you see a faint donut in the center of the screen, click-n-drag it to orbit around. Hold the Ctrl key at the same time for a cool surprise! Or just hold the Ctrl key down at any time (even while clicking anywhere).
OK, it's a synthy world, so off you! Have fun...
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Excerpt from Photosynth Guide v7.pdf
Viewer keyboard shortcuts
Try these keystrokes and mouse actions to get the most out of the Photosynth viewing experience.
Zooming and Neighbors:
Scroll wheel
Scrolling the mouse wheel zooms you in or out. The zooming is centered around your current mouse position.
+ or -
Zoom in or out around the center of the window.
← or →
Move left or right to a neighboring photo, when one is available
↑or ↓
Move inwards or outwards to a neighboring photo, when one is available
u or j
Move up or down to a neighboring photo, when one is available
Tours and History:
Spacebar
Go to next photo in the spatial tour.
Shift-spacebar
Go to previous photo in the spatial tour.
. (period)
Go to next photo in alphabetical order by filename. (Depending on your camera, this is usually shooting order.)
, (comma)
Go to previous photo in alphabetical order by filename.
Z
Go to the last image you were on. (Like Back in a Web browser.)
Z
Undo z. (Like Forward in a Web browser.)
Fun with the Point Cloud:
Ctrl
Holding the control key down temporarily hides all photos allowing you to see the point cloud in all its glory. Dragging a halo with the control button down lets you spin around the entire point cloud. Try it!
P
Switches among three modes: points, images, both
Useful Shortcuts:
Enter
Center the current image
F
Toggle full-screen
~
Toggle between 2D and 3D
M
Go to the next 3D group in the synth
Y
Toggles world-up verses image-up. This is useful when Photosynth has trouble working out which way is up.
Free Navigation (Only in 3D view):
A
Strafe left
D
Strafe right
W
Move forward
S
Move backward
E
Move up
C
Move down
L
Rotate left
'
Rotate right
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LINKS:
Websites:
- Swami's Photosynth webpage!:
http://photosynth.net/userprofilepage.aspx?user=swami_worldtraveler
- Photosynth homepage:
http://photosynth.net
- Photosynth on Live Labs:
http://livelabs.com/photosynth
- Microsoft Live Labs:
http://livelabs.com
- Wikipedia for Photosynth:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynth
Video:
- Photosynth on CSI!:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHzw98qt5Lo
- Photosynth explained by Microsoft Live Labs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECNtHJevjmA
- Photosynth demo by Microsoft Live Labs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXMvnXNDXhk
- Photosynth demo at TED by Blaise Aguera y Arcas of Microsoft Live Labs
(includes associated Seadragon technology to handle massive data sets):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-DqZ8jAmv0
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