To see more of the day to day happenings at sample & hold please head over to Instagram, otherwise more news below.
January 2023
Shoreditch Town Hall’s moto is ‘more light, more power’ and we have obeyed! More information to follow.
December 2020
We have moved. sample & hold is excited to announced we have moved down the block into a toilet in Shoreditch Town Hall! For those of you that visited us in Dalston you know it will never be repeated as a unique location for a 3D scanning studio however our new place has its querks and we will look forward to welcoming you soon. Our head scanner and object scanning robot (more soon!) will be located in the main studio known as the Ladies Powder Room and then our body scanner will be located just around the corner/through the building in the rather splendid photographic studio run by our good friends Time Based Arts.
July 2020
We worked with Tom Hingston Studio to 3D scan and prepare data for their excellent artwork for Jehnny Beth’s new album and single. Check out the film here - https://www.hingston.net/work/jehnny-beth/ and an interview with Tom here - https://www.stashmedia.tv/jehnny-beth-we-sin-together-hingston-studio/
June 2020
Excellent to see so much great work on Optical Art’s website. We played a small part in the film ‘X-Extrusion’ for which we 3D scanned the interior of Syon House and delivered a digital model on which their VFX work could be besed. See the film here - https://opticalarts.studio/x-extrusions/
September 2019
At SIGGRAPH 2019, Vicon demonstrated the effortless power and accessibility of our Shōgun VFX software platform, including the upcoming release of Shōgun 1.3. At booth #741, show attendees were invited to direct their own full performance virtual production shoot, live in real-time, all within Epic's Unreal Engine. We worked with Vicon to optimise the characters for real time MoCap using our custom rigging technology.
July 2019
Exciting things happening - a new website up for our ALICE Ecosystem just in time for Siggraph - lots to do and lots more details to be added soon. In the meantime please drop by the Vicon booth to see how our rigging technology is helping them run facial motion capture sessions in real time on the show floor.
July 2018
Kate Moss used our 3D scanning expertise to help realise her vision for 'adidas PROUDER', a cultural call to action curated by Fat Tony in aid of the Albert Kennedy Trust. Featuring a roll call of global creators from the LGBTQ+ community and allies including Elton John, Pharrell, Marc Jacobs, Edward Enninful, David Beckham, Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell, each participant re-imagines the iconic adidas Samba soccer shoes that were first released by the sporting brand in the 1950s
June 2018
Always amazed at the speed some of these projects get turned around - 3D head scan on the Monday, live on national TV on Saturday.
April 2018
Many thanks to the Mill for hosting us last week - we talked about our Digital Human service ALICE including the capture technology, processing pipeline and then a live demo running in Unreal with real time motion capture using an iPhone X.
January 2018
We have been having some fun in the studio researching 3D capture methods for dynamic events. We are documenting a lot of it on our Instagram feed but thought it would be interesting for people to explore some of the 3D results. Above is a 'constellation' created by polystyrene foam particles expelled from a burst balloon. Enjoy.
October 2017
Earlier in the year we had the pleasure of working with photographer Dan Tobin Smith to help him realise a vision for the new Absolut vodka campaign. Dan likes to work 'in camera' as much as possible so we were tasked with creating a custom digital rock and crystal model which could then be 3D printed ready for photography. We 3D scanned a number of rock specimens to capture accurate surface details and then used some 3D trickery to fracture the rock and grow crystalline structures which would encase the vodka bottle.
https://www.absolut.com/hk/products/absolut-raw/
http://www.dantobinsmith.com/commissions/absolutraw/
October 2017
A really great film by Time Based Arts. Our contribution was a high resolution head 3D scan, one of so many details in such an absorbing visual experience.
September 2017
At the end of last year we worked with Smoke & Mirrors to provide 3D head scanning and expression capture for an exciting project - Virtual Automated Dialogue Replacement: One Performance, Multiple Languages. The idea behind VADR is to shoot in one language, and then be able to adapt it to any other language with the original actors. Commercials can then be used in multiple territories with little additional overheads to the client. To do this, Smoke & Mirrors developed a small-scale pipeline to be able to rapidly adapt a chosen spot within an average of three weeks. sample & hold provided a high resolution 3D face scan and multiple blend shapes for the chosen characters on location in Portugal.
http://www.smoke-mirrors.com/motion/vadr/
September 2017
Always fun to see the creative results from a head 3D scanning session - The Horrors new album V is out this week.
http://www.thehorrors.co.uk/
February 2017
We played a very small part in the technical workflow for this project providing 3D scans of the two main characters in Sainsbury's 'The Greatest Gifts' Christmas adverts. Great job Passion Pictures and Mackinnon and Saunders.
January 2017
Last year we helped Konami transform the realism of their star players using our 3D scanning technology for the release of PES 2017. We flew to Barcelona with our custom cross polarised photogrammetry scanning rig and captured the full Barcelona squad in a hour block each side of their morning training session.
January 2017
Towards the end of last year we worked with Tom Hingston and RSA films on their project 'The Spirit of Ecstasy for Rolls Royce Motor Cars. We provided full colour body 3D scans and high resolution structured light 3D scans of scale collectible cars which were used to drive particle simulations. Watch the stunning results here.
September 2016
This Summer we were asked by the ITV production company Possessed to develop a very particular 3D scanning solution for their Pilot game show 'spotless'. The show is 'set against a backdrop of immaculate white rooms, in which two couples compete in fiendish wet paint covered games where their mission is to remain absolutely spotless. After every game the iconic Spotless Scanner determines exactly how "spotless" the players really are by using never-before-seen 3D scanning technology that can detect a dot of paint less than 1 millimetre in circumference. High-tech meets high drama as the scanner will reveal the winners, and literally dish the dirt.'
Our challenge was to deliver a full colour 3D scanning solution which could capture and process a full body scan and then crutch this data using a specially developed workflow to provide statistical results of paint coverage - all to a 30min deadline. Tough, but we delivered; "sample & hold were incredible to work with on Spotless. Their professionalism and dedication at every step of the project was outstanding - we simply couldn't have done the show without them" Simon Crossley, Head of Production at Possessed.
August 2016
Earlier in the year we 3D scanned Nike's Mercurial SuperflyV football boot and delivered an animation ready asset to pioneering creative agency Intro. A super-powered metaphor aligning the acceleration of Ronaldo & Formula 1. The flat-out screaming Formula 1 engine blows the car apart in a moment of axonometric beauty, reconstructing elegantly as the innovative Mercurial speed system boot components. Released across digital and retail. 6m hits on YouTube in the first week.
Click for more information - http://www.intro-uk.com/work/mercurial-superflyv/
November 2015
Last winter we helped make the magic happen providing head and body 3D scanning services at various locations around London and production HQ at Longcross Studios. Looking forward to seeing more as the release gets nearer.
November 2015
For the cover of Visionist's new album 'safe' photographer Daniel Sannwald returned to sample & hold for more colour 3D scanning. Our 40 camera photogrammtery rig captures each head 3D scan with cross-polarized flash lights, providing a super diffuse colour texture map from which the creative process starts.
Daniel Sannwald directed/photographer for Visionist, post by Mathmatic
November 2015
We were terrified to be working on this project back in the Autumn of 2014. We provided full colour head scans on location at variety of country estates and manor houses. Coming to a screen near you February 2016
November 2015
'Persona Synthetics' campaign wins double Gold at the Media Week Awards - the strategy was a runaway success, earning the first episode of Humans a 23% audience share, making it Channel 4’s highest ranking for originated drama in 23 years. Exciting to contribute a small part to such a progressive project.
November 2015
On 16th of September 2015, Ken Buckley broke the British Land Speed Record with 69 MPH in the ARION1 Land Speed Bicycle. Later that week Ken broke his own record again with a staggering 75 MPH!
sample & hold sponsored the record breaking ARION1 project and this week the latest team from Liverpool were back in our London studio capturing 3D scans for the next generation ARION2. To follow how they will use this data to design a new, improved aerodynamic shell follow the link - https://www.facebook.com/ulvteam
July 3rd, 2015
Channel 4's current si-fi series Humans is now on its third episode - with an all star cast, the drama series is set in a parallel present where the latest must have gadget for a busy family is a Synth - a life like Humanoid 'not just an appliance but a deeply personal lifestyle choice'.
To promote the new TV series, the collaborative effort of 4Creative, Fuse, OMD, eBay and Microsoft created a ‘teaser’ campaign using a pseudo brand, Persona Synthetics, that manufactures the ‘Synths’ as if the company were actually about to launch a range of these synthetics beings. As soon as it launched, people began to ask “what are these ‘synths’, and are they real?!”
We were approached to help great the original Synth asset on which the interactive campaign was based - we captured a full data set for Sally and Charlie, a structured light body 3D scan, high resolution photogrammetry head and hand 3D scans and then lastly a full cross polarised photography shoot.
Read more about the campaign and the show using the following links -
June 18th, 2015
Earlier in the year we traveled up to visit Robin McLean of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards at Edinburgh Castle, home to the Napoleonic Eagle standard of the 45th. We were commissioned by The Waterloo 200 Project to 3D scan the Eagle so that a replica could be made to mark the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo. We used a combination of structured light and photogrammetry 3D scanning to capture an accurate digital representation of the object, overcoming potential difficulties posed by the highly reflective nature of the gilded bronze finish. From here our data was 3D printed by iMakr and then a 23.5 carat gold leaf finish was applied by Hare & Humphreys.
The finished Eagles will be carried with The New Waterloo Dispatch from the commemorations on the battlefield, retracing their historic steps to their home in the room at today’s East India Club, St. James's Square exactly 200 years to the day, 21st June 2015
June 17th, 2015
Time for some long overdue updates... Last autumn we did some 3D scanning for the talented ULV Team at Liverpool University who are in the process of engineering the ARION1 Land Speed Bicycle. The ARION1 will be attempting to break the land speed record for fastest human powered vehicle in September 2015. sample & hold 3D scanned the three riders who will be piloting the Bicycle, each in eight positions throughout a single pedal stroke. This data was then consolidated and gave the team very precise anatomical information which was used during the design of an aerodynamic shell for the bicycle, resulting in a shape which is both aerodynamically efficient and gives the rider (just) enough room to pedal in comfort. We are looking forward to cheering the team on in September.
November 17th, 2014
Last month we jumped on a plane to Munich and 3D scanned Mario Götze for an upcoming Konami PES 2015 launch trailer - here is a sneak preview from behind the scenes of the shooting day.
November 17th, 2014
Earlier in the year we traveled to LA and 3D scanned 14 people which were then developed into characters for the recently released Xbox One game Forza Horizon 2. As well as capturing and process the 3D scan data and cross polarised reference photography we also managed the character creation of 7 characters including the lead pair. The game has recieved great reviews and we were happy to play a small part in this success.
October 09, 2014
Robert Harris was the mastermind behind the CG work on the cult favorite Kids TV program 'Knightmare' - a former set designer, Robert started The Travelling Matte Company and created advanced computer graphic environments using a Spaceward SuperNova computer, all in 1987. When Robert asked us to 3D scan him for a personal project we were more than happy to oblige and he has been kind enough to share the results. Free to download here.
September 17, 2014
Daniel Sannwald photographs Georgia May Jagger in 'Beauty' for Garage magazine, Fall/Winter 2014. We produced high resolution 3D scans using our instant capture camera array which Daniel used as the basis for these hyper real images.
September 16, 2014
To launch Nicolas Ghesquière’s debut collection Louis Vuitton hosted exhibitions in Shanghai and Tokyo displaying iconic vintage bags, footwear and accessories worn by chic, minimalist mannequins. To produce the mannequins we 3D scanned model Marte Mei van Haaster in Paris and then delivered six different poses which were then CNC machined to create the final pieces. More images here.
September 15, 2014
Fashion designer Rick Owens was photographed at our studio in London for Wallpaper magazine; we had 3D scanned a clay sculpture of Rick by the artist Doug Jennings before it was enlarged into a 25ft sculpture to be placed above Selfridges' entrance during his current show at the store. Photograph by Tim Gutt.
August 21, 2014
sample & hold provided body, head and prop 3D scanning for Disney's upcoming film 'Into The Woods' directed by Rob Marshall. Teaser trailer above.
July 31, 2014
A project we worked on for Lola, providing 3D scanning and character creation services - one of the last projects shot on location at the old BBC center in Shepherds Bush.
More info - http://www.lola-post.com
July 08, 2014
Last year we 3D scanned a selection of bronze sculptures by the artist Bushra Fakhoury. One of these works has since been scaled up to create a new 9 meter tall work 'Dunamis' which was installed on Park Lane, London. The 3D scan was used to CNC machine the scaled up sculpture as well as helping a structural engineer design the internal steel support structure.
More information here - http://www.bfakhoury.com/dunamis
June 04, 2014
A quick example of a full colour head 3D scan we captured for the talented Greg Barth for an upcoming film project. Looking forward to seeing the results.
Greg's website is well worth a look - http://www.gregbarth.tv/
Historic Royal Palaces came to us with a challenge - to 3D scan and reproduce King Henry VIII's crown. It is the type of object that gives 3D scan operators nightmares, a complex, shiny gold structure and a lot of gem stones. After some testing we used a combination of our structured light 3D scanner and polarised photogrammtery to capture the raw data. This was then cleaned up and sent to a 3rd Party for 3D printing.
Click on the video above to watch a short film detailing the process and click on the following link to download the 3D model for yourself. www.thingiverse.com/HistoricRoyalPalaces
February 27, 2014
A great article on fxguide featuring fantastic work by the team at Realise in London. We provided an inital body 3D scan from which Scott Eaton designed the prosthetics and then further on set 3D scans of the Ogre suit whilst shooting.
http://www.fxguide.com/featured/how-to-make-a-loveable-ogre-in-7-easy-steps/
February 05, 2014
We are just back from a trip to Los Angeles - we can't yet say why, but in was a great trip and now we are hard at work processing the 3D scan data. More to come once we have the OK from the powers that be...
December 14, 2013
Atticus is an interactive installation that allows you to put yourself inside someone else’s skin. What does it feel like to look into the mirror and see someone else looking back at you? How would you view yourself as a person of a different age, race or gender?
Created by Southbank Centre for the Festival Of Neighbourhood, Atticus combines innovative face scanning and 3D character modelling to create photorealistic avatars of three of our neighbours: a member of staff; a midwife from Guys and St. Thomas’ and a young person from community group SE1 United. Gaze into Atticus and see another person looking back at you, mirroring your every movement.
sample & hold provided 3D scanning and character creation services providing three photo-realistic characters optimised for a real time rendering and animation environment.