ReCap Photo is a photogrammetry software available from Autodesk, a software company that offers free Educational Licenses for several of their products. This page provides information about how to download and install the Educational License version of ReCap Photo and how to use that software to create 3D models of real world objects.
Note that ReCap Photo only works with PCs.
An Autodesk account is required to use the ReCap Photo software. Use the following link to set up an account with Autodesk.
Create an Account
A free version of ReCap Photo is available for download and use by students and educators and can be accessed by following these steps:
Log in with your Autodesk account credentials.
Select software version, operating system, and language from the the dropdown menus.
Click Install Now.
Review License and Services Agreement, click I Accept and Install if you agree to the statement.
Autodesk will be sent an email with your Education License information, including a product key and serial number that will be needed to complete your software download and install. If you do not receive this email, check your spam folder as it may have been filtered there.
Once the software has been downloaded, double click to open it and follow prompts to install it on your computer.
When asked, copy the product key and serial number from the Autodesk email.
Click Sign In in the upper righthand corner.
Use your email and password to log-in.
Click Object under the Create 3D section.
Select the photos you want to use for your model and click Open. (To select multiple photos hold down the control key on your keyboard while clicking on photos you want to select.)
The screen will show the photos you have selected. Click the red X to remove any photos you do not want to use (i.e. if you selected a photo of a different object or a blurry photo).
Click Create.
Name your project and click start.
The 3D model will be processed on Autodesk's cloud server. This could take anywhere from a few minutes to a few days depending on the number and size of your photos and the number of requests Autodesk’s system has received.
Check your model progress on the ReCap Dashboard. Your model will appear under My Cloud Drive and show the progress as a percent.
When your model is complete, click the blue arrow in the bottom right corner of the model to download it.
Once downloaded, your model will appear under My Computer and can be opened for editing.
ReCap Photo has built in editing tools that can be used to modify and export your 3D model. Below several tools are highlighted that may be helpful for editing your model.
1. Delete unwanted areas of your model by following the Selection Tool instructions above.
2. Once desired area is selected, use Delete Selected tool (indicated below) or hit Delete key on your keyboard.
1. Delete unwanted areas of your model by following the Selection Tool instructions above.
2. Once desired area is selected, use Delete Selected tool (indicated below) or hit Delete key on your keyboard.
The Slice and Fill tool allows a section of the model to be cut off and the open area that remains can be filled in or left as is.
1. Select Slice and Fill tool (indicated below).
2. Move the plane to the desired part of the model. All areas below the plane will be removed from the model.
3. Click Fill or No Fill.
4. Click apply.
1. Click Export, located at the bottom of the tool list on the left side of the screen.
2. Select File option of image, video, or file.
3. Use Quick Export tab to export model as a file type that can be opened in another editing software, such as Blender or Tinkercad.
4. Use Advance tab to export the 3D model as an OBJ or STL file type that can be used in 3D printing or other modeling software.
5. When exporting as an OBJ or STL file, set the "Target face count" to 10,000 to make the model a manageable size.
6. Click Export.
