Hi it’s Jacob here and welcome to another iOS #QuickTip.

Today I’m going to teach you how you can scan objects in 3D using an App called Qlone on your iPad.

Here’s how it works.

Okay first of all we’re going to open up the Qlone App, and as soon as you do you’re going to press the Plus button in the bottom corner to create a new scan.

Now at this point you’ll notice there are two different ways of doing scanning.

I’ve made a video about the first method using a printed out mat in the past and that will scan objects for free, but there’s another version now which lets you scan using just the camera.

This requires an In-App Purchase to get credits – so watch this video and you can decide which method works best for you.

I’m going to go ahead and do it without the mat because I want to use just the camera because it’s far more convenient and it lets me scan objects that are bigger than a printed mat would allow should I wish.

Now when I select this option we’re going to have an object ready to scan.

It needs to be in a fairly uncluttered environment with good lighting all around.

We’re going to line up the Augmented Reality dome over that object (the closer you get it the better) and tap the screen when it’s covering your whole object.

When that’s in position you’re going to start your scanning.

Now I mentioned having good lighting earlier – you can turn the flash on in the top left corner which gives that little bit of extra light from the iPad as well.

When you’re ready simply press Record in the top right corner.

Now, as you move your iPad you’ll notice that that dome starts changing colour.

As the blue segments disappear they are areas that have been scanned already, and the trick is to walk around the object tilting your iPad so that every segment gets a scan.

You don’t need to worry about which order you do the scanning in or which sections you do first or later as long as it all gets done it will be great.

That yellow segment shows you the bit you’re currently scanning.

You haven’t got to press any buttons or tap anything, just simply move the iPad around and Qlone will do all the hard work for you.

This will ensure that every angle of your object is covered – all the sides and the top as well.

While I’m doing this I’ll mention that I’ve found Qlone works best on objects that’ve got lots of texture – so perhaps a water bottle might not work so well because it’s quite reflective and quite flat, whereas something like this LEGO model with lots of studs and details does create quite a nice scan at the end.

Now, when you’ve finished it will ask you if you want to add any additional photographs and I would strongly recommend doing this.

It will let you take up to 10 pictures and you can get them the underneath of your object should you wish.

For me though I try and treat these extra pictures as a chance to get a really nice finish on your model.

In my head I imagine that tilting the iPad around the dome gets the 3D shape and the pictures add the texture on top.

I know really Qlone does it all at the same time but that’s how my head likes to work!

So I’m going to line up some photographs of the front, the sides, the top, the back and diagonally looking at it as well.

When I’ve taken all of those pictures, that’s it, the hard work is done.

Now we need to sit back and wait for Qlone to process my 3D model.

This doesn’t take long at all, but what’s happening in the background is that all of your scanned data is being uploaded to a Qlone server.

They’re then taking that and making the 3D model out of it, and then it’s being downloaded back onto your iPad.

When it’s done, just like this, you can then open it up and you can explore that model in all its detail.

Now the model you get will depend on the quality of the scan, the lighting and the object itself so your results may vary, but I’m actually quite happy of this for a complex model.

We’ve got lots of different options here and the button on the top right hand side will let you go in and Edit that scan slightly.

This means that you can reshape slight bits, you can change the colour and the brightness,

But I like turning on the Sharpness.

I think for a model like this out of LEGO where there’s lots of angular parts having that sharpness does make a difference.

Then back on that model overview screen.

I mentioned earlier with the photographs that you can actually get a picture of the underside of your object as well to make a complete 3D model.

Here I don’t have a bottom layer, so if I tilt it up you can see inside the shape!

I don’t mind this too much because the purpose I’m going to use it for doesn’t really require that element.

When I press this button I can view my model in Augmented Reality.

That means I can place it on the table next to my original LEGO model and you’ll see side by side that the quality of that scan is really quite high.

Of course I haven’t got to just use this in the Qlone App, if I come out of this screen and then press Export there’s a variety of different ways you can share it – from an animated GIF to a movie or as the 3D file itself.

I’m going to choose the USDZ format (that’s a common way of sharing Augmented Reality models) and then I’m going to save that into my Files App.

If I jump out of Qlone now and go into Files I can open up that model.

I can preview in AR, I can view the model itself, and I can then take this model into whatever app I like then I can create my own Augmented Reality experiences or 3D modeling using objects I’ve captured in the real world.

Qlone is a great little App and I really would encourage you to give it a go and see what scans you can create, either with a mat or without.

And if you want some more iOS #QuickTips, jump on my Channel down below.

There are hundreds more waiting for you there.

I’ll see you next time!