#9 - Designing and Creating a New Reality: The Impact of 3D on Industry

Introduction

3D technology has revolutionised many industries, transforming the way we imagine, design, create and interact with the world around us.

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From architecture and engineering to entertainment and manufacturing, 3D has immensely enhanced productivity, improved accuracy and brought ideas to life in countless ways that were previously unimaginable.

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Complementing 3D technology is the rise of several free-to-use and open source 3D applications and tools, making it extremely convenient, easy, accessible and inclusive for the man on the street, that kid in school and the working adult looking for a creative hobby or an expressive outlet.

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The Early Years

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The history of 3D technology dates back to the early 20th century, with the first stereoscopic 3D film premiering in 1922. However, it wasn't until the 1950s and 1960s that 3D technology began to gain widespread popularity, with the release of several 3D movies such as "House of Wax" and "Dial M for Murder."

During this time, 3D technology was primarily used in the entertainment industry, with the majority of 3D content being shown in theatres using stereoscopic projection.

This required the use of special “red and blue” glasses to achieve the 3D effect, and the technology was limited to static images and simple animations. At that time, it was considered groundbreaking.

In the 1980s and 1990s, 3D technology began to evolve with the emergence of computer graphics along with the technological advancement of computer processing power. 3D animation and modelling became more realistic and widely used in films, advertisements and television.

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In the late 1990s, the release of Pixar's Toy Story animated movie marked a major milestone in the history of 3D animation being the first full-length 3D animated film to be produced entirely with computer graphics and brought the novel concept of 3D animation to a wider audience and captured the imagination of many.

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