Step-by-Step Tradigital Sculpture Workflow (Clay Monkey Sculpture Case Study)

In late October, I made a clay monkey sculpture with some 3D print elements embedded in the clay. A “tradigital” sculpture. Below is the process I used to 3D scan it then scale it.  3D scanning a clay sculpture using photogrammetry, is a great and affordable technique you will be able to start to try yourself after reading this post.

1. Prepare Your Traditional Sculpture

• I used air dry clay for this sculpture because I didn’t have immediate access to a kiln at the time.

• The sculpture was made on top of a potters wheel. On a part of my room with a white background. I took about 60 photos turning the wheel a few degrees each time, while holding the camera in place. Once the wheel rotated 360 degrees, I repeated the process at a higher or lower angle. Some recommend a black background. I find white works ok for me. I also didn’t spend too much time preparing the lighting. I find current photogrammetry technology is more forgiving than a few years back. As long at the room has fairly even diffuse lighting without a strong direct light, I usually find the final mesh turns out fine.

• I sometimes add texture markers (white paint or black dots) onto the sculpture to improve the photogrammetry result. In this case I feel I didn’t really need to because it has an obvious solid shape.

2. Digitize with Smartphone Photo scanning

• Tools: iPhone/Android + 3D Zephyr (alternative software available).

• Technique:

  • Capture 60+ photos (80% overlap) in diffused natural light

  • Orbit at 3 heights (eye-level, 45° above, 45° below)

  • Use $20 turntable for perfect rotation

   

• Pro Tip: Disable phone flash to avoid shadow. As of October 2025, there are other techniques out there such as Nerf capture. I find photogrammetry currently works best for my individual sculpture pieces..

3. Generate 3D Digital Model

• Software:

  • Free: Meshroom or 3D Zephyr

• There are many software applications out there to make a mesh using  photogrammetry from photos. I recently have been using a feature inside Adobe’s Substance Sampler. However, they have omitted this useful feature in new versions as of Autumn 2025.

Meshroom is favored by many. However, I find it can stall with the out of the box setting. I prefer the software 3D Zephyr really works well out of the box and it has a simple wizard. It is free if you use less than 50 images. You have to pay for over that but it does give a 30 days free trial for the paid version. I would recommend you to try it. It saved me a lot of time.

A quick watch of a Youtube tutorial like this one will get you started in no time. In not time you will be 3D Scanning A Clay Sculpture Using Photogrammetry.