The world has become enchanted by 3D in the last year, the added depth, the quality of the image seems to immerse you in whatever you’re watching. Cinema is not the only media to embrace the new technology, it has been used by Sky who broadcasted the Ryder Cup golf event in 3D last year. The release of 3D graphic cards open doors to a 3D internet and any number of possibilities within. The future of gaming is on the verge of change as game developers are now working in 3D.

As the world’s technology speeds on, PinPoint are at the forefront, eager to remain the best at what we do, improving the reality of our visualisations, developing new software, improving our real-time system, updating our hardware, pushing boundaries in every area of our business. So as stereoscopic 3D has become another progressive step for media everywhere, PinPoint is looking for the next.

3D images in motion is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

The popular video game has been around since 1998, when “Tiger Woods ’99″ first made an appearance on the PC and Playstation. Since then it has gone on to boast 15 different titles on many different platforms. None of these titles however, have ever included Augusta National, one of, if not the most famous golf course in the world. That is until March 1st 2011, when Tiger Woods ’12 arrives.
 
With the announcement of the game, Billy Payne, chairman of Augusta National also announced that all the club’s earnings for the game will be going towards the Masters Foundation. This is a newly formed foundation that will “annually invest in development programs for the game of golf worldwide.”

EA Sports, working at Augusta National used “state-of-the art laser scanning technology to replicate every hole featured in the game”. This technology is very similar to the process used by PinPoint Visualisation to create our Pro Greens Product. The greens are scanned to 2cm accuracy so that they can be represented to pinpoint accuracy. This data is then used to not only visualise the greens in our real-time engine, but also to calculate the Putt line., which takes into account not only the weight of the putt but also the speed of the greens, and if deemed necessary wind and other factors.

So once again, the Tiger Woods PGA Tour series is pushing technology forward to create the most realistic golf course visualisations, and PinPoint is right there with them.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

The New Renaissance report from the Comité des Sages (the committee of the wise, a high-level European reflection group) on the digitisation of Europe’s cultural heritage estimates this would cost €100bn but recommends it is paid for out of national budgets. Other recommendations include EU-wide rules for digitising orphan works and ensuring that works covered by copyright but no longer distributed commercially are brought online.

It wants to see the online portal Europeana – an EU-funded non-profit online library – become the “central reference point for European cultural heritage”.

The Comité des Sages report says: “Member states must ensure that all material digitised with public funding is available on the site [Europeana], and bring all their public domain masterpieces into Europeana by 2016.”

According to Nick Poole, chief executive of the Collections Trust, the UK is unusual in that it has no digitisation cultural policy or active investment in place. While the European Commission cannot force member states to follow the report’s recommendations, those that do may be more likely to receive funding.

“In the UK, there has not been the funding available for museums that want to go digital, but if we play our cards right, this report could unlock the potential for funding in the future,” said Poole.

The department for culture is now working on a response to the report.

Neelie Kroes, European Commission vice-president for the digital agenda, has welcomed the report. She said: “Bringing our museums’ and libraries’ collections online not only shows Europe’s rich history and culture but can also usher in new benefits for education, for innovation and for generating new economic activities. It will put high-quality content on the net for many generations.”

The Comité des Sages’ report was produced by Maurice Levy, chief executive of French advertising firm Publicis; Elisabeth Niggermann, director general of the German national library; and Jacques De Decker, general secretary of the Royal Academy of French Language and Literature in Belgium. 

Launched in 2008, Europeana contains more than 15m digitised objects, from maps and photographs to film clips and paintings.

Report calls for digitisation of European culture is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

It could be easily argued that the most well known and recognizable computer generated images in the world are those of Woody, Buzz and all the gang in the Toy Story films.  With all of the technical team at PinPoint having grown up watching the Pixar films it is unsurprising that many of them would cite Pixar as a major influence in them deciding to follow a career in 3D computer animation and modeling.

With the latest installment of the Toy Story franchise Pixar have remained on the cutting edge of technology by releasing the film in full stereoscopic 3D and this is a service that PinPoint are now able to offer their clients too.  By using the latest stereoscopic 3D technology we are able to make the real-time exploration of our virtual environments an even more immersive experience.  The last 25 years of Pixar have provided great wonder and hours of enjoyment for their audience as well as many advances in CGI technology.  At PinPoint we look forward to the next 25 years not only to see what next is to come from Pixar but also to see where else this constantly advancing technology will take us. Who knows perhaps it will be to infinity and beyond.

PinPoint Visualisation wish Pixar Animation a Happy 25th Birthday is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

• Flythroughs
• Aerial Photography
• Golf Course Photography
• Course Guides
• Golf Course Measurement
• Golf Course Surveys
• Scorecards
• Design and Branding Services
• Course Management Software

The stand number is A16 and we will be exhibiting between the 18^th and the 20^th of January. Please pop in and say hello.

PinPoint Visualisation at BTME Harrogate 2011 is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

The new yardage charts and Scorecards will fit in perfectly with new branding and provide souvenir of a days golf at Sweetwoods Park. It’s been great working with the team at Sweetwoods they are a club that are visionary and constantly looking to enhance the visitor experience.

You can visit the new website at www.sweetwoodspark.com

Sweetwoods Park get the PinPoint treatment is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

Now virtual golf simulations are increasingly being used by courses across the UK, USA and Europe to showcase their facilities and even to assist golfers during their game.

The same 3D visualisation and GPS mapping technology is used to create the virtual golf simulations for TV coverage and online videos for Club websites.

The actual environment is photographed and interfaced with mapping references to create a virtual mirror image of the true landscape. The virtual environment contains accurate detail such as buildings, trees and even the type of grass on the greens. The resulting environment allows golf clubs to showcase their facilities to their customers in a way that they can explore and interact with.

Even courses that do not yet exist can be created in this way. Golf course designers have found this tool invaluable in planning and testing new designs before work begins.

The virtual golf simulations can also be used to create cost effective, high quality printed material such as course guides and score cards.

PinPoint has helped pioneer the use of 3D visuals in sports broadcasts and the fly-throughs have become an essential part of golf coverage across the globe. They help the viewer to see the course from a golfer’s point of view, hole by hole.

Virtual Golf Simulations Show Players The Way is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

Two of the world’s leading galleries, Sotheby’s and Phillips de Pury, have launched their own online art gallery.

Visitors to each of the company’s websites can now explore exhibitions, shows or sales previews from anywhere in the world. Sales rooms have been replicated along with exhibits in a virtual environment which accurately mirrors just what the visitor would see if they were there in person. Additional information on the exhibits can be accessed with just the click of a mouse, and online auction bids can also be made.

This ground-breaking use of technology is supported by sound scientific research. A study in the USA by the National Endowment for the Arts has shown that people who participate in the arts through electronic media are three times more likely to go to a gallery than those who never go online or use an electronic device.

To view the full multi-media version of the report please visit www.nea.gov/research/new-media-report.

Sotheby’s and Phillips de Pury have both launched an online art gallery to engage their clients who may otherwise be unable to visit their exhibitions in person, or who want to browse the exhibits and obtain additional information prior to a personal visit or purchase. The research shows that allowing customers this virtual access will actually increase the number of personal visitors to the same exhibitions and galleries.

For more information on how to create your own online art gallery, please contact PinPoint Visualisation.

Art Galleries Embrace New Technology is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

“PinPoint were a great help in the pre opening of the new course here at Heythrop Park. The quality of service and the product they delivered were first class and certainly helped us to promote the course. In particular, the course fly over was a great tool to have to create an impression of how the golf course would not only look but also how it would feel to play. The fact the they were able to get the architect, Tom McKenzie, to narrate the flyover created a very personal feel to the production. It let the viewer feel the passion Tom had for the project. When opening a new venue such as this it is imperative to have the right collateral to promote the venue. This is certainly something that PinPoint helped achieve.”

See the fly through on Heythrop Park’s excellent website and find out more about this superb golf resort.

Heythrop Park Chose PinPoint To Visualise Their New Golf Course is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

Based on photos of the golf course and architects plans of the hotel and clubhouse facility, PinPoint’s expert team of 3D modellers set about recreating the hugely impressive ‘drive in’ to Rockcliffe Hall. This helped the marketing team at Rockcliffe Hall promote their 5 star facility and championship golf course via their website and through a tailored DVD. This DVD was sent as part of a welcome pack to all the people who enquired about this Marc Westonborg designed North East masterpiece.

Wendy Benson, Sales and Marketing Director for the Rockcliffe Hall resort said, “Through working with PinPoint prior to the opening of the hotel and golf course, we were able to use the flythrough to give both our members and customers a real feel of the course and the resort. We also found it a valuable part of our website as a marketing tool.”

Rockcliffe Hall is now fully open, with rave reviews. You can find out more at www.rockcliffehall.com.

North East Masterpiece Uses PinPoint is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

Stoke Park have a long relationship with PinPoint, having used their Hole Location product for many years. Coupled with an excellent commentary from former European tour pro and one of the voices of Sky Sports golf coverage, Ross Macfarlane, who has a great understanding of the course where he plays his golf – PinPoint gives you a leisurely stroll through 27 holes showing how best to play the holes, giving the definitive “course guide” at Stoke Park.

It is planned that this will be used on the new website and a DVD has been produced to further promote the Stoke Park brand. If you have never been lucky enough to play this outstanding golf course then take a look at the Stoke Park website in the coming months to see what to expect from this challenging and most famous of layouts.

Stoke Park Use PinPoint To Visualise Their Historic Course is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

The PinPoint modellers created grandstands and infrastructure that allowed the people at Golf Live to show their clients what the day will entail including Colin Montgomeries “Monty’s Masterclass” and “Pro Celebrity challenge” with tour pros and famous names.

To find out more about this event and get involved visit www.golflive.com.

Golf Live: A New Concept In Golf Exhibition And Experience Call On PinPoint To Help Them “Show The Way” is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

When the changes are some of the most bold and exciting that you’ve ever seen, then it leaves the team at PinPoint with an interesting challenge. How do we do justice to a course that has hosted a Ryder Cup and World Matchplays and to this day, still holds the annual PGA championship? How can we recreate this most famous piece of golfing real estate and make it look anywhere near how good it looks in the ‘turf’? The answer was of course to do what we always do – produce the most lifelike visualisation in the game of golf.

With time and resource plus numerous site surveys and input from the club, the results were stunning. Combining PinPoint fly throughs with real footage from years of tournament history, adding to this a commentary from the master Peter Alliss with his insightful thoughts on a venue that he’s been visiting for over 50 years, then you have a DVD presentation that offers Wentworth members and their guests the perfect guide to the changes on the West Course.

The Wentworth Club sent the DVD out to the members as the centre piece of a brochure explaining the superb changes. The feedback has been excellent.

Wentworth’s West Course Changes Get The PinPoint Touch is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog

The David Jones designed Baobab course sits on the top of a ridge just outside Mombasa with breathtaking views of the Indian ocean one side and miles and miles of Africa on the other.

“This site is simply stunning and it was our job to convey the beauty of the golf course and it’s surrounds”, said the head of PinPoint’s golf division Marcus Lovelock . “The reaction that we had from the owners and the team at Vipingo Ridge when we showed them the fly through was convincing enough to say we’d ticked all the boxes and more”.

The staff at Vipingo will use the DVD to help sell the golf and real estate on this wonderful golfing sanctuary. Vipingo Ridge have also commissioned PinPoint to produce their yardage charts which are a real souvenir of a great place to stay and play golf.

“The only problem that we have encountered with the Vipingo Ridge is getting our surveyors to come home – anyone I have sent out on this project has come home and started saving for one of the few remaining property plots!”, said Stephen Mair Director of Operations at PinPoint.

This site has room to develop with another 18 holes and hotel and beach club resort are all being discussed in future plans. It will be very interesting to see what develops. We hope you’ll see firsthand in PinPoint 3D reality!”.

Vipingo Ridge Golf Resort Choose PinPoint To Help Them Spread The Word is a post from the PinPoint Visualisation Blog