Think it. Hold it.

While modern technological marvels developed within the
past couple of decades have elevated society to an almost ‘future
fantasy’ state, one particular technology currently gaining a
mainstream foothold will have an impact which I don’t think we can
even begin to estimate. 3-D printing. A hot topic in current press
since the introduction of several consumer grade home 3-D printers
at this years CES, the technology has existed for some time for use
in creating product prototypes. When introduced the technique did
in fact deliver Star Trek-like replicator functionality, turning
abstract three dimensional designs into physical objects. The
reality though was limited to those with the need and resources for
this type of service. As such 3-D printing has had a low profile as
an industrial tool. No more. 3-D printing just ‘got wings’ and boy
is it going to fly. It’s suddenly within the grasp of John Q.
Public and anyone with a little imagination and gumption can make
the leap to designer and creator. I’ve always been creative. Ideas
pop into my head constantly. I relish seeing a problem around the
house that can’t be easily solved and then walking through a Lowe’s
or Home Depot looking at materials totally unrelated to the need I
have in mind and identifying a way to use them in a unique fashion.
There is nothing quite as gratifying as having someone say, “That’s
hopelessly broken”, “That part isn’t available anymore”, or “I
can’t think of anyway to do that” and then turn some product or
material upside down to create a solution. It’s heady stuff. 3-D
printing takes that mental exercise to a whole new level. Imagine
almost any idea that needs a physical “something” to create a
unique functionality. If you can visualize it, you can now turn to
relatively simple design tools and create a 3-D model of what you
need. With the click of a mouse you can then upload your design to
an online 3-D print company and in a few days your abstract concept
is delivered by UPS to your waiting hands. As a photographer who
derives a tremendous high from seeing a subject, visualizing an
image, and then creating a wonderful photograph this new creative
process has tremendous familiarity and irresistible appeal. While I
realize that end users far out number those looking to become
designers, if you even think for a moment, “This might be cool, I
do have an idea” I encourage you to jump on board. The first step
is to grab a pencil and paper and doodle a little. Force yourself
to actually invest some time and energy roughly planning the design
that has loosely been floating in the ether of your mind. Once
you’re that far, you’re ready to begin 3-D designing. There are
suddenly a number of 3-D CAD (computer assisted design) programs
out there, but before you invest any serious money in software try
this online solution I found both entertaining and seriously
useful: Tinkercad.com. For a monthly subscription fee of around $20
you can design and save designs for up to 100 objects (canceling
your subscription at anytime). The website has a number of clever
tutorials you ‘play’ that teach you the fundamentals of 3-D design
and the toolset of the Tinkercad workspace. It only took me about
30 minutes before I couldn’t resist jumping in and creating my own
design. You’ll keep learning as you progress but it’s a relatively
shallow learning curve compared to a full blown 3-D CAD program.
You can rotate you object in three dimensions and the workspace
includes a fairly comprehensive inventory of predefined ‘building
blocks’ you can use to quickly bring your concept into shape, even
down to using numbers and letters as physical shapes within your
design. Once you are happy with your design, you can either have
Tinkercad send your file to an internet 3-D printing vendor (4
currently available to choose from) or download your object file so
you can upload it to the print vendor of your choice. The company I
tried initially was based in Europe and turned out to be much more
expensive (even beyond the small increased shipping costs) than the
company I found more recently here in the US (Cubify.com). Cubify
happens to be one of the companies making the latest generation of
consumer grade home printers. If you upload files to them for
printing they output on a commercial grade device. OK, ok, I know
this is a photography blog. 3-D printing is an exciting idea but is
this the appropriate forum for a 3-D printing post. Hell yes! One
of the first serious ideas to pop into my mind was a solution to
get away from a camera strap when using my new Nikon 1 V2 camera. I
HATE camera straps. Even the over-one-shoulder designs with sliding
attachment points (though decent) are still restrictive straps. My
vision was something I could wear on my waist. As I did my pencil
and paper doodle, I saw a fairly simple cradle, holding the camera
body vertically with a tensioned sliding clasp. The basic design
evolved quickly and with a little trial and error (you have to be
really careful with dimemsions if you want any degree of fit and
finish) I’ve now got something very unique and functional.

The IMAGEMA Design V2 Camera
Cradle

Once I nailed the camera cradle, I immediately thought of another opportunity to
help manage the Nikon 1 lenses. Both designs are belt worn and
leave my hands free and shoulders unweighted. The lens cradle holds
two lenses and includes a slot to hold a lens cap. I’m totally
psyched.

The IMAGEMA Design V2 Lens
Cradle

While the goal of today’s post is to inspire readers to explore the 3-D design
technology for their own use, I will be placing the Nikon 1 cradles
in my website store. Each order will be custom printed and
finished. Anyone interested should contact me by email to
mark@imagema.com. In the meantime I’m betting there is someone out
there scratching their head and doing some creative thinking right
this moment. One word of caution… it’s a little addictive. If you
decide to jump in there is one device I strongly recommend you
purchase: a digital caliper for making precise measurements. Since
the printing process currently supports a resolution down to tenths
of a millimeter, you’ll quickly discover that precise measurement
is critical to a finished design. You can get a digital caliper for
around $20-35 so it won’t break the bank and will make successful
design that much simpler. Enjoy and let me know about your designs!

Mark Alberhasky is a Nikon Mentor for the Mentor Series Worldwide Photo Treks.

Join him as he travels and share his enthusiasm for photography and learning.

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