How passion, curiosity, and a bit of humor shaped one of the world’s biggest reference libraries for digital artists.

A Humble Beginning in the Park

3D.sk was founded back in 2004 with a simple goal — to help artists, 3D modelers, and designers create better, more believable characters.
At that time, everything started with 2D photo references: people standing in “A” or “T” poses under soft diffuse lighting conditions.

We didn’t have a fancy studio or LED walls — we just found a shady spot in the park.
It worked! Within six months, Sony Computer Entertainment Japan reached out and ordered 20 photo sets — 20 “average people” to use as character references.
We burned 800 photos onto a DVD, shipped it to Japan, and proudly received our first big check — $800.
The funny part? The DHL delivery to Japan cost more than we earned. But hey, Sony paid for it — and we quickly realized we were way too cheap.

That moment became our first real business lesson: passion is great, but pricing matters too.

Evolving with Technology: From Photos to Full 3D Scans

Fast forward to 2017, and we took a huge step forward. We started building our own photogrammetry scanning rig — which today is already in its fourth generation.
Since then, we’ve scanned thousands of people for games, movies, and digital productions around the world.

Our scans have been used in titles such as Assassin’s Creed, The Witcher, Grand Theft Auto IV & V, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance, where we scanned over 100 people.
We’re proud to have worked with studios like Rockstar, Ubisoft, 2K, CD Projekt RED, SEGA, and Warhorse Studios.

Capturing Every Expression – Because the Eyes Always Know

The human eye is an incredible tool — it spots every subtle imperfection.
That’s why the number and quality of expressions in facial scanning matter so much.

In standard productions, we usually capture up to 15 FACS expressions.
For projects like Character Creator, we go up to 30,
and for Warhorse Studios, we reached 36 unique expressions to achieve truly lifelike results.

Your work will only be as good as your reference.

— Abe leal

Scanning sessions can be surprisingly intense — physically and mentally.
Some participants even need a short break afterward. One person once stepped outside to “recharge by hugging a tree.”
Others laugh discovering new facial muscles they didn’t know existed — and the next day, their faces feel like they’ve been to the gym.

Beyond Games: Fashion, Collaboration, and Innovation

Our technology doesn’t stop at games.
Recently, we scanned three top fashion models for a virtual fashion show, where users could explore and buy new outfits in VR based on their body size and shape.
It’s an exciting fusion of technology and fashion, pushing online shopping to a whole new level.

Another milestone came through our collaboration with Texturing.xyz — giving birth to the Symbiote project.
By combining our scanning equipment with their Hyperskin 2.0 and Hyperlook X technologies, we now offer AAA-quality hyperrealistic scans at an affordable price.

A New Home for Creative Collaboration

Just two months ago, we moved to a new studio space in Prague — and it’s a huge step forward.
Together with D1Studios.cz, we’ve created a creative hub covering 800 m², featuring a 12×6 m LED wall and Vicon full-body motion capture system.

This setup allows us to handle virtual production, motion capture, and digital content creation all under one roof — seamlessly connecting scanning, animation, and storytelling.

Looking Ahead – Building the Digital Future

As the world moves toward personalized and interactive content, we see enormous potential — from gaming and education to healthcare simulations.
We believe that high-quality scanning will be the foundation of realistic digital avatars, and 3D.sk is ready to be part of this digital future.

After more than 20 years, our passion remains the same:
to help creators, artists, and studios around the world turn imagination into reality — with a touch of humor and a lot of precision.

This year, we were proud to be part of Game Access 2025 — one of the most inspiring gatherings of developers, artists, and visionaries in Central Europe.
Sharing our latest advancements in digital human scanning and meeting so many passionate creators reminded us why we started this journey in the first place — to keep pushing the boundaries of realism and creativity together.

The journey from park photos to digital humans is far from over — and we can’t wait to see where the next chapter takes us.

Author: Daniel, Project Manager at 3D.sk
📍 Prague, Czech Republic

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