Standfor PLY export messed up in version 1.4.2 build 6205

[bisenberger]

In previous versions of Photoscan I could could export a PLY and import it into Rhino with vertex colors. When I try to import a PLY exported with the new version of Photoscan nothing shows up. I tried with binary export check box on and off.

I was able to import a current PhotoScan PLY into ZBrush, but the vertex colors are a mess.
Here is what it looks like in ZBrush:


and here is what it looks line in PhotoScan:

[Alexey Pasumansky]

Hello Bill,

What is the color bit depth of the input images? Also are you observing this effect only on vertex colors or with the texture as well?

[bisenberger]

Hi Alexey,
They are DNG images.

 ZBrush was the only software that could read the PLY. With Rhino and 3D Coat nothing appeared.

[Alexey Pasumansky]

Hello Bill,

Probably ZBrush cannot work properly with 16-bit vertex colors? Currently in PhotoScan the color bit depths is defined by the bit depths of the source for the mesh generation. So if DNG data is 16-bit, then the vertex colors would be also 16-bit.

[Shadow]

Hello,

I got the same issue here with 16-bit TIFF images. Using 16-bit colors for vertex when we use 16-bit images as input does make sense, but it would be nice to have the choice of exporting as 8-bit if needed.

This would be especially useful when exporting from Photoscan to Sketchfab : right now, it seems that Sketchfab does not support 16-bit vertex colors. Cloud points are therefore displayed with wrong colors. (I'll ask them if they can do something about it on their side).

[Alexey Pasumansky]

Thanks for additional information.

Then it seems really reasonable to allow 8-bit export for the source 16-bit color data (point cloud and mesh vertex colors). We'll try to implement that in the next update.

[Shadow]

Thanks a lot ! 

[yamahiro]

Hello, Alexey,

"Then it seems really reasonable to allow 8-bit export for the source 16-bit color data (point cloud and mesh vertex colors). We'll try to implement that in the next update."

Has this issue been resolved?

I use Photoscan pro version 1.4.3 build 6529 (21 July 2018) ,  but problem is occurring as before.

[Alexey Pasumansky]

Hello yamahiro,

The upload of vertex colors to Sketchfab should be fixed in the latest update.

As for the PLY export itself, for now we have decided to keep the original colors without any modification in this format, since it is practically the only option to same 16-bit colors. If you do not care about the colors you can disable vertex colors export or use other mesh format in order to convert the colors to 8-bit.