Where to get resources for your AR project

One of the foundations of our creative process is to focus on creating high quality content. But when you start creating your own projects, achieving this goal can be more difficult than it sounds. At the end of the day, one of the most exciting things about AR is the technology itself, so at the initial stage of introducing the digital layer into the world, it may seem like “enough”.

But as AR technology becomes more normalized, it’s becoming clear that a professional-grade AR experience that really draws people in is associated with a captivating user experience and powerful storytelling, which means using high-quality resources that your users will enjoy interacting with.

It’s not always easy – there is a dizzying array of options, not to mention a wide range of prices and quality levels. So my team and I wrote this article to give you a comprehensive list of our favorite resources to take your AR projects to the next level.

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The best 3D models for your AR projects

Capture users’ attention with explorable 3D content. User experience is key, so let’s take a look at how easy it is to create and import content in Web-AR.Studio, which provides the “wow-effect” for fast loading on mobile devices.

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Taking 3D models for AR

Unsurprisingly, most of the most popular AR apps include 3D models. This is one of the favorite ways to use AR because of the interactivity and immersive nature of the end result – your user is no longer a passive observer of your final design, they can now “meet” your creation in the real world.

In a broader sense, when choosing 3D models, it is important to remember to optimize the project for a wide audience. Remember that people will often access your work from a wide variety of devices and in a wide variety of contexts. High-quality 3D models can be quite heavy, which can affect device performance, which can be a major barrier to entry for users using older smartphones.

Below is a list of websites that we often use to get 3D models for projects. You may need to use a 3D model editor such as Blender (free), Maya, or 3Ds Max to make sure your models work correctly in Web-AR.Studio.

Recommended websites for finding 3D models:

  • Sketchfab
  • Free3D
  • TurboSquid
  • Hum3D
  • CG-trader
  • Adobe Stock
  • Mixamo

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The best 2D elements for your AR projects

These are the elements of your AR project that will make your users crawl and interact with your project, right down to video content, user interface, and fonts. Together, they greatly influence the mood and overall aesthetics of your final product.

When it comes to finding 2D assets, it’s best to work with a well thought out concept. The designer (especially if working alone) may be responsible for combining the target image and the user interface, so it’s cheaper and more efficient to match images to your established artistic vision than experimenting on the fly. Of course, this often means searching for images from a wide variety of sources to import into AR.Studio – you may need to make some changes in Photoshop.

Recommended websites for image searches:

  • Shutterstock
  • Adobe Stock
  • iStock
  • Pexels
  • Bigstock
  • Alamy
  • StockSnap

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Search icons for AR

Using icons is a great way to make your product as accessible as possible. We often create augmented reality projects for a diverse global audience, and the use of icons reduces the use of text and lowers the language barrier for users.

AR Business card || Augmented reality business card

There are many stylish options out there, so it’s worth digging through various sources until you find icons that best match your project’s aesthetic.

Recommended websites for icon search:

  • Flaticon
  • Icons8
  • Iconfinder
  • Flat Icon
  • Icon Archive
  • Freepik
  • Octicons

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Video search for AR

One of the most effective ways to connect with your audience with AR is by using great video.

A good tip is to use the first frame of the video as the tracking image. Starting playback of the rest of the scanned image gives the image a “come to life” effect. It’s awesome, easy to implement, and truly one of the simplest yet visually impressive elements of augmented reality!

AR Postcard || Animated postcard

When it comes to video editing software to help you get the most out of your content – After Effect, Final Cut, Premiere and Lightworks. All packages use different members of Web-AR.Studio.

But remember to check the licensing restrictions (or lack thereof) for the videos you select. Many of the options available are CC licensed, so be sure to support your fellow creators and pay for the license, especially if it’s for a commercial project.

Recommended websites for searching videos:

  • YouTube
  • Vimeo
  • Mazwai
  • Pexels Video
  • Videezy

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The best music for your AR projects

The impact of sound on your augmented reality experience cannot be underestimated. While working with some restrictions on the sound quality of a mobile device, the music you choose, the background ambience, and sound effects go a long way towards immersing users in your project.

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Sound sources for AR

Audio is the instrumental part of your overall AR composition that can really add depth and emotion to the final experience. From immersive sound effects that reward your users for interaction, to background music that shapes the mood, sound adds depth to your project. Therefore, making the right sound decision for your experience can be an important factor in connecting with your end users.

To get the most out of your audio, you may need to use popular editing tools like Logic, Cubase, or Audacity. Optimizing audio is not only about keeping your file size relatively small, but also maximizing the quality to match common mobile devices.

Recommended websites for finding music:

  • Premium Beat
  • AudioJungle
  • AudioBlocks
  • AudioMicro
  • Stockmusic.net
  • Freesound
  • Orange Free Sounds
  • Gamesounds.xyz

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Conclusion

I really hope that the recommendations from me and my team will be useful to you. The options can be confusing, but since many are free, this is a great opportunity to experiment and find what works for your job. Our forum has a fantastic community of augmented reality enthusiasts and Web-AR.Studio users who, along with our support team, are always ready to provide suggestions, feedback and discussions when it comes to finding resources.

Why augmented reality technology (especially WebAR) is now in demand – the opinion of a specialist in this field.

The future behind the augmented reality – Web AR Studio has created a free online constructor (web-ar.studio) for projects with augmented reality, working directly in the browser. To prove this, Mikhail Epifanov, a commercial director of the company, answered a couple of questions that will help to understand the work of AR-technologies.

Process of use.
The variety of augmented reality, WebAR, facilitates the work of both individuals and business companies. There is nothing simpler than to work at once in a browser, without the need to download a mobile application, spend space on your phone and go through a long download phase, especially with average internet speed.

Users only need to open the camera and go to the project by scanning the QR code. Further, he already sees augmented reality, which can be built, for example, from any images (catalogs, calendars, business cards, magnets).

There are practically no smartphone models that do not fit – everyone can enjoy these effects. Viewing and publishing of the projects created by us takes place online, without any programming skills or 3D modeling.

What is the online constructor of WebAR Studio?
Our online constructor for creating WEB augmented reality is a freemium business model (free use) platform with a user-friendly interface where you can create projects that attract new customers. Accordingly, those who sell projects on the platform or implement it in a marketing direction, get a high income from this.

Our platform also offers premium features that include the ability to completely customize projects, including replacing the logo or domain name that is displayed from the top. This is included in the paid services package – all plans can be compared on the site. You have probably heard about such website builders as Tilda or Wix. Here is a similar platform, but for creating sites with augmented reality.

Why should he be noticed?
Created online designer is simple above mentioned Tilda. Users of the platform will not have any problems with creating any AR-content, as project templates and specialized libraries are already built into the constructor. effects, 3D models, video and images.

We’ve developed a simplified learning system, like pop-up windows that will tell you what to do next. We also offer paid monthly training for advanced users. In case of a problem, 24/7 of the technical support is provided – in complicated situations we do not abandon.

And that’s not all. Every month we conduct webinars, where we report on all new implementations on the platform and tell life hack on the creation of this technology.

As a result, a project of even high complexity after hard practice is ready in 8 minutes. The site does not limit the user by the time of use, no need to tie a bank card or something similar. Work without tricks.

Analytics of active projects.
WebAR is easy to implement in launched advertising campaigns. It is not necessary to change marketing materials much for successful implementation. As a result – you can increase the reach of the audience by 2 times and the average time of use up to 2-3 minutes.

For users, an impressive WebAR presentation is a great chance to attract and stop attention on your brand or product. At major exhibitions, our team does so. Representatives of the company direct the smartphone camera and interact with virtual 3D models. They photograph projects, record videos with virtual heroes – all the resulting reposts, thereby greatly increasing the reach of the brand on social networks.

The future is for WebAR.
The world is speeding up, you have to do something that takes less energy.

AR-technologies are still alive, because companies are used to tying to their brand of people through downloading apps. Now users are smart and want to feel the convenience, as well as get the most out of the results. Usually people think that they want to watch AR more. But they don’t want to sacrifice a lot of their time and a part of their phone space. In our case, we have eliminated this shortcoming and now nothing prevents you from getting to know WebAR.

We started with WebAR, then moved on to augmented reality next level. For commercial purposes, we do not disclose details, but it will replace real smartphones. We think about such a scenario and are ready to implement your platform to change the content of devices of the future.

Application of augmented reality (AR) – what are the options?

Why would augmented reality (AR) that works without applications (WebAR) improve sales, advertising, or engagement of almost any product?

Augmented reality is increasingly spreading to the domestic market for goods and services.

Within augmented reality, each object is clickable – it helps to perform various actions. Such simplicity of WebAR technology is a real leap in the world of immersion technology.

Thanks to visualization of the advantages of the product, it is possible to beautifully present the buyer during online shopping. When viewing the user will have the opportunity to repost the given project to his friends and acquaintances in any messenger or social network.

The creators of the project use it in mailing or digital advertising, which gives the availability of information to the client. In addition, WebAR technology is designed for use in the environment – place any object in its current space on any horizontal or vertical surface.

As you can understand, WebAR technology can be used not only in e-commerce online stores, but also in the following areas:

Education. A great way to involve in the learning process through interactivity. For example, when you’re looking for information about planets, you might consider an animated version of them.
Advertizing. It is a new marketing tool for advertising campaigns and a way to create a creative digitalization of the brand (increased conversion and KPI advertising).
Offline business. Excellent implementation for WebAR technology – printing (for example, creation of business cards, catalogs, etc.). The owner of a product or service becomes possible to track the analytics, how many people have moved to the site, participated in promotions or raffles, their detailed behavior. Also, the ability to move your audience from offline to online – all those who have watched augmented reality, you can catch up with targeted advertising.

Entertainment. Introduction of AR-games (which can be created without programming skills on the platform of web-ar.studio), creation of animated postcards.
Feel free to create such projects on the platform of web-ar.studio – it is simple and tasteful!

Introducing augmented reality into museums and exhibitions

At first augmented reality technology evolved at the level of ordinary business cards, when hovering on which animation appeared with different effects and functions. Today, virtual scenes quietly run in real space, helping to decorate any cultural event – from museums to exhibitions.

The motionless painting on the wall can be even more inspiring and surprising to its viewers at the expense of placing a number of additional information, which can be accompanied not only by the text, but also by audio. In some cases it is even possible to make the picture itself «revived» and everything that is on it, began to move.

Visitors receive an ideal AR guide (for example, in the form of museum-handed tablets), which will help to see and learn more in a simplified form.

To create such projects, you do not need to know programming or 3D-design. This helps to save money on development. There are tons of online designers created to create augmented reality specifically for museums and exhibitions. It also saves on specialists in augmented reality.

The traditional approach to the organization will not disappear, but gradual digitalization through WebAR technology will definitely attract the attention of visitors and will push the study of history through the cost of interactivity.

Multimedia is a great choice if you want to improve the work of any cultural event, as people begin to shoot everything in photos and videos, post it on social networks and increase the level of information noise of any event. This combination of effective communication and information acquisition will increase the loyalty of visitors.

In the case of work without an application, access to numerous information is provided through scanning the QR-code of the exhibit of interest. It is enough to do it once – and you can go to different halls and focus on all expositions. In this case, if you want to add audio voice, you do not even need to hire special people. Everything is done in the already available free programs from Google and Yandex (Alice) – write the text and give it to the voice. Later you get an audio file that you can add to the platform.

As you can understand, the future for museums and exhibitions in virtualization.