Page not found – Make iconic mountains of paper! https://www.papercraftmountains.com Make iconic mountains of paper! Sat, 21 Nov 2020 21:13:45 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Papercraft_Mountains_icon-150x150.jpg Page not found – Make iconic mountains of paper! https://www.papercraftmountains.com 32 32 Minimalist Matterhorn https://www.papercraftmountains.com/minimalist-matterhorn/ Sat, 21 Nov 2020 20:17:51 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=703 Our minimalist Matterhorn model kits: extra colorful, and super easy to make. They’re pre-cut, so all you have to do is to fold, glue and enjoy.

You can get the minimalist Matterhorn kits from our Etsy shop.

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Uluru – Easy https://www.papercraftmountains.com/uluru-easy/ Tue, 16 Jun 2020 20:31:35 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=698 This papercraft model is a simplified version of our detailed Uluru model. It is designed to be super easy to assemble – in less than an hour, you can finish your own model and marvel at the beauty of this truly unique mountain. All you need are glue and scissors. Or, if you choose the pre-cut version, not even scissors! The model is textured with a high-resolution satellite image, which really brings out all of Uluru’s intricate features.

You can get this model from our Etsy shop.

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Uluru https://www.papercraftmountains.com/uluru/ Sun, 12 Nov 2017 21:27:18 +0000 http://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=183

Get the Uluru model on Etsy.

Uluru, the famous monolith in Australia’s red centre, is one of the most recognisable landmarks of the continent. It has long held a special significance for Australia’s Aboriginal people, and anyone who lays eyes on this spectacular solitary rock will understand why.

Building this papercraft model is a great way to appreciate the shape of Uluru, which is surprisingly complex compared to the classic sunset view.

By using accurate elevation data from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, we were able to capture many of Uluru’s intricate details. We built more than fifteen prototypes during development to make sure that the model is easy to build despite the complicated topography.

This model is textured with a beautiful satellite image and printed on high-quality paper, with cut and fold lines on the back.

Features

  • Height x Width x Depth (mm): 26 x 180 x 129
  • Scale 1:25,000 (scale bar printed on the side)
  • Flaps numbered in recommended order of assembly
  • 172 triangles in 13 parts
  • 4 reinforced wall elements
  • Instructions illustrated with helpful photos.

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All Models https://www.papercraftmountains.com/all-models/ Mon, 31 Jul 2017 21:53:51 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=563
Our minimalist Matterhorn model kits: extra colorful, and super easy to make. Read more
This papercraft model is a simplified version of our detailed Uluru model. It is designed to be super easy to assemble Read more
Uluru, the famous monolith in Australia's red centre, is one of the most recognisable landmarks of the continent. Read more
Turn a postcard into a scale 3D model of the most photographed peak in the world. Read more
1:60,000 scale paper model of the famous Mount St. Helens post the 1980 eruption. Read more
Mount Fuji is one of the classic Japanese motifs. Read more
Our original 'classic' Matterhorn model. Read more

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Our Story https://www.papercraftmountains.com/554-2/ Mon, 31 Jul 2017 21:30:49 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=554 ]]> We love maps and mountains, and the process of turning them into 3D paper models allows us to explore both in great detail. It’s a really unique and fun experience to turn a flat sheet of paper into a mountain sculpture!

We hope you’ll enjoy building our mountains as much as we love developing them!

How did we come to make “papercraft mountains”?

Jake: I was following Daniel Huffman’s tutorial on generating shaded reliefs using 3D rendering software, and slightly adapted the approach by first converting the DEMs to triangulated irregular networks before rendering them. The faceted appearance reminded me of the low-poly papercraft models that have been in vogue for a while, and I thought it might be fun to build a terrain model out of paper.

Johann: In June 2015 as we were cycling over the hills of Belgium we discussed what the qualities of such a model would have to be to be considered “optimal”. When we returned home to Brussels and Stuttgart we both started to adapt existing triangulation algorithms for this specific problem. In the end I came up with a solution that strikes a good balance between terrain fidelity and having a small number of triangles, avoiding difficult-to-assemble thin and tiny triangles as much as possible. My background in numerical optimisation certainly came in handy for this.
We presented the first results at the ICA Mountain Cartography Workshop in April 2016 in the beautiful mountains of Berchtesgaden, Germany and received a lot of very encouraging feedback. Since then we have been working on new models – the Matterhorn, Mount Fuji and Mount St. Helens are already available, Uluru is currently in the works.

How do we make new papercraft mountains?

Creating these mountain sculptures is a surprisingly involved process!

First we identify the mountain we want to scale (no pun intended) and search for the terrain data and license high quality aerial images to use as a texture. Jake’s experience with GIS (geographic information systems) software is really helpful for this!

Then we make a reduced representation of the terrain using triangles. We developed a software that helps us optimise the layout so that we get the highest fidelity model for a given complexity of the model. We really strive to make models that give the best result for the time you put into building them!

When the 3D model looks good we unfold it to make a printable template. Our objective here is to have parts that are easy to assemble. We typically make 3-5 test builds to determine a good construction order and tweak the layout a bit, like numbering the glue tabs in the best order of assembly.

The end result is a paper layout to build a mountain with just a craft knife or scissors and a bit of glue! The aesthetic is a beautiful blend of that hot low-poly faceted look and highly detailed textures that is really fascinating to build and look at!

If you are interested to learn more about the details of our method to create papercraft mountains, head on over here to download our paper.

Jake + Johann

Models in hand we reach the mountain cartography workshop in the middle of the night.

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Our Method for Creating Papercraft Mountains https://www.papercraftmountains.com/our-method-for-creating-papercraft-mountains/ Wed, 19 Jul 2017 21:04:19 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=541 ]]> Would you like to learn more about our method for creating papercraft raised relief maps from digital elevation data? We wrote a paper describing the method that has been included in the proceedings of the 10th Mountain Cartography Workshop. You will find out

  • what makes a “good” mesh for papercrafting,
  • how we optimise the underlying triangulated irregular network (TIN) to obtain such meshes,
  • how our results compare to those of other common methods (regular grid, greedy, QSLIM), and
  • tips for unfolding and building the final model.

You can download the paper here.

Comparison of the triangle meshes generated using different existing algorithms and the proposed method, showing an oblique and a top-down view.

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Matterhorn on a postcard https://www.papercraftmountains.com/matterhorn-on-a-postcard/ Mon, 15 May 2017 23:56:14 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=526

This model is now sold out.

Features

  • Height x Width x Depth (mm): 40 x 50 x 133
  • Scale 1:40,000 (scale bar printed on the side)
  • Flaps numbered in recommended order of assembly
  • ~30 triangles in 5 parts
  • 4 wall elements
  • Standard postcard

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Mount St. Helens https://www.papercraftmountains.com/mount-st-helens/ Mon, 01 May 2017 00:00:18 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=507

Get the Mount St Helens model on Etsy.

Features

  • Height x Width x Depth (mm): 37 x 148 x 199
  • Scale 1:60,000 (scale bar printed on the side)
  • Flaps numbered in recommended order of assembly
  • 100 triangles in 10 parts
  • 4 reinforced wall elements
  • Instructions illustrated with helpful photos.
  • Suitable for A4 and Letter size paper

In 1980, a cataclysmic eruption of Mount Saint Helens displaced 3 km³ of rock and soil, destroying the peak of the mountain and covering much of its flanks in lava, ash and mud. The event transformed the face of the volcano, creating the now characteristic horseshoe-shaped crater in place of the symmetric cone that had earned the peak the nickname “Fujisan of America” in the past. Almost 40 years later, the flowpaths of the lava and mud are still clearly visible, and the crater serves as a humbling reminder that Earth’s surface is ever changing.

This papercraft model of Mount Saint Helens is based on elevation data from the high precision National Elevation Dataset, allowing you to fully appreciate the mountain’s fascinating shape, and the extremely detailed aerial imagery from the US National Agriculture Imagery Program lets you explore the varied surface of this still-active volcano from the comfort and safety of your own home.

You can get a kit printed on high quality heavy paper from our Etsy store.

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Mount Fuji https://www.papercraftmountains.com/mount-fuji/ Sun, 02 Apr 2017 19:55:11 +0000 https://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=498

Get the Mount Fuji model on Etsy.

Features

  • Height x Width x Depth (mm): 49 x 153 x 153
  • Scale 1:60,000 (scale bar printed on the side)
  • Flaps numbered in recommended order of assembly
  • 120 triangles in 10 parts
  • 4 reinforced wall elements
  • Suitable for A4 and Letter size paper

You can simply download the template and print it at home, or we can send you a kit printed on high quality heavy paper.

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The Matterhorn https://www.papercraftmountains.com/the-matterhorn/ Tue, 27 Dec 2016 07:52:25 +0000 http://www.papercraftmountains.com/?p=115

Get the Matterhorn model on Etsy.

Features

  • Height x Width x Depth (mm): 112 x 133 x 133
  • Scale 1:15,000 (scale bar printed on the side)
  • Flaps numbered in recommended order of assembly
  • 100 triangles in 13 parts
  • 4 reinforced wall elements
  • Seamless ridges
  • Suitable for A4 and Letter size paper

You can get a kit printed on high quality heavy paper at our Etsy Store.

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