Sunken Car
You Really Can’t Park There…
A local diver challenged me to document a Ford Fairlane resting at the bottom of a southern Alberta lake. I had never seen the site before, and locating the car without a map turned the dive into a genuine underwater exploration.
The model was created primarily for local divers, many of whom knew about the car but had never seen it in place. It also provided a chance to experiment with photogrammetry while scuba diving rather than using an underwater drone, refining my workflow in 3DF Zephyr and Blender.
The car is in surprisingly good condition. The hood is raised, engine components are clearly identifiable, and a thin layer of semi-organic sediment coats the surfaces. The tires show visible deformation from water pressure, and a skeleton prop sits in the driver’s seat, adding an unexpected and slightly surreal detail.
Conditions were challenging. The water temperature was around 4°C, and nearly three quarters of the dive were spent searching before data collection could begin. This project had no archaeological goal; it was an ideal test site for equipment, technique, and learning what could be achieved with minimal gear.
The resulting model allows divers and other practitioners to closely examine the site and demonstrates that effective underwater photogrammetry is possible using simple tools, in this case two GoPro cameras mounted on a PVC frame.
2024-11-07