Breaking Into Augmented Reality
Post by Rui Jie Wang, Innovator in Residence.
What began as an exciting endeavour to educate and inform the general public about the possibilities of immersive technologies like augmented reality has really evolved into something I could not have imagined.
Over the last 10 weeks, we ran over 50 workshops, panels, talks and one-on-one appointments one at North York Centre Library. We explored how Augmented Reality (AR) could be used from the classroom to the boardroom, from innovating in storytelling in art galleries to giving new eyes and senses to redefine what accessibility means. We ran several technical workshops with industry experts to share their experiences, time and knowledge with us at the Library.
It was so rewarding to see such a diverse group come out again and again for the sessions. I was so excited to see the eagerness, curiosity and willingness to learn and help each other throughout this summer of fun!
But these programs are just the beginning! As a designer, thinker, tinkerer, teacher, developer or somebody who is just curious about augmented reality, there is no better time to explore it than right now. So beyond this residency here are some tips for you to learn more about AR on your own.
Hardware can be expensive, where do I start?
An AR headset like Hololens or Magic Leap can be pretty pricey to start, so to get started in development it helps to have a relatively new smartphone or even a tablet to tinker with.
Don’t know how to code?
If you are a designer, artist or focused on 3D there are a lot of AR platforms that don't require any coding whatsoever and work across many types of devices! For example: Sketchfab for showcasing 3D models in AR or VR, SparkAR for Facebook and Instagram, and Lens Studio for Snapchat that will help you get started right away.
I want to supercharge my development skills!
Another way to really dive deep into more technical frameworks and learn to develop on game engines like Unity or Unreal is to dedicate a weekend to go to hackathons, game jams or other meetups to meet other folks, have fun and create something together!
Learning to Learn.
Technology is always going to be changing and such is the nature of innovation. Platforms, software and hardware are always evolving so a good thirst for knowledge and willingness to learn is essential.
So for those of you who came out to these talks again I thank you so much for sharing your time! I hope you were able to learn a couple of new possibilities about augmented reality and technology in general. For those of you hoping to break into the field I hope these sessions served as a glimpse of the many ways you can contribute to the space. From designing, to business, to development, media creation and beyond – there are so many pathways you can look forward to and skills that you can pick up that are applicable to AR. It’s definitely an exciting space for you to define what you want to do!
If you ever want to revisit any of the sessions, couldn’t make it out to a workshop, or want to follow what’s next for me – I have included all the talks and workshops which will be hosted on my personal site at: ruijiewang.me or tpl-iir.ruijiewang.me/.
Thanks all! And if you ever want to follow for updates you can find me at ruijiewang.me where all my social media and current projects are available. Cheers to what’s next!
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