I?ve just borrowed a webcam from work, a Logitech QuickCam Pro 5000, and have been having a play around. Obviously you can use it to take videos and pictures, and videochat, but what really amused me was the Video Effects Avatars/Face Accessories which allow you to enhance your image.
The software identifies 22 points of interest associated with various facial features. Those 22 points ? around the eyebrows, eyes, nose and mouth ? are then translated into coordinates that become instructions for the animated avatars.
The avatars were fun but the real fun is with adding stuff to your image. I may have gone a little loopy but wanted to show it off. Can you imagine having a video conference and adding these effects?!
What a strange idea.. Kind of amusing though. I?m not really sure how I?ve managed to live my life without facial avatars up until now!