Cultural Heritage Digitalisation: 3D Surveying and Modelling

Jiayao Jiang

Jiayao Jiang is a PhD student at the University of Cambridge researching post-war urban transformation of Rome, with a focus on transnational flows and national heritage. She studied Architectural Conservation in Italy and Architecture Design and Theory in China. Jiayao has worked with leading international institutions, including the International Centre for Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on World Heritage capacity building and site management, the Bibliotheca Hertziana in Rome, and the Palace Museum in Beijing, contributing to heritage conservation projects across diverse cultural contexts. Her research interests encompass architectural conservation, urban heritage, heritage in conflict, and digital humanities. She has received multiple awards and fellowships, including funding from the Open-Oxford-Cambridge DTP, Cambridge-BSR Doctoral Student Award, and AHRC fellowships at the Library of Congress and the Huntington Library.

This workshop is structured around a three-part schedule that balances theory with practice. The session begins with a one-hour lecture introducing key tools in heritage documentation — photogrammetry, laser scanning, GeoSLAM, total station survey, and multiband imaging — along with accessible applications like Polycam and VR platforms. This is followed by a 30-minute live demonstration of Agisoft Metashape, where participants learn about point clouds, meshing, texturing, and orthomosaic creation. The final 2.5 hours form a practical workshop in which participants, working in small groups with their own cameras or smartphones, generate a 3D model of a small object using structure-from-motion techniques. No prior technical knowledge is required, and the emphasis is on collaborative, step-by-step learning. By the end, participants will not only have produced a digital model of their own, but will also be encouraged to discuss, share, and reflect on how digital methods might transform research and reshape the ways we engage with cultural heritage.

This workshop is part of our Methods Fellowship programme, which develops and delivers innovative teaching in digital methods. You can read more about the and view the complete series of .

Our CDH Methods workshops have limited places and are prioritised for students and staff at the University of Cambridge. However, if space is available, we welcome all participants who want to learn and apply digital methods and use digital tools in their research.

This session may be of particular interest to:

• PhD students in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
• Early Career Researchers in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

If you have specific accessibility needs for this event, please get in touch. We will do our best to accommodate any requests.

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Host or Publisher Cambridge Digital Humanities