Ply files (containing ‘point clouds’) are the output of many photogrammetric reconstruction algorithms (for example COLMAP. You can view them quickly in Meshlab or Field, using this code here:
// import load ply
var LoadPly = Java.type("trace.graphics.LoadPly")
// load something
var ply = new LoadPly("/Users/marc/Desktop/Organ_800k_text.ply")
// make a layer
var layer = _.stage.withName("asdf")
// that's fully 3d
layer.is3D = true
layer.vrDefaults()
layer.makeKeyboardCamera()
var f = new FLine()
// for all of the points...
for(var p of ply.points)
{
f.moveTo(p.at.y, p.at.x, p.at.z)
f.last().color = vec(p.color.x, p.color.y, p.color.z, 1)
}
f.pointed=true
f.pointSize=0.3
layer.lines.f = f
This will put a colored point-cloud onto a stage with a camera that you can drive around with the keyboard.