Microsoft trained an excellent 3D face reconstruction model using synthetic data.
Synthetic (i.e. computer generated) data is helpful because it takes a long time for humans to look at many faces and label all of their features. But synthetic data arrives already labeled. And that allows for good and fast training:
Can we keep things simple by just using more landmarks?
In answer, we present the first method that accurately predicts ten times as many landmarks as usual, covering the whole head, including the eyes and teeth. This is accomplished using synthetic training data, which guarantees perfect landmark annotations.
3D Face Reconstruction with Dense Landmarks
