The Holmes stereoscopic viewer is still an effective tool for viewing 3-D images.
Soon after photography was invented in the 19th century, photographers began creating stereoscopic photographs. These photos are made with a camera which has two lenses that simultaneously record slightly different images. When these two images are viewed in a special stereoscopic viewer, the brain merges them into one, so that they appear more three dimensional. You can buy a digital camera that does that these days and special software to view the images in, but it's still less expensive to make analogue stereoscopic images with inexpensive cameras and mounts.
Instructions
Taking the Photographs
1. Load the stereoscopic camera with film. If you are using one of the Holga cameras, tape the back of the camera with gaffer tape to avoid light leaks. Remove the lens caps.
2. Mount the camera on a tripod. Take the camera on its tripod to the scene that you want to photograph. Take a light reading to determine aperture and shutter speed, if applicable. A good scene for stereoscopic photography is one that has some objects close to the camera and some that are far away. This way, the stereoscopic effects will be noticeable.
3. Make the exposure by tripping the shutter. Advance the film two places, because each exposure uses two frames of film. If you are using medium format film with 12 exposures, you can photograph six scenes. Continue to photograph until all the film is used. Roll the film up onto the take-up reel, open the back of the camera, and remove the film.
4. Process the film according to the manufacturer's directions, or take it to a lab for processing.
Printing and Mounting the Photographs
5. Assemble the Holmes stereographic viewer using the kit.
6. Make two small prints for each scene. Mount them, provisionally at first, to a piece of card stock, making sure the left exposure is on the left and the right exposure on the right. Look at them with the viewer. You may have to adjust the distance between the images in order to make them merge correctly.
7. Glue the two prints in place on the card stock. View them through the stereoscopic viewer.
Tags: stereoscopic viewer, back camera, camera tripod, camera with, card stock