Make a 3-D Stereoscope Slide and Video Shooter

Stereoscope Slide & Video Shooter

3-D is a really hot topic these days, and for those of you with lots of cash, Panasonic just released a new 3-D video camera that will connect to the new 3-D TVs, so with several thousand bucks you can get in on the 3-D action with home movies.

Step 1: History

Meanwhile, if you just want to have a little fun, this project might be appealing. See, my family has always enjoyed getting out our ancient Victorian Stereopticon Viewer and we have an amusing pile of old slides from the era. I believe ours dates back to my Grandparent's youth around 1900. I did see a set of slides on Antiques Roadshow from the civil war, and these were worth thousands.

But these antique viewers and sets of common slides are often available on ebay for around $100, and I also saw some very cute wooden "Holmes Stereoscope Kits" for sale there recently for $39.95. These antiques are admittedly primitive, but fun to pass around in the parlor after dinner.

At one time in the late '70s I made a rig using two Polaroid cameras mounted side by side that could more-or-less fire the two cameras simultaneously. These could be stapled or taped to a card and viewed in the Stereopticon viewer quite well. But very often there would be a miniscule delay with one camera or a slight difference in color or exposure, so the slides were never all that great. Today, the same thing could be done using two digital cameras, but the same disadvantages would exist. Plus, video would be challenging and require special software, etc.

Comments

[fado1986]

Hi. First of all, really nice intructable, so glad I finded it. Second, Im trying to replicate your device, but there arent enought measurements of the hole thing, angles for the mirrors, distance between the small and large mirrors, distance between the lens and the small mirrors, ect. I just wanna ask you if you could help me with the missing measures, and also if you have tried to make it a little more portable. Thanks

[mickeynurse]

Can you elaborate on the angles that the mirrors have to be positioned? I tried 45 and got two different images (like the photo was cut with a scissor). I am guessing the outside angles have to be a bit narrower in order to show the same object.

[courtervideo]

The rig actually does produce two images side by side. There is a photo of one of the printed stereo pictures shown under step one of the instructable. When you use the stereoptigon viewer, your eyes blend the two pictures into one.

[khourig]

By adjusting the angle of the large mirrors, you are changing the parallax angle. It would be great to also be able to adjust the spacing. This could be done, to a point, by adjusting the angle of the small mirrors. This page has a great discussion of what spacing and parallax works best for people viewing the imagery.

[courtervideo]

The biggest parallax issue with my rig and some of the ones shown on the link you added is that the spacing is too wide -- for normal 3D the spacing between the two images (or two cameras in some rigs) should be about the same as the spacing between a normal person's eyes. My rig, where the spacing is too wide gives an exaggerated amount of apparent depth, which is cool but unnatural. But I chose to use large mirrors with wide spacing so that a fairly wide angle of overall view could be obtained.

[longhairedartist]

If with the front pair of mirrors you arrange a top and bottom mirror(instead of left and right), angled leftward on top and rightward on bottom, you only need to tilt the camera and the front pair with respect to the rear set of mirrors (a slight 10 degrees or so) to even up the horizon. With this method you can achieve a wide format aspect ratio, with the left eye set on top and the right eye set on bottom of each camera frame.

[longhairedartist]

I was toying around with the idea in a 3D program to see if it was possible to get the wide angle shot. Directly in front of your camera you will split the view in two, the top side directed leftward and the bottom side directed rightward. You have to slightly tilt the camera and this set of mirrors with respect to the back mirrors, in order to have a horizon cutting across the middle of both the top and bottom mirrors. It would be easiest to micro adjust the rest of the angles by sight.

[courtervideo]

OOOOHHH I get it! Very interesting idea! Have you actually tried it?

[longhairedartist]

I was getting pretty close to matching up the images in the 3D app, but I was only interested in knowing if it was possible. Plus it takes some time to nudge the mirrors and render them, a bit like fooling around in the dark. Your angles should be very close to the same as you have now. Your first pair is just moved to top and bottom position instead of left and right. And you'll see the sky in the top mirror and the ground in the bottom until you skew this pair (and the camera) with respect to the rear pair...
I found a source of $1 mirrors at the dollar store so I might just try to assemble something LOL

[courtervideo]

I think I would be tempted to try mounting the small mirrors on a single, simple post and make the vertical adjustments with the large mirrors.

[courtervideo]

Holy Cow! I am way too stupid to understand what you are talking about. Is there any way you could post a sketch of this??

[Kent]

There is (or was) a product that did this. It was called "View Magic", and it was made by Dimension Press, Harvard MA. It it essentially a dual periscope, with one eye going up and the other down, so that when a pair of 4X6 prints were viewed, each eye got the correct image. I have one, but I doubt they are still sold.

[DeadlyDad]

I little FYI: If you hold your mirrors against a block of wood cut to ~5 degrees less than 1/2 the angle of your small mirrors (As they seem to be about 120 degrees apart, that would be 60-5=55 degrees.) Slide the mirror, reflecting side up, along a strip of emery cloth until you get down to the surface. When you put the two mirrors together in your rig, the small gap between them will be gone.

[courtervideo]

Yes, thanks. I did do this on the one I built.

[DeadlyDad]

Ah. Sorry. I must have missed that. BTW, I passed your idea on to the group working on structured light scanners ( http://www.instructables.com/id/Structured-Light-3D-Scanning/ ), as this could be a good way for them to avoid having to use 2 cameras.

[courtervideo]

Wow, that is some extremely cool video.

[DeadlyDad]

Definitely. I've already got a projector on the way that I got off of eBay, and, once I've gotten everything working well, I plan on setting up a service for creating 3D computer models of native artifacts, so non-local museums can display items that wouldn't survive the move in real life. A few local craftsman have expressed an interest also, for an online store that would let customers 'handle' the things they make.

[courtervideo]

How does this technique compare to holography?

[DeadlyDad]

Well, I suppose that it could provide the computer model to be projected holographically, but there is no direct connection that I'm aware of. This is about the best example of how it works. You can also check out Song Zhang's site. He has done a lot of work in this area.

[courtervideo]

Amazing process.

[andrea biffi]

I've some old viewers from old Pentax Optio 33L... here is in sale link. And looking in the web after reading your instructable I've found a commercial stereoscopic lens with also some example of 3d images...
link

[courtervideo]

These are nice and compact. The focal lengths tend to be a bit long, but otherwise look really good.

[DeadlyDad]

Here is a link to a $2.49 viewer. The same company has a HUGE selection of other stereo products, including 3 camera lenses.

[courtervideo]

Thanks for sending the two links! The viewer looks like a great, inexpensive item. I did see the Loreo attachments and I bet these do a good job as well and they are certainly a lot more compact. There are maybe two advantages with my rather clumsy system -- almost any camera will work, and I can shoot with a focal length of about 20mm for wider views.

[andrea biffi]

There is a third advantage: it's a DIY gadget, and so it's more cool! ;-)
The viewer by Pentax works good, and you can fold it. I suggest it.

[courtervideo]

Wow. Folding is a great idea. Maybe this is for YOU to develop!

[Davidfromcali]

American Science and Surplus sells 77mm x 194mm FS mirrors (approximately 3 x 7.5 inch) for $2 a piece. Yes, that's 2 bucks apiece.

[DeadlyDad]

Link

[pixelpartner]

Thanks for the hint !!

[courtervideo]

That's a great deal.

[Lokifish]

Great build. Take a look at http://www.nightphoto.com/zster.html for ideas on a handheld build. It's a Zorki Stereo add-on Unit

[courtervideo]

These are really nice and there are some modern ones available as well.

[courtervideo]

BTW, I just picked up a pro-video catalog. A company called DELVCAM makes 3D accessories. see:

http://audio-video-supply.markertek.com/search?w=DELV-3DMS&IMAGE.x=14&IMAGE.y=15&IMAGE=search

[trike road poet]

Now all we need is a 3-D viewer (Stereo-opticon) to go with the prints and we have a total system.
Anyone have some ideas?

[trike road poet]

Some folks just can not focus that close, the viewer allows every one to see the effect easily.

[freakmonkey]

much easier to just cross your eyes

[courtervideo]

Yes, as trike road poet said, a lot of folks have trouble crossing their eyes and getting the images to "come together." Plus, the cards have the image for the right eye on the right side, etc, so when you view it with crossed eyes, each eye is getting the incorrect picture and the 3D is weird. I did make a test print with the images switched, and the crossed eye technique works great for those who can do it.

[thepelton]

First, there are the antiques, and then I recall someone making one that was plastic and cardboard recently.

[trike road poet]

You know, this ought to make a nice project! I smell an instructable here! And a camera jig to allow shooting the stereo pictures with a neat common point focus allowing for interpupillary distance offset from a fixed tripod mount...hum-m-m-m-m-m! Wheres my sketch book?

[thepelton]

I have been making things using my Epilog laser out of 1/8 inch (3mm) plywood. Maybe I could make a stereopticon. The tricky part would be the lenses, since they would have to focus on a point which would probably be about a foot behind the two pictures, but I could imagine it!