"Travels" goes 3D

Hey, 3D is suddenly trendy! (Again.*) Well, I've always been a big 3D fan. When I was a kid in school back in the 60s, I drew simple stereo pairs in the margins of my notebooks when I should have been taking notes in class. The ability to create real depth with just a few lines on paper fascinated me. When I got older, I started collecting stereoscopic images in every format from Viewmaster reels to Stereo realist slides. Then I bought several stereo cameras and shot a lot of my own images.

Well, all that stuff is in storage now... but I still shoot occasional stereo pairs with my non-stereo digital cameras, using the time-honored "weight shift" method: lean left a bit, shoot an image, then lean right and shoot another. It's not as precise as using a tripod and a slide-bar, but it's a lot more convenient, and you can do it anywhere, with any camera... as long as the subject isn't moving, that is.

I'm used to "free-viewing" stereo pairs with the naked eye—no viewers needed. (You can try it with the little drawing above... see this page for more information.) But recently I worked out a way to convert them to red/cyan anaglyph format, the old standby of 3D comics. OK, you lose the color, and there's always some ghosting... but these can be viewed with ordinary red/cyan glasses. You probably already have a pair kicking around from watching a DVD like "Spy Kids 3-D" or "Shrek 3D."

So here are some stereo photos I've taken over the last ten years of RVing. Get out your glasses, sit back and enjoy! (Remember to click on each image to see it full size.)

* Those of you who were around in the 50s know what I mean.

Next step: make your own full-color stereo photos

If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, I have a treat for you: an article on how to take full-color stereo photos—not just red and cyan!—with any camera, and view them on your iPod or iPhone, using a viewer you can make for less than two dollars. Interested? Just click to the next page!

Antelope Canyon	Caboose	Mather Point
Desert garden	Valley of Fires	Valley of Fires
Lavender Pit	Potomac Falls	Meteor Crater
Sandia Mountains