I built a large format 3D camera! - 4x5 stereo photography with 19th century lenses - [Republished]
Ғылым және технология
This video was originally published on my old channel and was moved during the channel migration to keep this content available.
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From the original video description:
This is the third video in the series on building a large format 4x5 stereographic view camera. This video contains a lot of information so you can use the table of contents below to jump to topics in the video of interest. In the video, I'll discuss the camera build, how everything came out, the unique specifications of the camera and how they influence it's use, and different types of media that can be used (film, paper negatives, direct positives, glass plates, daguerreotype plates, etc). I'll also discuss in detail the lens spacing specifications that allow a scaled up stereo camera like this to work. Finally, I'll take you along as I make test stereo pairs with the camera using Harman Direct Positive Paper and we'll look at the pairs in the darkroom using an oversized mirror stereoscope. I also provide wiggle gifs for each of the images which provide a way for viewers at home to get a sense of the 3D effect produced by the camera.
For those who would like to try "free-viewing" (a technique where-in you essentially cross your eyes to see the 3D effect), the stereo pairs are provided on the accompanying blog post: www.francescofragomeni.com/bl...
Table of Contents:
00:00 - Introduction
01:22 - Preliminary discussion of stereo sizes and how some can be viewed
03:04 - Background on the build
03:58 - First look at the back of the camera (modifications to Graflex backs)
04:59 - Using the ground glass attachment
06:03 - Discussing more about the camera construction (the woodworking)
06:41 - Metal finishing (front standard and hardware)
07:08 - How the drive shaft focus mechanism works
07:39 - Bellows
07:50 - Where to find links to the other videos for this build
08:18 - Construction and function
08:27 - Minimum and maximum focus
08:53 - The lens boards
09:21 - The lenses (19th century Goerz stereo lens pair)
10:09 - Aperture conversion for the lenses (the lenses predate the standard f-stop scale)
10:54 - Behind the lens filters for use with direct positive paper
12:10 - Lens spacing for stereo photography and how it works with this camera
18:16 - The lens spacing control wheel
19:12 - Barrel lenses vs lenses in shutters and how exposures are made
20:28 - Getting into the test shots - Test 1/portrait 1
21:38 - Test shot 2/ portrait 2
22:12 - Test shot 3/ landscape 1 - Shooting a valley
23:22 - Developing the direct positive paper
23:43 - Using Farmer's Reducer to lighten the images
24:20 - Discussing mirror stereoscopes and viewing larger (4x5) stereo pairs
26:10 - Explaining wiggle gifs and their limitations in showing the 3D effect on computer screens
28:58 - Looking at the results!
31:23 - Some thoughts and excitement around the results and the validation of a successful build
31:53 - Whats next for the camera and closing remarks
Video by Francesco Fragomeni
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Instagram: francescofragomeni
Пікірлер: 20
This is super cool, great video man, you definitely deserve more subscribers
@francescofragomeni
Ай бұрын
Thanks very much for the kind words. That's appreciated!
That is really cool.
I sat there with my eyes crossed viewing that first shot for longer than was probably healthy, but those are absolutely gorgeous. Wonderful work!
@francescofragomeni
6 ай бұрын
That gave me a laugh. Thanks for watching and get yourself a pair of viewing glasses!
You are awesome! Btw for viewing 3D photos you don't need that fancy viewer - I just have photos printed out in crosseyed 3d format and some are on my wall. at this point when I view them my eyes adjust automatically
@francescofragomeni
4 ай бұрын
Yea, there is a comment here from a viewer who described using a phone and your hand as a septum. I didn't expect it to work as well as it does. I can freeview but not without effort. The hand-septum works very well and easily for me. Thanks for your comment!
@CriticalDepth
4 күн бұрын
I was going to say this same thing, no wiggle-gifs needed - just cross your eyes.
so sick
Nice one. I'd like to see a stereo Daguerrotype.
@francescofragomeni
4 ай бұрын
Hi, sorry for the late reply. I find that YT does a poor job with comment notifications. Anyway, yes, that is the plan. That's the main reason I built this camera so it's coming! Thanks for your comment and support!
It's good that there are such wonderful enthusiasts! I live in the Altai mountains. Recently I started practicing format photography on black and white 4x5" photographic film. I wanted to switch to the 8x10" format. Format photography is an amazing and wonderful experience!
@francescofragomeni
6 ай бұрын
Hi and thanks for writing. I agree completely and I wish you the best in your exploration of 4x5 and 8x10!
@user-qg8pl4qx7t
6 ай бұрын
@@francescofragomeni, Thank You! I wish you success in your work!
Very cool. It’s possible to view them in stereo on a phone screen. Make a blade out of your hand and use it as a septum move your phone in and out until the stereo image appears. I swear it works! You look stupid doing it but it works . Lol.
@francescofragomeni
4 ай бұрын
Hi Brendan, thanks for your comment! I'm just seeing this now so wanted to reply albeit a month late. I didn't actually expect this to work and I had some trouble at first but I've gotten it to work and my mind is blown! It works very well to my surprise. I'm not able to just put it up to my face with my hand as a septum though. I have to bring it close so that the images nearly converge but at this point they are blurry. Then, when I move everything further away, my eyes focus and the images converge in perfect stereo! So cool! Thanks for sharing your technique! It's a new tool I'll now use forever!
Interesting guy Francesco, greetings. Why do you need all this? The world is so fleeting, b/w photos are uninformative, color slides are expensive. Most people won't be able to see your photos the way you intended them to be. Why go to the past? One like your job.
@francescofragomeni
6 ай бұрын
The way I see it, it's far too easy to come up with reasons and excuses not to and I'm more interested in the reasons to do it. Life and the world in general are indeed fleeting. I can think of no better reason to find what makes you excited and to pursue it despite all the reasons not to. With that said, I don't know many people who would agree with the assertion that b&w photos are uninformative. Quite the opposite actually. Color slides are indeed expensive but so are many other things. It's a matter of perspective. You're correct that most people won't be able to see my work the way they are intended to be viewed. My answer for this is simple. I don't make my work for other people. I make my work for me. And why go to the past? Because the past tells us a great deal more about the present and what we can do with it than just focusing on the present alone. That's my take anyway.
@Fujik1966
6 ай бұрын
@@francescofragomeni When I take out trash in a landfill, I sometimes come across discarded family photo archives. People die, the grandchildren don’t need this, they’re not interested. They clear the vacated space for themselves. I often think about these facts and understand that what we do now, we do for ourselves, for our pleasures, hobbies. No one needs it anymore. Good luck with your creative processes.
@yuriythebest
4 ай бұрын
Fujik1966 you are so right plus everyone will die sometime anyway and the universe will reach heat death and the sun will explode so better not to bother