stereo cards

[low_delta]

I finally got all the stereo cards scanned and swapped (so they're viewable by the naked eye) and posted online. There are nine here, but all 57 of them are posted in this album in Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/14542870@N03/albums/72157664615361018 Captions and sometimes lengthy text from the cards can be found on the pages at Flickr.

These are scans of stereoscopic image cards. The kind that are used in the old-fashioned stereoscope viewers. I've reversed the images from side to side, so that you can see them without the viewer.

Cross your eyes until the two images completely overlap in the center. While keeping the images fused, let your eyes focus on the image, so that the details become sharp. If you can do this, you will be able to see this scene in three dimensions.

If you're having trouble, relax your eyes, so the two blurry images float around lazily. Eventually, they'll overlap - try to hold them there. Then wait until the overlapping images pop into focus.

Here are some of my favorites:


Lauterbrunnen Valley and the Lovely Fall of the Staubbach, Switzerland


Naerodal Pass, Norway


Columbus Chapel, Havana, Cuba


Frankfort on Main - Germany


Removing Butter from a Machine Churn, Cohocton, N.Y.


Inter-state Exposition, Chicago


Amidst Yosemite's Charms - Sentinel Hotel, looking north across Valley to Yosemite Falls, California


Louisiana Purchase Monument, World's Fair, St. Louis

Comments

stereo cards

[likethebeer.livejournal.com]

"If you're having trouble, relax your eyes, so the two blurry images float around lazily. Eventually, they'll overlap - try to hold them there. Then wait until the overlapping images pop into focus." That was really great! I've been unable to do the trick since I got Nystagmus (related to the MS, my optic nerve is a little wanky & my eyes can't focus on close things). Trying to cross my eyes just made a shaky image. But your advice to relax my eyes meant that, a few times, I was actually able to see 3-D the way those photos are, and that's awesome! Thanks for the advice!

[sirreal13.livejournal.com]

Awesome! I Now I realize why the images were a little goofy when I looked directly at stereoopticon slides without the viewer.

[sirreal13.livejournal.com]

I want to travel back in time and stay at the Sentinel Hotel.

Re: stereo cards

[sirreal13.livejournal.com]

That's cool you got to see it. I found it helped to "embiggen" the photos on my PC, to reduce the straining to focus.

Re: stereo cards

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

With a little practice with that "lazy" way of seeing them, you could probably get the hang of it.

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

After the turn of the century (to the 20th Century), Sentinel Hotel was the only operating hotel in the valley. However, it was not winterized and remained closed during the winter season. Up until this time, that wasn’t a big deal since attendance was less than 2600 in all 1885 and was still under 5500 in 1906. However, it grew significantly after that. From 1908 to 1909 attendance grew to over 13,000, a leap of 5,000 from the year before. It doubled in attendance in 1915 to over 33,000 (this is probably related to allowing automobiles in the park beginning in 1913). It stagnated there through 1918 and then nearly doubled again in 1919 (probably due to the end of The Great War – WWI) where 58,362 visitors were counted.

[cierrablue.livejournal.com]

Very cool. What a process but the images are really fascinating.

Re: stereo cards

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

A lot of people have trouble when the images are too big, because their eyes have to cross farther, and they have to move back from the screen.

And if they're small, it's tough, because your eyes only cross a tiny big. That might be more conducive to the method where you just go unfocused and wait until they cross.