Advice for a newcomer

[Paolo Servadei <nis0338@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi!
I've just signed to the list to get some info about the 3D photography.
A week ago an old camera repairman showed me(in my own town:Bologna,Italy)
a couple of stereo slides,with an old wooden viewer...the result was 
outrageously good!
The camera that took the pictures was a very old 120 wooden box,with uncoated 
lenses and so on...but the images looked incrdibly sharp and with a very strong
tridimensional affect.
I've been thinking about stereo photography many times,but i never owned a
stereo
camera...strange enought,given the fact that own/owned a lot a beatiful/strage
cameras...
So i decided that the first purchase,when i'll be able to save some
money(not so 
easy at the moment..),i'll buy a stereo camera with a viewer to view the slides.
The stereo positive(prints)looks less enjoyable and more complicated,for
what i know,
if i wrote a bestiality please correct me.
What i haven't still decided is the type of camera or attachment i'll look for.
This is where the experience of the people on this list will come to rescue
me...
I thought first that a Stereo Realist would be a good purchase...but i have
to buy
also a viewer.
How much would be for a camera in good conditions(for use,not for
collection...a small
scratch is more than acceptable)?And a viewer?
Is it easy to find the mounts for the half format slides?
Is there any difficulty involved in the process?
As i am a VERY BIG Pentax lover,i have lots of very good Pentax lenses(K
bajonet),from the
15mm. f/3.5 to the 300mm. f/2.8;and Pentax bodies,from the K2 to the LX.
I have also an autofocus body and some autofocus lenses.
Would be a good idea to try to find the stereo attachment made from Pentax
for their cameras
time ago,and that somewhere is still possible to find new,albait with a very
high price(about
$260 at least for the lens attachment plus the viewer)?
I have considered the Pentax outfit just for collection reasons,it has some
value for Pentax 
fans if in good condition,and could be resold quite easily...but it doesen't
have anything
special for Pentax cameras,and can be mounted on any 35mm. camera with a
small adapter ring.
So would be the same thing to purchase an universal stereo attachment...if
such thing has been
ever made by anybody.
I've seen time ago in Italy a plastic viewer for stereo slides(35mm. full
frame),that was included
like a present into the plastic wrap of a photographer's magazine.
I've seen the same viewer also in some catalogs,until some years ago,but i
think that the production
(maybe done by a small italian company)has been discontinued ever since.
With that viewer(that was made with accuracy,with even an adjustable
distance between the oculars),
the production of stereo slides was very easy...just take two pictures with
a small lateral distance
between each other.Or better put a focusing rail on a tripod,and take two
shots at a fixed distance.
In any case it was not possible to record moving subjects,a task that can be
accomplished,as far as 
i know,only with a camera with at least two separated lenses...or with an
attachment like the Pentax
one that subdivide the full 35mm. frame in two half format stereo slides.
Am i right?
What could be the cost of the Pentax outfit,second hand?
Where can i look for it(a company that does mail-order to Europe)?
Is there any universal attachment that can be used in place of the Pentax
one,and what's the cost?
If yes,which viewer could i use,with a strong preference for cheap ones?And
what's a company specialized
in second-hand stereo equipments?
For an half frame stereo camera,a Stereo Realist would be a good choice,or not?
What could be another cheap choice,with good lenses...even a full frame
one,be it 35mm. or 120/220?

Thanks in advance for the answers...and if my questions are FAQs,please give
me an advice on where to
find a FAQ on stereo-related issues.

         bye



      Paolo Servadei   Bologna,Italy

 
      


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