Re: History of 3D Photography

[P3D Dr. George A. Themelis <fj834@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>I am going to give a talk of "Digital 3D Photography" at SST(Stereographic
>Society of Taipei) next week. I need to mention some history of 3D
>photography in brief. However I am not farmilar with the whole history of 3D
>photography. For example, when and who invented what. Can anyone tell me
>about it?

Hmmmmm... looks like some basic reading is in order.  I suggest that you
consult one of the books on the subjects. 

I put the birth of stereoscopic imaging in Charles Wheatstone's invention
of the mirror streoscope and publication of the first stereoscopic diagrams
in his paper "On some remarkable and hitherto unobsrved phenomena of
binocular vision", presented in front of the Royal Society of London in
1833 and published in 1838 in the Transactions of the Royal Society of
London (this historic paper can be found in many libraries).

Other highlights:

1833 - Wheatstone invents the stereoscope and uses it to view stereoscopic
       diagrams

ca. 1840 - Photography is invented and stereoscopic pairs is one of the first
           applications 

1851 - Queen Victoria is impressed by the stereopairs (thanks mainly to the
       efforts of Davide Brewster) and the era of stereoviews begins.

1860-1880 - Peak of stereo photography.  Millions of stereo views &
            thousands of stereoscopes made/sold (every house has a
            sterescope)

1900 - Decline of stereoviews.  Small companies close/get absorbed by
       larger.  Keystone, last stereo view company to survive, gradually
       switches to educational application of stereo views.
 
1938 - William Gruber invents the View Master system.

1947 - The Stereo Realist hits the market. Peak of "modern" 35 mm color
       slide photography is in 1955.  Decline follows.

1993 - Dr. T writes his "Realist red button" book and does the first 7-p
       Realist red button convertion.


-- Regards, George Themelis


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