P3D Re: Realist -> 2x2x2 and standard realist mount

[Dennis Sherwood <emdesher@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Thu, 19 Mar 1998, Dr. George A. Themelis wrote:

<snip>

> Why was the Realist mount designed at 101 mm x 41 mm?  This was done by
> Seton Rochwite, the inventor of the Realist.  According to an interview by
> Mark Wilke that was published in Stereo World a few years back, Seton used
> this size because he could get glass by cutting in half the standard latern
> glass slide size of 3 1/4 in. x 4 in. (Seton mounted his slides in a paper
> mount that was then sanditched in glass - this was the way the first
> Realist pictures were mounted)

The correct spelling is "Lantern" and it used to be a slide projection 
format.  I have a few boxes of anti-Newton's rings cover glass in this size 
left.  What Rochwite did was take a piece of Lantern glass and cut it 
lengthwise to obtain two pieces of his desired format, which today we call 
"Realist" format. 

> Sometimes I am asked, why did Realist do this or do that when they designed
> the Stereo Realist?  We have to realize that Realist was a pioneer in 1945.
> Seton had no idea that this camera would cause a "revolution" and become
> the standard for others to follow.  

Seton's motive was economy: he used a glass which at the time was readily 
available.  However, the 2x2x2 format would have made more sense from a 
manufacturing viewpoint because the "Realist" format leaves precious little 
room for the top and bottom film holders from the edges.  Planar 35mm 
slide projectors and viewers would have been easlier to convert to stereo if 
they shared some of the same slide dimensions.  
Dennis Sherwood   emdesher@xxxxxxxxxxxx


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