P3D Re: ISU and Stereoscopy

["Dr. George A. Themelis" <DrT-3d@xxxxxxx>]

>Is the ISU really interested in the beginners, or is it a 
>gentlemen's stereoscopic travel club?  Did I miss the Golden 
>Age of ISU?  This subscriber needs to know. 
>Bruce Springsteen

Bruce, thank you for sharing your thoughts with us.  I'll tell
you what:  ISU President Ray Moxom and Assistant Editor Andrea
Blair are reading photo-3d and will read your comments.  
Stereoscopy Editor Robert Leonard is not in photo-3d (AFAIK and
a mistake IMHO) but I am sure he will get a copy. Maybe these 
comments will make them think about these issues...

Now my story: I joined ISU shortly after I was introduced to
stereo (around 1989).  I remember corresponding with Paul Wing,
past ISU President.  I was so impressed with my newly found
source of information (a lot of it technical) that I obtained
all Stereoscopy past issues (bound in a red cover) from F. Waack.
So I can say that I have ALL Stereoscopy issues ever published.
I have learned a lot reading these past issues and have lent
them to others (like John Bercovitz) who were equally impressed
and delighted.

The character and contents of Stereoscopy reflect the interests
of the Editor.  You mentioned Michael Gordon and said: "A goodly 
number of pages would be filled with the editor's own images, 
something in the nature of a personal travelogue".  I agree with
this assessment and I see that it continues today.  If you ask
the Editors I am sure they will tell you that no one is sending
any material to be published so they fill the magazine with 
articles that interest them and feel that these will interest
others as well.  This is partially true, I am sure... I say 
"partially" because I feel that the job of the Editor is to
bug others to send material in, not to just sit around waiting
for the articles to come in.  

I have been dealing with various Editors and being something of 
an Editor myself (of much smaller scale) I know that the most 
effective Editors are those who can tell what is interesting 
and what is not, find the people who can write the interesting 
articles, obtain a promise and then bug them to death until the 
goods (articles) are delivered.  Since no one is paid for writing, 
it takes a bit of motivation to spend the time writing the articles 
and that usually means constant bugging from the Editor!

Bottom line:  You might have missed the Golden Age of Stereoscopy 
but it might come back... So hang in there... Write a few articles
yourself... And consider taking over the position of the Editor
some time in the future.  Thank goodness, you know how to write!!!
Then, the rest of us, can spend our time criticizing you and "your"
publication :-)

George Themelis