[photo-3d] Back from Mesa!!!

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

It's been a great convention in all respects!!!  One
of the best in recent memory for me...

The slide programs were excellent.  The slight shift on 
Friday's morning showings was not a problem for me.  It
actually helped because our 12:00 mounting workshop
started after the shows were over.

The "swim-in" 3d theater was a great idea!!!

The trade show was OK for me.  Not as demanding as
previous years but I did manage to sell all my Realist
cameras and books.  (I have a few good viewers left...
check sell-3d in the next week or so...)

The Arizona weather was great!  To be honest, I was a bit 
worried... "Mesa in July?  Are you crazy?"  These kinds of 
reactions had me worried.  But, at the end, the weather 
reminded me of Greece.  Too hot for some people but what 
can be more relaxing than sitting out on a hot day, resting 
by the pool?

This year I had my family with me so I skipped most social
events to play "Marco Polo" with my kids in the pool...
(BTW, I asked them what they liked the most in this trip
and they both say "the pool in the hotel!"  Little kids are
so easy to please...)  But I did enjoy a nice quite dinner
among stereo friends on Saturday night.

As expected, the best part of these conventions was visiting 
with old and new friends... Too many to list here... I spent 
quite a bit of time around the "celebrity floor" (8th floor).  
I enjoyed meeting the new stereo viewer genius, Jacob Van 
Ekeren and I am the proud owner of one of his latest 
Realist-format viewers.

One new face that comes in mind: Eddie Bowers.  Now, 
there is a man with a future!  (He is quite young)
Also, Mark Kernes.  It was a pleasure meeting you Mark!

One thing that impressed me deeply:  Grant Campos' slides.
I was blown out of the water from the quality of his
work.  I almost jumped up and said "I WANT ONE OF THESE
STEREO CAMERAS TOO!!!"  What stopped me was the thought
that I already have one of those cameras!!!! (RBT S1)
Of course, the fact that he showed me his slides with 
a Kodaslide viewer fitted with the Hugo DeWijs 45mm lenses
could not hurt either.  I am planning to make myself
a similar viewer since I already own a pair of these
lenses.

Mary Ann & Wolfgang Sell and Charley Van Pelt have written
a great book on View-Master.  I read 2/3 of it in the plane
in the way back.  It is a fascinating story of the
artists, photographers, engineers and salesmen behind
this great product.  Everything comes out alive.  The
book is so well written that I could imagine myself
living in the 1950s-60s and working for Sawyer's.
Thanks for the great memories!!!

About the workshops, I must say that DrDave did an
excellent job describing his slide mounting technique.
I will definitely use the tips that DrDave offered
during the workshop.

Unfortunately, I missed the fist-fight between Ron Labbe
and Tom Deering.  I have only heard second hand
reports of the incident and there were no stereo
pictures taken.  Ron's chest X-rays are in 2d only.  

As Tom said, I'll wait for the Police investigation 
to be completed but I really cannot imagine what excuse 
can it possibly be for physically assaulting and injuring 
one of the most prominent members of our stereo community, 
a person who is liked and admired by everyone.  I think 
Tom owes it to his stereo friends to come up with an 
explanation and an apology for his bizarre behavior in Mesa.  

Anyway, a great convention ended with a short family 
vacation "up North".  This was my first visit to the 
Grand Canyon and I was deeply impressed by this
scenic wonder.

I am now looking forward to getting back my 20 or so
rolls of stereo film shot during this vacation.  I am
in no hurry to mount my rolls because I am now the proud
owner of a Dukes' slide previewer!!!!  Thanks to John,
I'll now join the ranks of the lazy stereo photographers
with the hundreds of unmounted rolls! :)

Next vacation: New York city!!!!  More details will come
later...

George Themelis