I
am Timo Puhakka, an avid stereo photographer,
former
Toolmaker, and former Imax Camera Technician. (that's a younger me
below with the Imax MKII Underwater housing). This web site is
intended to showcase some of the work I have done with stereo
photography and building stereo equipment, and to allow you to enter the hobby running, by
purchasing your own rig. or building one yourself.
My original plan was to create an ultra compact digital stereo
camera (for myself), to ultimately replace my Realist format camera, if
(heaven forbid), Kodachrome is no longer processed
(“Mama
don’t take my Kodachrome away”). I got carried away.
The result is what you see on this site. I can build a custom
camera for your use as a complete turnkey outfit, so that you can spend
your time enjoying the hobby of stereo photography rather than hacking
together digital cameras.
Viewing the
images you create on
the computer or on prints can be done in many ways, Freeviewing
(parallel), cross eyed, with optical viewers available on the
internet or on stereo cards you make, and view with Bates Holmes Stereo viewers. I would recommend that you get photographic slides made by a
service company and mount them in cardboard mounts for viewing in a
Realist style stereo viewer, or using the 2 X 2 slides you get back, in
a viewer like the “Pinsharp” available on the
internet. A couple of companies making these slides can be accessed from the following links: Lukerdoops (mounted stereo pairs, Recomended)
also Slides from digital Gammatech Colour Slide
You can also create anaglyph prints (for viewing
with red / green glasses, or make stereo cards and view them in a Holmes style viewer.
Examples of other types of stereo
Full moon
Stereo before photography
Current project: A fund raiser for the Guildwood Village Community Association. I am taking a set of stereo views of the historic Guild Inn (more specifically the architectural fragments accumulated there).
I have several examples of digital stereo images on the Olympus camera page. The one below is just a sample. This is a cross view image (which you view cross eyed). For parallel views go here.
Imax
I worked as a Camera Technician at Imax in the late 80s. I was
principlaly responsible for the Imax Space Shuttle In Cabin Camera, and
participated on some 5 or 6 Shuttle missions.
When I worked at Imax, I only once got a chance to see the stereo rig
asssembled. I naturally had to get a shot of it in stereo. This scan is
from a way underexposed shot that I never mounted. It was taken with my
Kodak stereo camera on Kodachrome 64 film. I think it would
look pretty good mounted, with a very bright light behind it, but
scanned on my Canon LIDE desk top scanner with the slide attachment,
and adjusting the image digitally, this is the best I could get.
It certainly gives you an idea of what a behemoth we are talking
about. Anybody who has seen pictures of the new Solido Imax stereo
camera, will understand why they make more stereo films now than they
did in the late 90s when this photo was taken. This is the cross view
image.
Below is the parallel view
Image to the right - A much younger me, with the Imax MKII camera underwater
housing.
