Sunday, December 12, 2010

To 3D or Not To 3D

Truth to tell, I don’t like the whole “new” 3D trend (not really new, they tried pushing it before in the ‘80s, ‘90s and even in the ‘50s). In movies, games, TVs and cameras – 3D is the new “HD”.

When I was a kid, an aunt from Canada sent us a Viewmaster with several reels. Most reels contained scenes and buildings from Ottawa and Toronto (which later in life I was delighted to see in person, but one was of wild life. I used to have nightmares caused by the over-realistic shark swimming at you, mouth agape.

Today, I don’t really appreciate the fact that every 3rd rate movie offers a 3D version – as if sitting for 3 hours with plastic goggles on top of my glasses would cover the gaping holes in the script. I still remember the headache I got watching the 3D version of Avatar (though I‘m still debating whether it was caused by the technology or the annoying, bottom-rate script).

The last wave of 3D TVs got me wondering whether we’re all doomed to wear weird glasses in our living room, and what’s the right number of pairs of glasses you need to buy, so that none of your guest feels left out.

But to some people, 3D photography is a passion and a hobby. Take my friend Gil in Virginia, for example. His dad came up with a way to use 2 cheap point-and-click cameras to build a DIY 3D rig (get full instructions and samples on his site).

While visiting Gil last October, he took several 3D photos (go get your blue-green glasses to enjoy these):

In front of the Mssonic temple in Alexandria

You can find some more samples in Gil’s Gallery.

So clearly not everyone is as unenthusiastic as me about the concept. I still hope the interest in this gimmick and the “me too!” attitude would die down, as it did before. Call me old fashioned, but in my humble opinion, If you want to experience something “just like it looks in real life” – open your door and step out.

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