Hyperstereo / full frame stereo, inexpensive twin film camera recommendation

I've gotten the stereo photography bug. Through trial and error and some expensive mistakes, I have two working realist format cameras now. I don't want to venture into medium format stereo because the mounts are no longer made (if they were I most certainly would). I think I would like to try my hand at full frame format and hyper stereo using two small film cameras on a dual bracket and a dual shutter release. This is an unwieldy set up so I don't want to spend too much depending on how much I actually use it. Does anyone have recommendations for two small film cameras with manual settings? Or would using a cheap cameras with electronic shutters be ok? They obviously have to accept a cable release. Zone focus only cameras would be fine too.

Not quite as inexpensive as they used to be (I think I paid a buck for my first one back in 1972), but the Kodak Pony 135 is a pretty decent camera -- scale focus, f/3.5 triplet lens, fully manual. Years ago, I saw a web site that documented chopping a pair of them and converting them into a full frame stereo camera (which would be slightly hyperstereo; with a frame between the frames your lens center spacing is about 75 mm (2x36 plus 2-3 mm between frames), but obviously it would be simpler, and theoretically adjustable for separation, to just mount two of them on a bracket.

You do have to watch that you get two of the same version; there were three versions of the Pony 135 (plain, B, and C) as well as, IIRC, a Pony II (which was very much not the same camera); the lens was the same only in the B and C.

Donald Qualls said:

Not quite as inexpensive as they used to be (I think I paid a buck for my first one back in 1972), but the Kodak Pony 135 is a pretty decent camera -- scale focus, f/3.5 triplet lens, fully manual. Years ago, I saw a web site that documented chopping a pair of them and converting them into a full frame stereo camera (which would be slightly hyperstereo; with a frame between the frames your lens center spacing is about 75 mm (2x36 plus 2-3 mm between frames), but obviously it would be simpler, and theoretically adjustable for separation, to just mount two of them on a bracket.

You do have to watch that you get two of the same version; there were three versions of the Pony 135 (plain, B, and C) as well as, IIRC, a Pony II (which was very much not the same camera); the lens was the same only in the B and C.

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Hmmm, I'll keep my eye open for those on fleabay.

I saw multiple examples of Pony 135 Model C when I checked running from $10 up BIN. Can't draw any conclusion from bid items, of course, and I didn't check at all deeply for condition -- but the frame count mechanism is easily accessible (top cover is easy to remove) and the shutter is right out where you can get into it to clean and lube.

I shot a few stereo pairs back in the 90s by the "shuffle" method -- shoot one, move the camera a couple inches, and shoot another. Works okay, and you could improvise or fabricate a bracket to make it controllable if you want to use a single, much more expensive camera for stereo pairs.

In the 1980s I made a simple parallelogram device that shifted a single camera back and forth for stereo pairs. It was for still life and landscape only, however.

I'm pretty nearsighted, so I can view the prints without my glasses, I print the pairs to my interpupillary distance.

kingbuzzie said:

I don't want to venture into medium format stereo because the mounts are no longer made (if they were I most certainly would).

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Good news for you -- since 2016 I've been cutting medium format stereo mounts and selling them at cost on my website: solidsight.net. I'm happy to send you a few mounts for free to mount your first roll, just PM me with your address.

If you want the best in stereo, I strongly suggest medium format (MF3D). It blows the socks off 35mm. The Sputnik camera is not overly expensive and can produce spectacular results. If you are interested in MF3D, consider joining the email list: groups.io/g/MF3D. There's a small but dedicated group of artists and some very knowledgeable and friendly people. We share stereo slides with each other by traveling folio boxes that are sent through the mail. It's extremely rewarding to look at the amazing slides others have taken and to get feedback on your own images. There's nothing quite like it. Looking through a properly-exposed slide in a backlit handheld viewer makes you think that you are standing right where the photo was taken!

Also, conveniently, a 6x6 plus the space between frames is fairly close to interocular distance (59-60 mm for the frames, 62-70-something for most eye pairs). Now I'm going to have to consider a bracket and getting another Reflex II (and figuring how to couple the focus of the two) -- or perhaps buy a Sputnik...

iandvaag said:

Good news for you -- since 2016 I've been cutting medium format stereo mounts and selling them at cost on my website: solidsight.net. I'm happy to send you a few mounts for free to mount your first roll, just PM me with your address.

If you want the best in stereo, I strongly suggest medium format (MF3D). It blows the socks off 35mm. The Sputnik camera is not overly expensive and can produce spectacular results. If you are interested in MF3D, consider joining the email list: groups.io/g/MF3D. There's a small but dedicated group of artists and some very knowledgeable and friendly people. We share stereo slides with each other by traveling folio boxes that are sent through the mail. It's extremely rewarding to look at the amazing slides others have taken and to get feedback on your own images. There's nothing quite like it. Looking through a properly-exposed slide in a backlit handheld viewer makes you think that you are standing right where the photo was taken!

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Hmmm... a medium format is something else to think about. I'm still pretty nervous about the investment of a sputnik (still pretty pricey!) with only one (somewhat homespun) supplier of mounts. You certainly provide a valuable service for those who still have medium format stereo cameras.

If you don't mind buying a few thousand at once, I'd bet almost any print shop could get you mounts cut to your specification -- and printed with your copyright information etc. at no additional charge.

Or, if you have access to a laser cutter, you can make your own, in onesies.

I watched a fellow (and assistant) make some hyperstereo images of Bridalvail Fall. Two Hassies (120 SLRs, anyway...it has been a while) about 30 feet apart -- he tossed a rock in between and when it hit the ground, he and his assistant tripped the shutters.

kingbuzzie said:

sputnik (still pretty pricey!)

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You can do medium format cheaper than a Sputnik. For example, Lubitel cameras are quite inexpensive and two of them can be had for less than a Sputnik (although in my case, the shipping is much pricier than the cameras, and having to pay twice the shipping makes the cost almost the same). Any twin rig will take some working to get the sync right and will always be slower than a dedicated stereo camera. But you can also make some stunning hyper stereos.

One of the medium format folios is going to be in Austin, TX sometime in about 2 months. If you are interested, there's a good chance I could arrange for you to come take a look at it. Then you can see what all the fuss is about!

I take your point about the availability of mounts, but I will say that I have no intention of ever stopping production. I'm in this for the long haul. I have a small die-cutting machine and cut them myself. Old stock of mounts also occasionally comes up for sale on eBay. And even if I did stop making them, MF3D is still very much an active format, I'm sure somebody else would step up to the plate and get some made. There's nothing especially complex about the design as Donald points out. I started out cutting my own with a ruler and a razor blade, but I found it to be a bid tedious after a while.

Vaughn, that sounds really cool -- a great technique to achieve sync! A friend of mine has rigged up a car fob to trip a solenoid on his Hassleblads spaced at 40' to take hypers of fireworks -- they're amazing!

Quite a while back I picked up two Olympus 35 RC's with the intent of mounting them on a common rail. The small size would allow various options for spacing. The stereo bug waned, though, and I never got around to it.