Stereo pictures can be accomplished using only one camera.
The easiest and most accurate stereoscopic photographs are taken using two cameras at once -- or a single camera equipped with two lenses made specifically for stereo photography. The advantage of having two cameras is that your subject can be anything, stationary or moving, because both images are recorded at once. With only one camera, your subject is limited to only still objects, such as a building or person sitting without any motion because the two images must be taken separately. You can view your stereoscopic images by slightly crossing or relaxing your eyes to help focus on both images at once, creating a 3-D effect.
Instructions
1. Using only one camera, position your subject and prepare to take the first photograph. Keep the camera horizontal and note the distance between the camera and the subject, as well as the framing for alignment purposes, because you'll need this information later.
2. Take the first photograph -- consider this either your left or your right photograph, depending on your position. As a general rule for positioning your single camera to take stereoscopic images, the distance you move the camera from position L to position R should be roughly 1/30 of the distance between the camera and subject.
3. Take the second photograph after shifting the required distance from your first position. In many cases, the "cha cha" technique is used -- this is when you take one image with all your weight on one leg, and then shift all your weight to the other leg and take the next image. This works well if your subject is not too far away; photographing something like a mountain would require a greater position change than the "cha cha" can provide.
4. Place the two photographs side by side to view with the left on the left and right on the right. Stare at the two images and relax your eyes so that the two pictures merge into one to create a 3-D stereoscopic effect.
Tags: your subject, only camera, between camera, between camera subject, both images, camera subject