Most of us walking around experience stereopsis and you don’t even realize it. In it’s essence, stereopsis is depth perception due to the slightly different perspectives our two eyes have when we look at something. Our brain takes these images to generate what we normally associate as seeing in ‘3D’. You can recreate this experience with photography by taking two separate pictures just slightly offset from each other and fusing them with your eyes.
For example, these two pictures are near identical:
But if I put them side by side and you cross your eyes, you can see the flower pop out at you, with the background quickly dropping off into the distance. If you’ve ever done a Magic Eye as a child, it’s the same idea.
As a standalone piece, this picture isn’t overly special. But I think the 3D effect is enough to make it quite stunning. I’ve been considering getting this picture printed and sent over to my school as a gift. I think it would be a small treat to have my work hung up somewhere before I graduate.
Andy Chen Photography 