Hello everyone,

This afternoon I discovered a way to make stereograms in POV-Ray. A
gray-scale depth image is used for input, and any gray-scale pigment can
be used for the repetitive pattern. Colors are added at the
implementation, near the bottom of the file.

I find it best to view the image at a distance of about three feet from
the monitor.

This image took 2 minutes, 14 seconds to render. Some take longer, some
take less time. The render time for the gray-scale depth image was a
negligible one.

Questions and comments, always welcome~

Sam

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Attachments:
Download 'stereogram2_14.jpg' (148 KB)

Preview of image 'stereogram2_14.jpg'

Very well done.  I was able to glance around the whole box the snowman is
in.

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WOW! Very very nice.  The first time I got a strange variation with 
three (or more) objects, including a skinny one in front and some chubby 
ones behind.  Then I wiggled my eyes a bit to far and lost it.

When I got it back I only had one perfectly formed object, and the 3D 
lock was among the best I've ever experienced.  I had no trouble with 
the illusion that I could reach into my monitor and pick it up.  Love it!

If you have time and/or inclination I would really like to see a short 
tutorial (with source) on how this was accomplished so I could do it 
with object(s) of my own design.

Thanks for posting!

ps:  A long time ago somebody told me that the best way to see one of 
these (for beginners) was to display it on a shiny surface and focus on 
your reflection.  Just a trick to double your focal distance I guess. 
Today I managed to look at something on the wall behind my monitor and 
that worked.


stbenge wrote:
> Hello everyone,
> 
> This afternoon I discovered a way to make stereograms in POV-Ray. A
> gray-scale depth image is used for input, and any gray-scale pigment can
> be used for the repetitive pattern. Colors are added at the
> implementation, near the bottom of the file.
> 
> I find it best to view the image at a distance of about three feet from
> the monitor.
> 
> This image took 2 minutes, 14 seconds to render. Some take longer, some
> take less time. The render time for the gray-scale depth image was a
> negligible one.
> 
> Questions and comments, always welcome~
> 
> Sam
> 
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>

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Arrgh!!

I can only keep it in focus for a few fractions of a second and my temper is 
too bad to persist, but I am glad that I was able to at least see it! ;-)

Good job!

ian

"stbenge" <stb### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message 
news:476b333c@news.povray.org...
> Hello everyone,
>
> This afternoon I discovered a way to make stereograms in POV-Ray. A
> gray-scale depth image is used for input, and any gray-scale pigment can
> be used for the repetitive pattern. Colors are added at the
> implementation, near the bottom of the file.
>
> I find it best to view the image at a distance of about three feet from
> the monitor.
>
> This image took 2 minutes, 14 seconds to render. Some take longer, some
> take less time. The render time for the gray-scale depth image was a
> negligible one.
>
> Questions and comments, always welcome~
>
> Sam
>
>
>

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Hmm...apparently I was too far....8" seems optimal for me!

;-)

fwiw,
ian

"[GDS|Entropy]" <gds### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message 
news:476b41ed$1@news.povray.org...
> Arrgh!!
>
> I can only keep it in focus for a few fractions of a second and my temper 
> is too bad to persist, but I am glad that I was able to at least see it! 
> ;-)
>
> Good job!
>
> ian
>
> "stbenge" <stb### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message 
> news:476b333c@news.povray.org...
>> Hello everyone,
>>
>> This afternoon I discovered a way to make stereograms in POV-Ray. A
>> gray-scale depth image is used for input, and any gray-scale pigment can
>> be used for the repetitive pattern. Colors are added at the
>> implementation, near the bottom of the file.
>>
>> I find it best to view the image at a distance of about three feet from
>> the monitor.
>>
>> This image took 2 minutes, 14 seconds to render. Some take longer, some
>> take less time. The render time for the gray-scale depth image was a
>> negligible one.
>>
>> Questions and comments, always welcome~
>>
>> Sam
>>
>>
>>
>
>

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stbenge <stb### [at] hotmailcom> wrote:
> Hello everyone,
>
> This afternoon I discovered a way to make stereograms in POV-Ray. A
> gray-scale depth image is used for input, and any gray-scale pigment can
> be used for the repetitive pattern. Colors are added at the
> implementation, near the bottom of the file.
>
> I find it best to view the image at a distance of about three feet from
> the monitor.
>
> This image took 2 minutes, 14 seconds to render. Some take longer, some
> take less time. The render time for the gray-scale depth image was a
> negligible one.
>
> Questions and comments, always welcome~
>
> Sam

Nice! A snowman! I remember making random-dot stereograms back in highschool by
writing pascal programs. This was back when these things were the biggest fad
(mid-'90s). I really wasn't able to make more than a combination of geometric
shapes.

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Greg M. Johnson wrote:
> Very well done.  I was able to glance around the whole box the snowman is
> in.

Thanks. It helps matters somewhat when the edges are antialiased.

Sam

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Spock wrote:
> WOW! Very very nice.  The first time I got a strange variation with 
> three (or more) objects, including a skinny one in front and some chubby 
> ones behind.  Then I wiggled my eyes a bit to far and lost it.
> 
> When I got it back I only had one perfectly formed object, and the 3D 
> lock was among the best I've ever experienced.  I had no trouble with 
> the illusion that I could reach into my monitor and pick it up.  Love it!

Thank you very much for your input! I was beginning to think the only 
reason I saw it so well was because I already knew what to look for. My 
brother can't see these things (and thus provide input), unless the 
effect is reversed. It is much easier to cross your eyes that it is to 
relax them, even though crossing your eyes puts more strain on them.

> If you have time and/or inclination I would really like to see a short 
> tutorial (with source) on how this was accomplished so I could do it 
> with object(s) of my own design.

I will make this my priority after Christmas shopping, which I will be 
doing tomorrow.

> Thanks for posting!

No problem :) (no problem this time, there are so many things I haven't 
posted :/ )

> ps:  A long time ago somebody told me that the best way to see one of 
> these (for beginners) was to display it on a shiny surface and focus on 
> your reflection.  Just a trick to double your focal distance I guess. 
> Today I managed to look at something on the wall behind my monitor and 
> that worked.
>  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

I think I learned with the 'nose to the paper' technique. That was back 
in the mid-09s.

Sa,

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[GDS|Entropy] wrote:
> Arrgh!!
> 
> I can only keep it in focus for a few fractions of a second and my temper is 
> too bad to persist, but I am glad that I was able to at least see it! ;-)
> 
> Good job!

Thanks, and you too for managing to see it!

Sam

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jhu wrote:
> 
> Nice! A snowman!>

Thanks!

> I remember making random-dot stereograms back in highschool by
> writing pascal programs. This was back when these things were the biggest fad
> (mid-'90s). I really wasn't able to make more than a combination of geometric
> shapes.
> 

That was my experience a few years ago with Euphoria. I got it to work, 
but I was using simple math routines for the depth data. Nothing very 
exciting.

Sam

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