Comments on: Color Photographs of the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake

By: Sharon Spanbauer

Sharon Spanbauer — Sun, 22 May 2011 19:06:13 +0000

I viewed the photos in the article in 3D by just holding the page a few inches from my eyes. (Unfocus your eyes, then slowly refocus to bring the images together.) How extraordinary to see this as San Franciscans did over 100 years ago.

By: A W Taylor

A W Taylor — Tue, 10 May 2011 00:46:16 +0000

This is an amazing find. It would be fantastic if the Smithsonian would publish these electronically as high-resolution scans, formatted to print at the correct size for use in a stereoscope. I would love to try viewing these in a stereoscope, as they were originally intended.

By: M L Hooks

M L Hooks — Sun, 01 May 2011 18:24:27 +0000

I printed these out on glossy photo-paper with the image sized at 7 inches wide. Cut them out and they work perfectly, as intended, in a Stereoscope!!! For those who don’t know what a Stereoscope is, ask your grandmother … or perhaps your great-grandmother. It would be nice if the Smithsonian would post a higher resolution image of these … and all 6 of them, if the remaining are as good as these. Maurice

By: Pete

Pete — Sun, 01 May 2011 13:39:37 +0000

These photographs are priceless. They are a true treasure.

By: Bob Wilkinson

Bob Wilkinson — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 03:53:05 +0000

Being nearsighted, I was able to move very close to the images and enjoy a fine 3-D view. Better, as Jackie explained, than either image. But I was not able to do it with all the images. Are they perhaps wrongly registered?

By: William H. Walling

William H. Walling — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 03:14:06 +0000

I can’t vouch for crossing my eyes to achieve the 3-D effect but if each of the two left photos on Page 33 of the May 2011 issue were printed in reverse, using a thin mirror held vertically between the matching photos and looking at the right photo with the right eye and the mirror image of the left photo with the left eye, one should clearly see the photo in 3-D. That would truly have been a novel achievement to capture these scenes with total realism. It might even be worth republishing these photos as I noted above with the “mirror” instructions included. Bill Walling
15 Tamarac Drive, Madison, CT 06443

By: jackie woodward

jackie woodward — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 14:33:40 +0000

If you are familiar with the modern 3-D computer generated images on a flat piece of paper, you also know that your eyes must adjust to achieve the 3-D effect. I tried this technique with the kromograms. I let my eyes cross and focused on the image in the center. Not only does the image appear in 3-D but becomes much clearer than either of the original images.

By: Dan

Dan — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 02:46:28 +0000

Cool!

By: Jan Freed

Jan Freed — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 15:22:14 +0000

I used to visit my Dad at 450 Sutter St, in SF. It was a tall (to me as a kid) office building. Your photograph taken from Sutter St., in 1906, really made vivid how the city had changed in 50 years.

Dad was born in 1906.